Reading Literature Test Part 2

2 2 Writing and Language Test 35 MINUTES, 44 QUESTIONS Turn to Section 2 of your answer sheet to answer the questions in this section. DIR ECT ION S Each passage below is accompanied by a number of questions. For some questions, you will consider how the passage might be revised to improve the expression of ideas. For other questions, you will consider how the passage might be edited to correct errors in sentence structure, usage, or punctuation. A passage or a question may be accompanied by one or more graphics (such as a table or graph) that you will consider as you make revising and editing decisions. Some questions will direct you to an underlined portion of a passage. Other questions will direct you to a location in a passage or ask you to think about the passage as a whole. After reading each passage, choose the answer to each question that most effectively improves the quality of writing in the passage or that makes the passage conform to the conventions of standard written English. Many questions include a “NO CHANGE” option. Choose that option if you think the best choice is to leave the relevant portion of the passage as it is. Questions 1-11 are based on the following passage. 1 A) NO CHANGE B) in search of The Pioneers of the Great Exodus C) with a look for At the end of the Reconstruction era that followed D) to the discovery of the American Civil War, tens of thousands of black former slaves left the southern United States 1 for finding social and economic opportunity in the western 2 A) NO CHANGE states and territories. The movement was known as the B) his or her Great Exodus, and 2 their participants came to be C) its D) one’s CONTINUE 2 called exodusters. 3 During this time, travel from one 2 3 Which choice provides the most appropriate context for the discussion that follows in the passage? part of the country to another took days or even weeks, and the dangers wild animals posed were not to be A) NO CHANGE underestimated. B) Settlers from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri were part of the Great Exodus. The most popular destination was Kansas, in part C) The Great Exodus has parallels to large-scale migrations that occurred in the United States during the twentieth century. because of its role as an early stronghold of the movement to abolish slavery. One settlement in that state D) Drawn by the promise of farming on their own land rather than sharecropping for a landlord, exodusters founded dozens of communities in the West in the 1870s and 1880s. was Nicodemus, a town in northwestern Kansas that drew more than 300 settlers to make the long journey from Kentucky in 1877. 4 Real estate agents 5 mentioned Nicodemus in brochures and newspapers, 4 but the reality that exodusters confronted on arrival was At this point, the writer is considering adding the following sentence. less appealing. For one early settler of Nicodemus, Between 1870 and 1879, approximately 10,000 exodusters entered Kansas. Willianna Hickman, the flat, empty landscape contrasted starkly with the forested hills where she grew up— Should the writer make this addition here? Hickman recalled bursting into tears when she first saw A) Yes, because it sheds light on an aspect of the settlers’ backgrounds. her new home. B) Yes, because it provides a historical context for the discussion of the Great Exodus. C) No, because it contradicts information in the previous paragraph. D) No, because it digresses from the discussion of the settlement of Nicodemus. 5 Which choice most effectively sets up the information that follows in the paragraph? A) NO CHANGE B) wrote songs and slogans to attract settlers, C) advertised the location and characteristics of Nicodemus, D) promised plentiful harvests and abundant wildlife, CONTINUE 2 Some exodusters returned to the familiar 2 6 A) NO CHANGE 6 expanse of their home 7 states: but others— B) terrain including Hickman and her husband, Daniel, decided to C) spread stay in their new farming villages. These farmers faced D) locale many difficulties. In Nicodemus, the lack of trees for home construction or fuel forced settlers to build houses 7 out of sod and burn materials such as sunflowers for heat. A) NO CHANGE Possessing less wealth than settlers from Europe or other B) states—but others C) states; but, others parts of the United States, 8 horses or farm implements D) states, but others, could not be afforded by many exodusters, who had to do agricultural work with inadequate hand tools. In the first years, many could not raise enough crops to sustain themselves and had to seek aid from neighbors or state governments. 8 A) NO CHANGE B) affording horses or farm implements was impossible for many exodusters, who C) many exodusters could not afford horses or farm implements and D) the lack of affordability of horses or farm implements meant many exodusters CONTINUE 2 The prosperity of exoduster settlements depended on 2 9 A) NO CHANGE the yields of their farms. 9 Eventually, harvests in B) Still, Nicodemus grew, which allowed residents to purchase C) Rather, lumber for their houses and attracted 10 banks, grocery D) Next, stores, and other businesses. But the challenges of smallscale farming, 11 exacerbated and made worse by 10 economic volatility, slowed the Great Exodus. By the A) NO CHANGE twentieth century, Nicodemus had stopped growing, with B) banks, grocery, stores C) banks; grocery stores, many businesses moving away, and other exoduster D) banks; grocery stores communities had disappeared altogether. As settlers left the region, Nicodemus became the only original exoduster town to endure to the present day. It remains, 11 A) NO CHANGE in the words of a 1996 congressional bill establishing it as B) exacerbated and worsened a National Historic Site, “symbolic of the pioneer spirit of C) exacerbated African Americans who dared to leave the only region D) made worse by exacerbation they had been familiar with to seek personal freedom and the opportunity to develop their talents and capabilities.” CONTINUE 2 Questions 12-22 are based on the following passage. 2 12 Which choice most effectively combines the sentences at the underlined portion? Debunking Myths of the Dodo A) bird that was endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius and Julian Hume, a paleontologist at the Natural History B) bird, a bird that was endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius and that Museum in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, has long been troubled by the misunderstandings surrounding the C) bird, which was endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius; here the dodo scientific community’s knowledge of the dodo (Raphus D) bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius—one that on this island cucullatus), a large, flightless 12 bird. This was a bird that was endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius and likely went extinct by the year 1693. 13 13 Consequently, the dodo has been depicted as an A) NO CHANGE unintelligent, oddly shaped animal with tiny wings and a B) Traditionally, clumsy demeanor—a veritable buffoon of a bird. C) Therefore, D) Similarly, 14 However, Hume and others have shown that the dodo was much more capable than such depictions would suggest. 14 The writer is considering revising the underlined portion to the following. However, using cutting-edge techniques to analyze skeletal specimens, Should the writer make this revision? A) Yes, because it introduces information that is developed later in the passage. B) Yes, because it gives details that reinforce the description in the previous sentence. C) No, because it adds an idea that is not directly related to the passage’s main discussion. D) No, because it contradicts information provided in the concluding paragraph. CONTINUE 2 [1] Hume was part of a team of paleontologists that 2 15 A) NO CHANGE employed 3-D laser scanning to produce high-resolution B) pelvis— images of each bone from two nearly complete dodo C) pelvis; specimens. [2] The team used the images to reconstruct a D) pelvis, more streamlined model of dodo skeletal structure; they also evaluated the individual bone images. [3] Hume 16 noted that the robust kneecaps of R. cucullatus, along A) NO CHANGE with its thick leg bones and broad 15 pelvis would have B) it C) these provided 16 them with the strength and maneuverability D) that to easily navigate the rocky and densely forested landscape of Mauritius. [4] The prominence of these features suggests a well-developed musculature, indicating that the wings, while small in size relative to the rest of the body, likely enhanced the dodo’s speed and agility. 17 17 The writer wants to add the following sentence to the paragraph. The team also argued for the anatomical significance of the ridges and indentations in the dodo’s wing bones. To make the paragraph most logical, the sentence should be placed A) after sentence 1. B) after sentence 2. C) after sentence 3. D) after sentence 4. CONTINUE 2 Another team of scientists, 18 being a team that was 2 18 A) NO CHANGE overseen and led by comparative biologist Eugenia Gold, B) led then a graduate student working at the American C) a team led Museum of Natural History, focused on the dodo’s D) overseen and also led capacity for cognition. They used computed tomography scanning on a well-preserved R. cucullatus skull to create 19 a virtual endocast, a 3-D model of the brain cavity. The A) NO CHANGE team created similar models for eight of the dodo’s B) also they C) and presumed closest relatives, including several extant D) DELETE the underlined portion. species, 19 they calculated the ratio of brain volume to total body mass for each specimen. The ratio for the dodo was comparable to that of a modern bird possessing 20 capacity for learning. 20 While brain volume is not an The writer wants to acknowledge a potential objection to the means by which Gold and her team reached their conclusion. Which choice most effectively accomplishes this goal? infallible indicator of intelligence, Gold’s team concluded A) NO CHANGE that the dodo was not all that dimwitted. B) Comparing dodos to Neanderthals, another underestimated extinct species, considerable navigational and visual skills and a vaunted C) Despite the fact that the dodo is extinct, D) Since the dodo’s brain volume was correlated to its body size, CONTINUE 2 21 Hume and Gold’s results’, obtained with more 2 21 A) NO CHANGE comprehensive data than previously available and with B) Humes’ and Gold’s results, the aid of improved analytical techniques, offer a C) Hume’s and Gold’s result’s, necessary revision of the dodo’s reputation. The dodo D) Hume’s and Gold’s results, may not have been the most graceful of birds or an avian Einstein, but neither 22 was it the clownish creature that is so often imagined. 22 A) NO CHANGE B) will it be C) is it being D) will it have been CONTINUE 2 Questions 23-33 are based on the following passage and supplementary material. 2 23 A) NO CHANGE B) mulled over her future plans and decided VISTA Offers New Perspectives C) made a choice, deciding D) decided Considering her options after graduation, college student Shauntia Dyson 23 thought about what she might do and decided that she wanted to use her skills to 24 A) NO CHANGE help people struggling with the challenges of poverty. A B) Georgia; where, search for such opportunities led her to the AmeriCorps C) Georgia, where: VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) program. Each D) Georgia; where VISTA member works full time for one year at a private nonprofit or public agency in a low-income community. In 2016, Dyson began her VISTA service at the Forsyth Farmers’ Market in Savannah, 24 Georgia, where, in exchange for a modest salary and benefits, she supports 25 A) NO CHANGE B) its C) her D) one’s the organization in its mission of offering locally produced food options to people in the Savannah area. Dyson and 25 their fellow VISTA members, or VISTAs, have made an excellent decision, one that will benefit them now and in the future. CONTINUE 2 VISTAs’ salaries may be low, but the VISTA 2 26 A) NO CHANGE experience is very rewarding in other ways. The B) thankful program’s dedication to assisting people in need makes C) satisfactory the work especially 26 reassuring to those who, like D) gratifying Dyson, find joy in serving and helping others. 27 However, VISTAs’ responsibilities tend to be at a 27 higher level than those found in private-sector jobs. A) NO CHANGE VISTAs are typically not hired to offer direct services B) To that end, C) What’s more, such as delivering 28 food, rather they use their talents D) Nevertheless, on big-picture initiatives such as building the capacity and improving the financial health of the organizations 28 that employ them. Dyson enthusiastically 29 explains A) NO CHANGE that: her role at the farmers’ market involves, “enhancing B) food, rather, the organization’s reach and visibility” as well as C) food; rather, D) food, rather: “increasing and diversifying financial and in-kind resources.” 29 A) NO CHANGE B) explains that her role at the farmers’ market involves: C) explains, that her role at the farmers’ market involves D) explains that her role at the farmers’ market involves CONTINUE 2 2 The program also assists VISTAs in 30 preparing 30 Which choice provides the most effective introduction to the paragraph? for their future careers. A 2015 study asked VISTA alumni to rate the program’s success in helping them A) NO CHANGE build various career-specific skills. Five of these skills— B) learning to meet deadlines. communicating in writing, conducting oneself C) determining what they want to do for a living. professionally, working independently, meeting D) furthering their commitment to public service. deadlines, and prioritizing tasks—were grouped under the heading “Managing Self and Work.” The data are 31 Which choice most effectively uses information from the graph to support the writer’s argument for VISTA service? persuasive: 31 30% of alumni rated VISTA service as having improved their management of self and work A) NO CHANGE “somewhat, ” while a mere 4% said the program improved B) 66% of alumni rated VISTA service as having improved their management of self and work “a great deal,” their skills in this area “very little or not at all.” Additionally, 32 most VISTA alumni surveyed, about C) more VISTA alumni reported that the program had improved their management of self and work than reported that it had not done so, three-fourths, agreed or strongly agreed with the claim that VISTA was a worthwhile experience in furthering D) of the VISTA alumni who responded to the survey, some thought the program had improved their management of self and work, their professional goals. Results from 2015 Survey of VISTA Alumni 32 Percent indicating that VISTA helped build skills in the area of managing self and work 66% 30% a great deal 4% somewhat very little or not at all Percent indicating that VISTA was a worthwhile experience in furthering professional goals 48% 28% 24% strongly agree agree neutral or disagree Which choice most effectively uses information from the graph to support the main idea of the paragraph? A) NO CHANGE B) many VISTA alumni surveyed, about half, agreed with C) only about one-fourth of VISTA alumni surveyed disagreed with D) virtually all VISTA alumni surveyed either agreed with or were neutral regarding Adapted from “AmeriCorps Alumni Outcomes Summary Report.” Corporation for National and Community Service. Published in 2015. CONTINUE 2 By joining VISTA, Shauntia Dyson is following in the footsteps of hundreds of thousands of people, over the program’s fifty-year history, who 33 are helping improve both their communities and their career 2 33 A) NO CHANGE B) have helped C) will have helped D) would have helped prospects. More US students should consider devoting a year as a volunteer in service to America. CONTINUE 2 Questions 34-44 are based on the following passage. 2 34 A) NO CHANGE B) Greece, granting Where Do the Parthenon Sculptures Belong? C) Greece, it granted In 1801 British nobleman Thomas Bruce, the Earl of D) Greece and granting Elgin, arrived in Athens, Greece, to document the beautiful marble sculptures that decorated the Parthenon, a temple built in the fifth century BCE. Elgin arrived with a permit from officials of the Ottoman Empire, which then occupied 34 Greece. Granting him permission to make drawings and casts of the sculptures; the permit also allowed him to “take away any pieces of stone with inscriptions or figures.” After finding that many of the Parthenon sculptures had been harmed and that others were being sold to tourists, Elgin decided to take full advantage of the permit and arranged to take many of the sculptures to Britain. Some public figures—including the poet Lord Byron and the politician Sir John Newport— immediately questioned the legitimacy of Elgin’s 35 The writer is considering revising the underlined portion to the following. intentions: to them, it seemed that Elgin was stealing rather than protecting an important part of Greek culture. Should the writer make this revision here? A) Yes, because it clarifies the opinions of the public figures in a way that helps establish the focus of the passage. B) Yes, because it suggests that Greek culture was able to thrive within the Ottoman Empire. C) No, because it disrupts the passage’s narrative about the Parthenon sculptures by giving loosely related information. D) No, because it merely records uncredited hearsay about the actions of Elgin. seemingly good 35 intentions . CONTINUE 2 Following an investigation, a British parliamentary 2 36 “asylum” to the sculptures. 36 In 1823 Lord Byron sailed Which choice provides the most effective transition between the discussion of the committee’s investigation and the next event in the narrative? to Greece to support the Greek quest for independence A) NO CHANGE from the Ottoman Empire. After Greece gained B) The concept of asylum typically applies to situations involving political refugees. independence in 1832, however, some argued that the C) They were installed in the British Museum that same year. committee concluded in 1816 that Britain should give agreement Elgin had made with the Ottoman D) They no longer had the vivid colors applied by ancient Greek artisans. government was 37 now totally bogus and that the sculptures should be returned. In 1925 a series of newspaper debates brought the issue to popular 37 attention, and Greece has 38 razed the question of the A) NO CHANGE sculptures’ repatriation with almost every British B) no longer valid C) not OK anymore ambassador ever since. D) henceforth bereft of legitimacy 38 A) NO CHANGE B) appraised C) upraised D) raised CONTINUE 2 Officials from the British Museum have long argued 2 39 A) NO CHANGE that the expertise of their curators 39 has protected the B) have protected sculptures from the elements. In support of their C) are protecting argument, they note that the sculptures that Elgin did not D) were protecting remove have suffered from pollution. In an effort to 40 beautify Athens, the Greek government constructed a 40 large, state-of-the-art museum, which opened in 2009, to Which choice provides the most effective explanation for the action described in the sentence? house the Parthenon sculptures that remain in the A) NO CHANGE country. This 41 museums facility’s would also be B) generate more revenue from tourism, capable of housing the sculptures that are currently in C) prove its commitment to the sculptures’ well-being, Britain should they be returned. D) attract more art enthusiasts to its collection of antiquities, 41 A) NO CHANGE B) museum’s facilities C) museum facilities D) museums’ facility CONTINUE 2 42 Regardless of the controversy, the Parthenon 2 42 Which choice most effectively introduces the sentence that follows in the paragraph? sculptures deserve a wide audience. Some argue that cultural artifacts belong in the country where they were A) NO CHANGE created, while others still say that a large international institution like the British Museum is best suited to house B) The debate over the ultimate fate of the Parthenon sculptures continues to this day. objects that are significant to human history. In 2015 the C) Many questions remain about the construction of the Parthenon sculptures. Greek government decided not to pursue legal action D) The argument about the Parthenon sculptures is one of many arts-related controversies. against 43 Britain. It opted instead for continued diplomatic efforts. As of 2018, it remains uncertain where 43 44 the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum will Which choice most effectively combines the sentences at the underlined portion? ultimately reside? A) Britain instead of opting B) Britain; instead, the Greek government opted C) Britain, which opted instead D) Britain, opting instead 44 A) NO CHANGE B) the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum will ultimately reside. C) will the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum ultimately reside? D) will the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum ultimately reside.