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Reading · Viewpoints

CELPIP Reading practice: compare two street-closure viewpoints

Compare two original viewpoints and explain inference, disagreement and qualified support.

By MockMaple · Updated

Try the prompt

Read the proposal and the two responses. Answer from the text, even if you have a different personal opinion.

  • This is a short teaching exercise on viewpoints, not a full official-format part.

Plan your approach

  1. Identify each writer’s overall position.
  2. Mark concessions and conditions.
  3. Check whether an answer applies to one writer, both or neither.

Read the source

Proposal: The town is considering closing Market Street to cars on Saturday afternoons for a six-week trial. Buses would use a parallel road. Shops would remain open. Mira, café owner: I support the trial. More space for people to walk could encourage visitors to spend time here instead of simply driving through. I would like to put a few tables outside if permission is available. However, suppliers need to reach my kitchen, so deliveries should be allowed before the closure begins. We should count visitors and ask shops about sales before making the arrangement permanent. Owen, resident: I like the idea of a calmer street, but the current proposal does not explain how residents with limited mobility would reach the shops. Moving every bus stop farther away could make an ordinary shopping trip difficult. I would support a revised plan that keeps a nearby accessible drop-off point. My concern is access, not whether cafés should have outdoor tables. A trial is useful only if we listen to people who find the new arrangement harder to use.

Why these choices work

A response or interpretation to improve

Owen mentions a problem, so he opposes every possible street closure.

Distinguish opposition from conditional support

Owen says he would support a revised plan. His condition concerns access, so total opposition would misrepresent his view.

Avoid importing your own opinion

Whether you personally like street closures does not determine what either writer believes. Use their stated reasons and conditions.

Vocabulary in context

provided that

Only if the stated condition is met.

Owen could support the plan provided that access improves.

Choose the right alternative: Although introduces a contrast; provided that introduces a condition.

Usage note: Changing the connector can change the writer’s position.

on the same page

In agreement or sharing an understanding.

The writers are not yet on the same page about access arrangements.

Choose the right alternative: Agree is a plainer alternative.

Usage note: This conversational idiom should not replace a precise explanation of their disagreement.

Explore vocabulary, synonyms and idioms

Check your understanding

Choose an answer to see the evidence and an explanation for every option. These checks are not a proficiency score.

1. What is Owen’s main concern?
2. Which statement best describes Mira?
3. What can reasonably be inferred about both writers?
All answers and explanations

What is Owen’s main concern?

Answer: Access for people with limited mobility.

Evidence: My concern is access

  • Outdoor café tables.: He explicitly distinguishes his concern from outdoor tables.
  • Access for people with limited mobility.: He discusses bus stops and a nearby accessible drop-off point.
  • The length of the six-week trial.: He does not object to the stated duration.

Which statement best describes Mira?

Answer: She supports the trial with practical conditions and evaluation.

Evidence: We should count visitors and ask shops about sales

  • She supports the trial with practical conditions and evaluation.: She supports the trial, requests delivery access and wants visitor and sales evidence.
  • She wants all shops closed on Saturdays.: The proposal keeps shops open and Mira does not ask to close them.
  • She says increased sales are guaranteed.: Could encourage is a possibility, not a guarantee.

What can reasonably be inferred about both writers?

Answer: They see a reason to assess how the trial affects people.

Evidence: A trial is useful only if we listen to people who find the new arrangement harder to use.

  • They want the plan made permanent immediately.: Mira wants evidence first, and Owen wants affected people heard.
  • They reject all changes to the street.: Both show support, with conditions.
  • They see a reason to assess how the trial affects people.: Mira asks for visitor and sales evidence; Owen asks that difficulties be heard.

Try a new situation

Write one sentence describing each writer’s position, using a connector that preserves their condition or contrast.

Use your own notes or voice recorder, then check your work:

  • Have you preserved each writer’s qualification?
  • Does your inference follow from both passages?
  • Can you explain why a tempting option overstates the evidence?
Apply this in free practice

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