History is selective. What history books tell us about the…
Read the text aloud.
History is selective. What history books tell us about the past is not everything that happened, but what historians have selected. They cannot put in everything: choices have to be made. Choices must similarly be made about which aspects of the past should be formally taught to the next generation in the shape of school history lessons.
Opens question #010340 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
History is selective.|What history books tell us about the past|is not everything that happened,‖but what historians have selected.‖They cannot put in everything:|choices have to be made.‖Choices must similarly be made|about which aspects of the past|should be formally taught‖to the next generation|in the shape of school history lessons.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Aim for 22–26 seconds.
Words to stress correctly
| historians | his·TO·ri·ans | /hɪˈstɔriənz/ |
| generation | gen·er·A·tion | /dʒɛnɚˈeɪʃən/ |
| selective | se·LEC·tive | /səˈlɛktɪv/ |
| similarly | SIM·i·lar·ly | /ˈsɪməlɚli/ |
| selected | se·LEC·ted | /səˈlɛktɪd/ |
| everything | EV·ery·thing | /ˈɛvriθɪŋ/ |
57 words, aim 22–26 seconds. No numbers. Breathe after happened, selected, made (end of the third sentence) and taught; a short pause after selective. and at the colon.
Where marks are usually lost
Stress: se·LEC·tive, se·LEC·ted, his·TO·ri·ans on the second syllable; gen·er·A·tion on the third; SIM·i·lar·ly and EV·ery·thing on the first. Keep -s in books, historians, choices, aspects, lessons and -ed in happened, selected. Don't rush the three-word opening.
General tip: Give History is selective. its own full falling tone and a clear pause — reading straight into What history books blurs two sentences into one.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 历史是有选择性的。历史书告诉我们的过去，并不是发生过的一切，而是历史学家所挑选的内容。他们不可能把所有东西都写进去：必须做出选择。同样，关于过去的哪些方面应该以学校历史课的形式正式教给下一代，也必须做出选择。
हिन्दी: इतिहास चयनात्मक है। इतिहास की किताबें हमें अतीत के बारे में जो बताती हैं, वह सब कुछ नहीं है जो हुआ, बल्कि वह है जो इतिहासकारों ने चुना है। वे सब कुछ शामिल नहीं कर सकते: चुनाव करने पड़ते हैं। इसी तरह यह चुनाव भी करना होता है कि अतीत के कौन से पहलू स्कूल के इतिहास पाठों के रूप में अगली पीढ़ी को औपचारिक रूप से पढ़ाए जाएँ।
नेपाली: इतिहास छनोटमा आधारित छ। इतिहासका किताबले अतीतबारे हामीलाई बताउने कुरा घटेका सबै कुरा होइनन्, बरु इतिहासकारले छानेका कुरा हुन्। उनीहरूले सबै कुरा राख्न सक्दैनन्: छनोट गर्नैपर्छ। त्यसैगरी, अतीतका कुन पक्ष विद्यालयको इतिहास पाठका रूपमा अर्को पुस्तालाई औपचारिक रूपमा सिकाइनुपर्छ भन्नेबारे पनि छनोट गर्नुपर्छ।
Tiếng Việt: Lịch sử mang tính chọn lọc. Những gì sách lịch sử kể cho chúng ta về quá khứ không phải là tất cả những gì đã xảy ra, mà là những gì các sử gia đã chọn. Họ không thể đưa vào mọi thứ: phải có sự lựa chọn. Tương tự, cũng phải lựa chọn những khía cạnh nào của quá khứ nên được chính thức giảng dạy cho thế hệ tiếp theo dưới hình thức các bài học lịch sử ở trường.
More Read Aloud questions
Read Aloud format (Pearson)
| Prompt | Text up to 60 words |
|---|---|
| Preparation | 30–40 seconds |
| Time to answer | Depends on the length of the text |
| Skills assessed | Speaking |
| Scored on | Content; Pronunciation; Oral fluency |
How it is scored
- Content is scored by counting the correct words in your response.
- If you stay silent for more than 3 seconds, the recording stops.
- You can record your response only once.
Source: Pearson, PTE Academic & UKVI test format, Part 1: Speaking & Writing, checked 9 October 2026.