Lesson AO4-1

AO4-1 Evaluate texts critically Quiz: AQA English Language, Unit 3

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson AO4-1, Evaluate texts critically: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA GCSE English Language (8700), Unit 3: Assessment objectives, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What does AO4 require students to do with texts?

    • Copy them out accurately from the printed page
    • Evaluate them critically
    • Summarise them in one sentence each for the examiner
    • Rewrite them in a more modern style of English

  2. Which is the best way to evaluate how persuasive a text is?

    • Judge how well its methods and evidence persuade the intended reader
    • Decide whether the text's author is famous enough to be trusted
    • State whether you personally like the subject of the text or not
    • Count the number of exclamation marks and treat the total as the verdict

  3. A text relies on a single anonymous source for a claim. What is a critical evaluation?

    • The claim is irrelevant because all sources are always anonymous
    • The claim is certainly true because it was published in a magazine
    • The claim may be less reliable because its source is not identified
    • The claim is more reliable because there is only one source to check

  4. What does 'bias' mean when evaluating a text?

    • A list of references placed at the end of the document
    • A small error in the spelling of a single word in the text
    • A tendency to favour one side or view over others
    • A deliberate use of long sentences to slow the reader down

  5. Which is the most effective way to show a text's weakness?

    • Say that the text is too long, without any comment on its content or its effect
    • Identify a claim that is unsupported and explain why it weakens the argument
    • Point out that the author does not share the reader's own opinion on the topic
    • State that the text is bad, without any reason or example to support it

  6. A writer makes a sweeping generalisation: 'Everyone agrees on this.' What is a critical response?

    • The claim is wholly accurate because the writer says so confidently
    • The claim is a fact that every reader in the world would accept
    • The claim overstates agreement and needs evidence to be convincing
    • The claim cannot be evaluated, as sweeping statements are always true

  7. Which is an example of a text's strength?

    • Its use of an unusual font on the first page of the printed text
    • Its use of specific, verifiable statistics to back its argument
    • Its title, which is long and contains several different words
    • Its colour scheme, which is blue and white on the cover

  8. What does a critical reader consider when evaluating a text's purpose?

    • Whether the text achieves what it sets out to do for its audience
    • Whether the author has a large number of followers on social media
    • Whether the text has been translated into another language yet
    • Whether the text is longer than the average article in the newspaper

  9. A writer uses emotive language to argue a point. What is a critical evaluation of this?

    • Emotive language is only used in poems, so it is irrelevant here
    • Emotive language is always wrong and should never be used by writers
    • Emotive language is always right and should always be trusted by readers
    • Emotive language can persuade, but it may replace evidence with feeling

  10. Which statement is a balanced evaluation of a text?

    • It is the best text ever written and nothing more needs to be said
    • It has more paragraphs than the other text, so it must be better
    • Its argument is clear and well structured, though its evidence is limited
    • It is dull and nobody should ever read it for any reason, whatever the purpose

  11. What is the best way to judge whether a text is reliable?

    • Check whether its claims are supported by evidence and by a credible source
    • Decide reliability by counting the number of adjectives in the first paragraph
    • Assume it is unreliable because it is not written in the first person
    • Assume it is reliable because it was printed in a well-known book

  12. Which is an effective critical question to ask of a persuasive article?

    • Does the article have a photograph on its front page or on its back?
    • Does the writer acknowledge the other side, or ignore it completely?
    • Is the article printed in black ink on white paper or on coloured paper?
    • How many words does the article have if you count the title as well?

  13. A text uses a question and no answer to make the reader think. What is a critical comment?

    • The technique proves the writer is right about the topic in full
    • The technique is always wrong and makes the text impossible to read
    • The technique has no effect at all on the reader's thinking process
    • The technique engages the reader, though the argument may be left open

  14. What is 'the intended audience' in a critical evaluation?

    • The examiner who will eventually mark the student's response
    • The readers the writer had in mind when shaping the text
    • The printer who produced the first copy of the text in print
    • Every person who has ever read the text in its whole history

  15. Which judgement is most secure in a critical response?

    • The text cannot be judged because it was written a long time ago
    • The text is effective for its audience, but one argument is weakly supported
    • The text is wrong, and every claim it makes must be false from start to end
    • The text is always right, and no one could possibly disagree with it

  16. A student says a text 'is effective because it uses three examples'. What must follow for this to be critical?

    • An explanation of why those examples persuade the intended reader
    • A list of all the other texts which also use three examples in total
    • A repetition of the three examples in a different order for the reader
    • A statement that the number three is always better than other numbers

  17. Which is a sign that a student is evaluating rather than describing?

    • They list the methods used in the text in the order they appear
    • They judge how well a method works and why it does or does not
    • They retell the plot of the text in their own words for the examiner
    • They copy a long passage without comment to show it was read

  18. A text presents an opinion as if it were a proven fact. What is the critical point?

    • The reader should accept the opinion because it is presented as fact
    • The reader should ignore the text because it contains any opinion at all
    • The reader should question whether the opinion is supported by evidence
    • The reader should count how many times the word 'fact' is used

  19. Which is the strongest evaluation of a text's tone?

    • Its tone suits its audience, though its sarcasm may alienate some readers
    • Its tone is the same as the tone of every other text in the exam paper
    • Its tone uses bright colours in its title, which makes it a visual text overall for readers
    • Its tone is nice and its words are good, so it is an excellent text

  20. A text quotes a statistic without giving its source. What is the best critical comment?

    • The statistic should be ignored because the writer has used a number rather than a word
    • The statistic is irrelevant to the argument, and the reader should skip past it entirely
    • The statistic is always accurate because numbers are never wrong or biased
    • The statistic cannot be checked, so its weight in the argument is unclear

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