兩大基本考點——skimming和scanning
其實“快速四級閱讀”這個稱謂是對這部分題型名稱的一種誤解，甚或說是一種誤譯。實際上試題冊上所給的題型英文名稱是Reading Comprehension ——四級閱讀理解。不少考生正是由於受到所謂“快速”兩字的誤導，以爲單純求快就可以萬事大吉，殊不知這其中是另有“隱情”。
Skimming——略讀
略讀，顧名思義就是要求考生在較短時間內把握住文章某個段落的主題思想。我們首先來看一下2010年6月份快速四級閱讀第一題：
1. What eventually made Carla Toebe realize she was spending too much time on the Internet?
A) Her daughter's repeated complaints.
B) Fatigue resulting from lack of sleep.
C) The poorly managed state of her house.
D) The high financial costs adding up.
一般來說快速四級閱讀的第一題往往是針對文章的開頭部分。以該題爲例，基本上所有考生都能夠定位到第一段。可是第一段到底應該怎麼讀就成了個大問題。
A few months ago, it wasn't unusual for 47-year-old Carla Toebe to spend 15 hours per day online. She'd wake up early, turn on her laptop and chat on Internet dating sites and instant-messaging programs – leaving her bed for only brief intervals. Her household bills piled up, along with the dishes and dirty laundry, but it took near-constant complaints from her four daughters before she realized she had a problem.
誠然，從頭到尾“快速”讀完確實是個辦法——而且也是絕大多數考生使用的辦法，但這樣做完全失去了skimming的意義。換個角度來說，如果每個題目都像這樣把段落讀完，那麼十道題加在一起所積累的四級閱讀量勢必將超過15分鐘的大限。其實大部分文章的段落重點或者說中心都集中在首末句上。略讀所要考察的就是考生是否敢於大膽抓住首末句，拋去段落中間的`無效部分，從而迅速找到答案。以本題而言，該段最後一句，尤其是but之後的“it took near-constant complaints from her four daughters before she realized she had a problem”就是答案所在位置。故而選擇A選項。
再看2009年6月的快速英語四級閱讀第六題：
6. What did Dale think of Mindsets LLC’s workshop?
A) It was well-intentioned but poorly conducted.
B) It tapped into the executives’ full potential.
C) It helped him make fair decisions.
D) It met participants’ diverse needs.
這道題在當年得分率非常低。原因就在於這道題對應的可能段落有兩段而不是一段：
“I had a management position open in my department ;and the two finalists were a man and a woman . Had I not attended this workshop , I would have automatically assumed the man was the best candidate because the position required quite a bit of extensive travel . …”Dale’s assumptions are another example of the well-intentioned but incorrect thinking that limits an organization’s ability to tap into the full potential of a diverse workforce .
“I learned from the class that instead of imposing my gender biases into the situation , I needed to present the full range of duties, responsibilities and expectations to all candidates and allow them to make an informed decision .” Dale credits the workshop , “because it helped me make decisions based on fairness .”
這道題目的要求更高。考生不僅要知道重點在兩個段落的首末句上，還需要結合題目所問，對這四個句子孰輕孰重作出預先判斷，然後再進行四級閱讀。題目問的是Dale對這個研討班的看法。據此看來一段第一句無效，因其起始部分講到的是Dale在公司的position。同樣該段末句也無效，Dale’s assumptions——講的是Dale原先的一些錯誤想法和做法。很可惜的是當年不少考生都在這兩個句子上耗費了大量時間，甚至還有個別考生通讀該段，這樣自然是得不償失。
再來看下一段的第一句，I learned from the class that instead of imposing my gender biases into the situation。這句話有用嗎?顯然也不行。因爲它所講到的是Dale在學習班裏的收穫。最後一句說道“because it helped me make decisions based on fairness”。讀到這裏第六題的答案也就順理成章的選擇C了。
2010年6月第七題：
7. Andrew Heidrich now visits websites that discuss online gaming addiction to __________.
A) improve his online gaming skills
B) curb his desire for online gaming
C) show how good he is at online gaming
D) exchange online gaming experience
這道題和上述第六題頗有些相像。它對應的段落，也就是出現了Heidrich這個人物的段落，同樣也是兩段：
Andrew Heidrich, an education network administrator from Sacramento, plays World of Warcraft for about two to four hours every other night, but that's nothing compared with the 40 to 60 hours a week he spent playing online games when he was in college. He cut back only after a full-scale family intervention , in which relatives told him he'd gained weight.
There's this whole culture of competition that sucks people in with online gaming, said Heidrich, now a father of two. People do it at the expense of everything that was a constant in their lives. Heidrich now visits websites that discuss gaming addiction regularly to remind myself to keep my love for online games in check.
如果讀者朋友掌握了我們剛纔所講的方法自然就會覺得這題就比較輕鬆了。同樣是抓住兩個段落的四個重點句，然後根據題幹進行判斷。分析過程這裏就不再贅述。很明顯第二段最後一句是符合要求的。Heidrich now visits websites that discuss gaming addiction regularly to remind myself to keep my love for online games in check.所以答案選擇B。
