Reading Text

Basic to any understanding of Canada in the 20 years after the Second World War is the country’s impressive population growth. 

For every three Canadians in 1945, there were over five in 1966. In September 1966, Canada’s population passed the 20 million mark. Most of this surging growth came from natural increase. The depression of the 1930’s and the war had held back marriages, and the catching-up process began after 1945. The baby room continued through decade of the 1950’s, producing a population increase of nearly fifteen percent in the five years from 1951 to 1956.

This rate of increase had been exceeded only once before in Canada’s history, in the decade before 1911, when the prairies were being settled. Undoubtedly, the good economic conditions of the 1950’s supported a growth in the population, but the expansion also derived from a trend toward earlier marriages and an increase in the average size of families. In 1957, the Canadian birth rate stood at 28 per thousand, one of the highest in the world.

After the peak year of 1957, the birth rate in Canada began to decline. It continued falling until 1966. It stood at the lowest level in 25 years. Partly this decline reflected the low level of births during the depression and the war, but it was also cause by changes in Canadian society. Young people were staying at school longer; more women were working; young married couples were buying automobiles or houses before starting families; rising living standards were cutting down the size of families. It appeared that Canada was once more falling in step with the trend toward smaller families that had occurred all through the Western world since the time of the Industrial Revolution.

Although the growth in Canada’s population had slowed down by 1966 (the increase in first half of the 1960’s was only nine percent), another large population wave was coming over the horizon. It would be composed of the children of the children who were born during the period of the high birth rate prior to 1957. Dasar untuk setiap pemahaman tentang Kanada dalam 20 tahun setelah Perang Dunia Kedua adalah pertumbuhan penduduk yang mengesankan di negara itu.

1. What does the passage mainly discuss?

1. Educational changes in Canadian society
2. Canada during the Second World War 
3. Population trends in postwar Canada
4. Standards of living in Canada

2. According to the passage, when did Canada’s baby boom begin?

1. In the decade after 1911
2. After 1945
3. During the depressions of the 1930’s
4. In 1966

3. The word “five” in line 3 refers to

1. Canadians
2. Years
3. Decades
4. Marriages

4. The word “surging” in line 4 is closest in meaning to

1. New
2. Extra
3. Accelerating
4. Surprising

5. The author suggests that in Canada during the 1950’s is

1. The urban population decrease rapidly
2. Fewer people married
3. Economic conditions were poor
4. The birth rate was very high

6. The word “trend” in line 12 is closest in meaning to  ….

1. Tendency
2. Aim
3. Growth
4. Directive

7. The word “peak” in line 15 is closest in meaning to ….

1. Pointed
2. Dismal
3. Mountain
4. Maximum

8. When was the birth rate in Canada at its lowest postwar level?

1. 1966
2. 1957
3. 1956
4. 1951

9. The author mentions all of the following as causes of declines in population growth after 1957, EXCEPT

1. People being better educated
2. People getting married earlier
3. Better standards of living
4. Couples buying houses

10. It can be inferred from the passage that before the Industrial Revolution 

1. Families were larger
2. Population statistics were unreliable
3. The population grew steadily
4. Economic conditions were bad

11. The word “it” in line 25 refers to 

1. Horizon
2. Population wave
3. Nine percent
4. D. First half

12. The phrase “prior to”  in line 26 is closest in meaning to….

1. Behind
2. Since
3. During
4. Preceding

KUNCI JAWABAN

1. C. Population trends in postwar Canada

2. B. After 1945

Catching-up process = mengejar ketinggalan

Baby boom = ledakan kelahiran bayi

Exceed = melampaui

3. A. Canadians

4. C. Accelerating

Surging = melonjak

Accelerate = mempercepat

5. D. The birth rate was very high

Rapidly = dengan cepat

Urban population = penduduk kota

Decrease = berkurang 

Few = beberapa, sedikit, tidak banyak

Birth rate = angka kelahiran

6. A. Tendency

Tendency = kecenderungan, tendensi

Aim = tujuan, sasaran, maksud

Growth = pertumbuhan

Directive = arahan, instruksi, perintah

Expansion = ekspansi, pengembangan, perluasan

Derive from = berasal dari, memperoleh sesuatu dari

7. D. Maximum

Pointed = tajam, runcing, jelas

Dismal = suram, muram, sedih

Decline = turun, menurun, menolak

Mountain = gunung

Maximum = maksimal

Peak = ujung, puncak

8. A. 1966

9. B. People getting married earlier

10. A. Families were larger

Inferred = disimpulkan

Passage = bacaan

Unreliable = tidak dapat dipercaya

Steadily = stabil, tetap, terus sama

11. B. Population wave

Come over the horizon = mulai datang, mulai muncul

Be composed of  = terdiri dari

12. D. Preceding

Prior to = sebelum

Preceding = terdahulu, sebelumnya

Translate

Untuk setiap tiga orang Kanada pada tahun 1945, ada lebih dari lima pada tahun 1966. Pada bulan September 1966, populasi Kanada melewati angka 20 juta. Sebagian besar lonjakan pertumbuhan ini berasal dari peningkatan alami. Depresi tahun 1930-an dan perang telah menahan pernikahan, dan proses mengejar ketertinggalan dimulai setelah 1945. “Kamar bayi” berlanjut hingga dekade 1950-an, menghasilkan peningkatan populasi hampir lima belas persen dalam lima tahun dari tahun 1951 hingga 1956.

Tingkat peningkatan ini hanya pernah dilampaui sekali sebelumnya dalam sejarah Kanada, pada dekade sebelum 1911, ketika padang rumput sedang diselesaikan. Tidak diragukan lagi, kondisi ekonomi yang baik pada tahun 1950-an mendukung pertumbuhan penduduk, tetapi perluasan tersebut juga berasal dari kecenderungan ke arah pernikahan dini dan peningkatan rata-rata ukuran keluarga. Pada tahun 1957, tingkat kelahiran Kanada mencapai 28 per seribu, salah satu yang tertinggi di dunia.

Setelah puncak tahun 1957, angka kelahiran di Kanada mulai menurun. Itu terus jatuh hingga 1966. Itu berdiri di level terendah dalam 25 tahun. Sebagian penurunan ini mencerminkan rendahnya tingkat kelahiran selama masa depresi dan perang, tetapi juga disebabkan oleh perubahan dalam masyarakat Kanada. Orang-orang muda tinggal di sekolah lebih lama; lebih banyak perempuan yang bekerja; pasangan muda yang sudah menikah membeli mobil atau rumah sebelum memulai keluarga; meningkatnya standar hidup mengurangi jumlah keluarga. Tampaknya Kanada sekali lagi mengikuti tren menuju keluarga yang lebih kecil yang telah terjadi di seluruh dunia Barat sejak masa Revolusi Industri.

Meskipun pertumbuhan populasi Kanada telah melambat pada tahun 1966 (peningkatan pada paruh pertama tahun 1960-an hanya sembilan persen), gelombang populasi besar lainnya akan datang. Ini akan terdiri dari anak-anak dari anak-anak yang lahir selama periode tingkat kelahiran yang tinggi sebelum tahun 1957.

Itu saja soal yang bisa saya bagi. Soal tipe lain bisa dilihat di bawah ini. Semoga bermanfaat. 

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Soal Bahasa Inggris TOEFL: Error Recognition

- short description about the writer-