Introductions and conclusions
Question 1 of 16
2026 Practice Test A English, question 43Passage The Benefits of Indoor Plants
The Benefits of Indoor Plants
(1) In an age of endless media content, it is easy to see why people might prefer to stay inside. (2) According to a study sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans spend an average of 87 percent of their time indoors. (3) Scientists say that this separation between people and nature puts people at risk for physical and psychological issues.
(4) During the process of photosynthesis, plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and remove many harmful toxins from the air. (5) Spending prolonged periods of time indoors, away from plants, deprives people of these benefits. (6) Air that is not regularly detoxified can lead to a condition known as sick building syndrome. (7) This disorder first came to light in the 1970s when many office workers in the United States began to complain of unexplained flu-like symptoms. (8) Researchers determined the cause to be volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. (9) VOCs are harmful chemicals that are emitted by everyday objects such as carpet, furniture, cleaning products, and computers. (10) The NASA Clean Air Study found a simple way to remove a significant number of VOCs within a 24-hour period: add plants to indoor spaces.
(11) Adding plants to indoor spaces has psychological benefits too. (12) Research has long linked time spent in natural environments with increased energy and feelings of contentment. (13) While being outdoors is an excellent option for improving a person’s mental health, recent research has indicated that encountering natural elements while indoors can also help. (14) To experience the maximum benefit of natural elements, experts suggest placing at least one live plant per 100 square feet of home or office space.
(15) Connecting with nature, even just by being near an indoor plant, is a significant factor in a person’s well-being. (16) Sitting in front of an electronic screen all day isn’t natural, and today’s workers need to get up and get outdoors. (17) Richard Ryan, a psychology professor at the University of Rochester, puts it this way: “Nature is something within which we flourish, so having it be more a part of our lives is critical, especially when we live and work in built environments.”
Question
Which sentence should follow sentence 3 to best introduce the topic of the passage?
- APlacing plants in homes and offices can provide a healthy bridge between nature and the indoors.
- BIt is important for people to realize that they need to spend more time near plants, whether indoors or out in nature.
- CFor their personal health and well-being, people need to spend more time outdoors or bring the outdoors in.
- DIndividuals with little connection to nature can experience illness, depression, and higher levels of stress.
Show the answer
Correct answer: A
The question asks which sentence should follow sentence 3 to best introduce the topic of the passage.
A. CORRECT. The sentence introduces the overall topic by previewing the main ideas in the passage. It introduces the connection between natural elements and well-being (“a healthy bridge”) and sets up the main argument of the passage (“Placing plants in homes and offices” can increase people’s well-being).
B. Incorrect. Although sentence 3 mentions the connection between “people and nature,” this sentence references the importance of spending time near plants while both indoors and outdoors. However, the passage focuses specifically on the benefits of having indoor plants.
C. Incorrect: Though the sentence describes a reason why indoor plants are important (“For [people’s] personal health and well-being”), the topic of the passage is related to the need for indoor plants, not the need for people to spend more time outdoors.
D. Incorrect. While the sentence refers to how time away from nature can affect health and well-being, the vague wording (“little connection to nature”) makes this sentence too broad to introduce the topic of the passage, and thus, it should not follow sentence 3.
Question analysis
This revising question works with the four-paragraph passage “The Benefits of Indoor Plants” and asks which sentence should follow sentence 3 to introduce the passage's topic. The opening paragraph ends on the health risks of time spent away from nature, and every choice continues that thought in some way, so students must judge which one prepares a reader for what the passage goes on to cover.
- NYS standards
- 7W2a introducing and organizing a topic
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Introducing a topic so that it previews what follows is a grade 7 writing standard, practised often in class. The passage is short and plainly worded, and the choices differ in focus rather than in grammar, typical grade 7 revision.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- Evidence in several places moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 12, 346 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 84 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The first paragraph ends on a problem, and all four choices continue it plausibly, so the decision is about scope. The passage is about plants indoors, and the near miss offers outdoor time as an equal remedy, while another widens the subject to plants anywhere and a third simply restates the danger. Students who skim the topic sentences of the later paragraphs before choosing see that only an indoor solution introduces what follows.
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The choice ending “or bring the outdoors in” sounds like the key's “bridge between nature and the indoors,” but it adds spending more time outdoors, a remedy the passage does not develop. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The topic only emerges from the later paragraphs: plants cleaning indoor air in sentences 4–10, their psychological benefits in 11–14, and nature brought indoors in 15–17. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The new sentence must follow sentence 3's warning about “separation between people and nature” and lead into sentence 4's photosynthesis, so it has to name plants as the remedy. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Skim the first sentence of each later paragraph to see what the passage actually covers, then test each choice: would it set up those paragraphs without promising something they never discuss?
Traps
- Half right: One half of a two-part choice is right and the other is not.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
- Says it twice: Repeats an idea that the sentence or passage already states.
The wrong answers, classified
B Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Accepts a sentence about needing plants, but “whether indoors or out in nature” widens the subject to plants anywhere, while the passage discusses only plants inside.
C Half right (King et al., 2004; Thissen, Steinberg & Fitzpatrick, 1989)
Is drawn by “bring the outdoors in” and “health and well-being,” but the other half, spending more time outdoors, is a remedy the passage never goes on to develop.
D Says it twice (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)
Follows sentence 3 smoothly by naming illness, depression and stress, but that only restates its “physical and psychological issues” and never introduces plants, the passage's subject.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This revising question asks you to add a sentence that introduces the topic. Such a sentence tells the reader what the passage will be about. For example, an essay about why dogs make good pets might start: Dogs make loyal, loving pets. The new sentence goes after sentence 3, so it must also follow from it.
Find the passage’s topic
Skim the rest of the passage. Sentences 4–10 tell how plants clean indoor air. Sentences 11–14 say plants indoors help the mind. Sentences 15–17 say even an indoor plant connects you with nature. So the topic is plants inside homes and offices. The title says it too: “The Benefits of Indoor Plants.”
Connect it to sentence 3
Sentence 3 names a problem: “this separation between people and nature puts people at risk for physical and psychological issues.” Psychological means having to do with the mind and feelings. The best next sentence should name the fix the passage talks about: bringing plants indoors.
Check each choice
- A is right. It names plants “in homes and offices” as “a healthy bridge between nature and the indoors.” A bridge connects two things, so plants bring nature inside. That sets up every later paragraph.
- B is wrong. “Whether indoors or out in nature” widens the topic to plants anywhere. The passage only discusses plants inside.
- C is wrong. It offers two fixes: more time outdoors, or bringing the outdoors in. The passage develops only the second. C never even mentions plants.
- D is wrong. It just repeats sentence 3’s problem in new words. It never brings up plants, the subject of the passage.
Look closely at choice C
Watch out: C sounds close because of “bring the outdoors in.” But the passage gives no tips for spending more time outside. Sentence 13 mentions being outdoors only on its way to the indoor point. So half of C promises something the passage never delivers.
Choose the answer
Only one choice moves from sentence 3’s problem to the passage’s answer, plants inside. So the answer is A.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
C is the closest wrong answer, because “bring the outdoors in” sounds like A. But C gives equal weight to spending more time outdoors, and the passage never develops that idea. A points only to plants indoors, which is exactly what the rest of the passage is about.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “The Benefits of Indoor Plants” as printed (page 60)
Question 2 of 16
2026 Practice Test A English, question 47Uses the passage above: “The Benefits of Indoor Plants”.
Question
Which concluding sentence should follow sentence 17 to best support the information presented in the passage?
- ABecause indoor plants absorb the carbon dioxide in our air and release the oxygen we need to breathe, they are vital to our wholeness and wellness.
- BExperts say that adding a Boston fern, a spider plant, or an aloe vera plant is a good place to start if you want to begin to incorporate nature into your home or office.
- CMore people should consider bringing natural elements inside to improve general wellness and reverse some of the negative effects of an indoor-centered society.
- DAs one study has confirmed, houseplants are a wise investment because they can remove almost 90 percent of the toxins in the air within the span of 24 hours.
Show the answer
Correct answer: C
The question asks for the concluding sentence that should follow sentence 17 to best support the information presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. Although the sentence describes plants as “vital to our wholeness and wellness,” the detail about the absorption of carbon dioxide from the air is overly specific and does not capture the broader argument presented in the passage (that placing plants indoors “is a significant factor in a person’s well-being” [sentence 15]).
B. Incorrect. The sentence’s reference to particular types of plants suitable for indoor spaces supports the idea of incorporating nature into a home or office, but the sentence does not address the benefits people can experience for doing so and thus does not present a logical conclusion for the information in the passage.
C. CORRECT. The sentence directly presents the argument of the passage (“More people should consider bringing natural elements inside”) and supports the central ideas in the second and third paragraphs relating to the health and psychological benefits of having indoor plants.
D. Incorrect. Although the sentence notes the positive impact that houseplants can have on air quality, the sentence does not logically follow the preceding information about the overall benefits to a person’s health and well-being.
Question analysis
This conclusion question asks which sentence should follow the last line of the indoor-plants passage, a quotation from a psychology professor about nature and people who live and work in built environments. Students must choose an ending that fits the passage as a whole, not only its last paragraph, and every option sounds like a reasonable closing line when read on its own.
- NYS standards
- 7W2e concluding informative writing
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a concluding sentence that reflects a whole passage is standard grade 7 writing work. The passage is seventeen plain sentences, so keeping its main points in view is manageable, and the task matches typical grade 7 revision.
- Estimated difficulty
- Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- The right answer is reworded minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 12, 346 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 125 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Three of the endings sound like conclusions: one praises plants as “vital,” one offers practical first steps, and one cites a striking statistic. Only one, though, restates the passage's whole argument, that people should bring nature indoors for their health. Students lose the point when an ending repeats a single fact, such as photosynthesis or toxin removal, or adds new specifics, and the question rewards weighing each ending against all four paragraphs.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
A fitting ending must gather the air-cleaning benefits of sentences 4–10, the psychological benefits of 11–14 and the closing case for keeping nature near, ideas that lie across three paragraphs. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer
The key speaks of “natural elements” and “an indoor-centered society,” new wording for the passage's argument, while two wrong endings repeat its carbon dioxide, oxygen and toxins. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)
Strategy: List what each paragraph contributes, then choose the ending that sums up the passage's message rather than repeating a single fact or adding a new one.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Likes the conclusive “vital to our wholeness and wellness,” but the ending rests on one air-quality fact from sentence 4 and leaves out the psychological benefits.
B Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Likes ending on a practical first step, but naming a Boston fern, a spider plant and aloe vera adds new details and says nothing about why plants help.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Returns to the toxin-removal finding of paragraph 2 with a new figure, “almost 90 percent,” narrowing the ending to air quality and dropping the mental-health benefits.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a concluding sentence, the last line of the passage. A good conclusion sums up the main point of the whole passage. It doesn’t add new facts. For example, an essay about recess might end: Recess helps kids’ bodies and minds, so schools should keep it.
Sum up the passage
- Sentences 1–3: People spend most of their time indoors, away from nature, and that puts their health at risk.
- Sentences 4–10: Indoor plants clean the air.
- Sentences 11–14: Indoor plants help the mind.
- Sentences 15–17: Being near nature, even one plant, matters for well-being.
So the main point is: bring nature indoors to help both body and mind.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. It rests on one fact from sentence 4, about carbon dioxide and oxygen. It leaves out the benefits for the mind.
- B is wrong. It adds new details, three kinds of plants. It doesn’t say why plants help.
- C is right. “Bringing natural elements inside” is the passage’s fix. Wellness means good health, of body and mind. “An indoor-centered society” recalls sentences 1 and 2, about people staying inside.
- D is wrong. It brings back only the toxins, with a new number, “almost 90 percent.” It drops the benefits for the mind.
Watch out: A sounds like an ending because it calls plants “vital to our wholeness and wellness.” But its reason covers only the air we breathe.
Choose the answer
Only one ending sums up the whole passage: people should bring nature inside for their health. So the answer is C.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer, because it sounds like a strong ending. But it repeats one fact, that plants turn carbon dioxide into oxygen. The passage also argues that plants help the mind. C covers the whole argument: bring nature inside to improve wellness.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 3 of 16
2026 Practice Test B English, question 43Passage The End of an Era
The End of an Era
(1) In 2004, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) landed a rover, or robotic vehicle, named Opportunity on the surface of Mars. (2) The rover’s mission was to search for evidence of water and life on the planet. (3) The rover was designed to gather data on Mars for about 90 days, but Opportunity’s assignment did not come to an end until nearly 15 years later in 2019.
(4) During the rover’s mission, a high-resolution camera on the rover’s robotic arm took magnified photographs of the surface of Mars. (5) The photographs revealed small round rocks scattered across the surface of the planet. (6) The scientists nicknamed these rocks “blueberries” based on the rocks’ resemblance to the fruit. (7) These rocks were important because their spherical shape suggested that liquid water may have flowed over them for a substantial amount of time.
(8) Opportunity continued to provide valuable data about craters and other surface features. (9) Throughout the mission, the rover traveled a total of 28.06 miles across Mars’ surface. (10) When Opportunity had traveled nearly the length of a marathon, scientists celebrated the accomplishment by naming the valley that the rover was in Marathon Valley. (11) However, in 2018, a dust storm spread all over the planet, putting the rover’s progress on hold.
(12) Prior to this planet-wide dust storm, minor dust storms had periodically deposited a layer of dust onto the solar panels of the rover. (13) These prevented it from charging its batteries. (14) Scientists then had to rely on the passing winds and dust devils to clean off the solar panels. (15) After the massive 2018 dust storm subsided, scientists expected to be able to reestablish communication with Opportunity. (16) They made repeated attempts but to no avail. (17) In 2019, NASA finally declared Opportunity’s mission complete.
(18) Opportunity was an important asset in scientists’ study of Mars; it returned valuable data about our neighbor planet and survived powerful dust storms. (19) NASA described the mission of Opportunity as “one of the most successful and enduring feats of interplanetary exploration.” (20) Even though this rover’s journey ended, other rovers still roam the surface of Mars.
Question
Which sentence should follow sentence 3 to best introduce the topic of the passage?
- ADespite the challenges of operating on the surface of another planet, the Opportunity rover made many valuable contributions to the field of space research.
- BThe Opportunity rover mission was a success because it informed NASA scientists about how water might have existed on Mars.
- CThroughout the historic mission of the Opportunity rover, NASA scientists had to overcome challenges created by the flaws in the rover’s design.
- DThe Opportunity rover mission surpassed the original timeline of the assignment and allowed scientists to collect additional data about the planet Mars.
Show the answer
Correct answer: A
The question asks for the sentence that should follow sentence 3 to best introduce the topic of the passage.
A. CORRECT. This sentence best introduces the passage’s topic: the Opportunity rover had many accomplishments on its mission, despite numerous challenges. Some of those accomplishments include providing high-resolution photographs (paragraph 2), traveling long distances (paragraph 3), and providing data about craters and other surface features (paragraph 3).
B. Incorrect. Although paragraph 2 discusses how photographs taken by the rover showed rocks that may have been shaped by water, this idea alone is not the topic of the entire passage.
C. Incorrect. While this sentence incorporates ideas about difficulties the scientists encountered because of the Opportunity rover’s design (paragraph 4), the main topic of the passage is not the design flaws and obstacles scientists encountered throughout the mission. The passage primarily focuses on the achievements of the mission.
D. Incorrect. While it is true that the Opportunity rover mission lasted much longer than planned (sentence 3), this fact is a supporting detail of the passage, not the main topic of the passage; surpassing the original timeline is only one of the rover’s many achievements mentioned in the passage.
Question analysis
This revising question works with “The End of an Era,” a passage about NASA's Opportunity rover on Mars, and asks which sentence should follow sentence 3 to best introduce the topic. Students must keep the whole passage in view, from the rover's photographs and travels to the dust storms that ended its mission, and judge which choice previews it best.
- NYS standards
- 7W2a introducing and organizing a topic
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a sentence that introduces a passage's topic is a standard grade 7 writing task. The passage is twenty plain sentences about one rover mission, and every choice draws on that mission, so it calls for a typical careful comparison.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 337 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 101 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Sentence 3 already tells a striking story, a 90-day mission that lasted nearly fifteen years, and the most tempting continuation simply repeats it in new words. The other near misses each pick one part of the passage, the water evidence or the dust problems, and make it the whole. The question rewards skimming every paragraph first and choosing the sentence that covers both the achievements and the hardships, the pairing the final paragraph makes.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The topic only emerges from the later paragraphs: the “blueberries” of sentences 4–7, the 28.06 miles of paragraph 3, the dust storms of paragraph 4 and NASA’s praise in sentence 19. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The new sentence follows sentence 3’s surprise that a 90-day mission lasted nearly 15 years, so it must turn from that fact to what the mission achieved. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Skim the opening sentence of each later paragraph to see what the passage covers, then ask which choice would prepare a reader for all of it.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Says it twice: Repeats an idea that the sentence or passage already states.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
B Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Picks the water finding of paragraph 2, a real result, but it covers one paragraph and leaves out the rover’s travels, its endurance and the dust storms.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Builds on the dust that blocked the solar panels in paragraph 4, but the passage never blames flaws in the rover’s design and dwells on its achievements.
D Says it twice (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)
Follows sentence 3 smoothly, but saying the mission “surpassed the original timeline” only restates the 90 days that became 15 years instead of introducing what comes next.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This revising question asks for a sentence to add after sentence 3. It should introduce the topic of the whole passage. A good introduction gives a preview, a quick look at everything coming. It doesn’t repeat one fact or zoom in on one part. For example, a report on a soccer season might begin: The team lost two stars but still won the title. That previews both the struggles and the wins.
Skim each paragraph
- Paragraph 2 (sentences 4–7): The rover’s camera found small round rocks that hinted at water.
- Paragraph 3 (sentences 8–11): It sent data and traveled 28.06 miles. Then a huge dust storm stopped it.
- Paragraph 4 (sentences 12–17): Dust had covered its solar panels before. After the 2018 storm, NASA could not reach it.
- Paragraph 5 (sentences 18–20): It “returned valuable data about our neighbor planet and survived powerful dust storms.”
Name the topic
So the passage covers two things. One is what the rover achieved: photos, data and miles. The other is its challenges, mainly the dust storms. Challenges are hard problems. Sentence 18 puts both together. The new sentence should preview both.
Check each choice
- A is right. It names the challenges and the “many valuable contributions.” That covers the whole passage.
- B is wrong. Water is only paragraph 2. It leaves out the travel and the dust storms.
- C is wrong. The passage never blames flaws in the rover’s design. It mostly praises the rover.
- D is wrong. Sentence 3 already says the mission lasted far past 90 days. D repeats it instead of looking ahead.
Watch out: D follows sentence 3 smoothly, so it sounds right. But it only restates sentence 3 in new words.
Choose the answer
So the answer is A: “Despite the challenges of operating on the surface of another planet, the Opportunity rover made many valuable contributions to the field of space research.”
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
D is the closest wrong answer, because it flows right after sentence 3. But it only repeats that the mission lasted longer than planned. A previews both halves of the passage: the rover’s achievements and the challenges it survived. Sentence 18 sums up the same two ideas.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “The End of an Era” as printed (page 60)
Question 4 of 16
2026 Practice Test D English, question 40Passage Martial Arts for the Mind and Body
Martial Arts for the Mind and Body
(1) The martial arts blend a series of physical movements with strategic mental discipline so that practitioners can defend themselves, physically defeat an opponent, or both. (2) Historians are unsure of exactly when and where martial arts were first used. (3) Martial arts have been practiced by several different societies for many centuries. (4) Martial arts such as karate, kung fu, tae kwon do, and judo are still taught and practiced as methods of self-defense, but they offer students more than that. (5) The study of martial arts can provide students with a way to enhance their mental discipline as well as their physical fitness.
(6) Discipline, focus, and respect are important qualities for everyone to have. (7) However, for most people these qualities are not innate; they must be learned and practiced. (8) The study of martial arts can provide an opportunity to develop these skills. (9) Students are rewarded for their dedication by passing tests and advancing to higher ranks or levels. (10) For example, in a typical tae kwon do class, students learn discipline by diligently practicing moves, improve focus by listening carefully, and demonstrate respect by bowing to the instructor and following directions.
(11) For teenagers, martial arts classes provide a safe and structured environment for gaining physical skills, building confidence, and enjoying a sense of community. (12) A lot of teens go through hard situations as they try to do well in school and in life. (13) A martial arts class can provide teens with a physical outlet for stress while also challenging them mentally. (14) Participating in a martial arts program also helps children and teens focus on self-improvement rather than on competition. (15) Progressing through levels of achievement involves mastering more physically demanding techniques. (16) It requires students to take responsibility and be accountable for achieving set goals. (17) Students gain confidence and experience companionship with other students who are progressing through the ranks.
(18) Adults who practice martial arts can experience many of the same benefits that younger people do, but perhaps the greatest of these is health and fitness. (19) Adult martial arts students often see changes in their body within weeks of beginning a program.
(20) For people interested in studying a martial art, there are many ways to learn and practice. (21) In addition to private studios, community recreation centers often offer low-cost or free martial arts classes. (22) There are even online videos that introduce students to the basic concepts. (23) People should study martial arts.
Question
Which concluding sentence should replace sentence 23 to best support the topic presented in the passage?
- AWith so many ways to begin studying martial arts, people can easily discover how the skills needed to progress in rank may help them in life.
- BBy taking advantage of opportunities to practice martial arts, people can experience the satisfaction of achieving goals while also improving themselves.
- CBecause people are eager to reap the mental and physical benefits of studying martial arts, enrollment in martial arts courses has increased.
- DWhile taking martial arts classes can improve health for both young people and adults, the effects are clearly more immediate for adults.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks for the concluding sentence that best replaces sentence 23 and supports the topic presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. The phrase “the skills needed to progress in rank” is vague, and progressing in rank is not related to the overall topic of the passage, which is the benefits of studying martial arts. The topic of the passage is not the “many ways to begin studying martial arts” or how “people can easily discover” the benefits of martial arts.
B. CORRECT. This option is correct because it best supports the topic of the passage—the benefits of studying martial arts—by stating two reasons why people should study martial arts: to “experience the satisfaction of achieving goals while also improving themselves.”
C. Incorrect. Some readers may choose this option because it refers to the benefits of martial arts, but the word “because” and the detail that “enrollment in martial arts courses has increased” make this sentence unrelated to the overall topic of the passage, which is about the benefits of studying martial arts, not the number of people who participate.
D. Incorrect. Although the benefits of studying martial arts are described for both teens (in the third paragraph) and adults (in the fourth paragraph), the topic of the passage is the overall benefits of studying martial arts, which include mental discipline (discussed in the first, second, and third paragraphs) in addition to health benefits. Furthermore, the passage does not compare the health effects of studying martial arts across age groups.
Question analysis
This conclusion question asks which sentence should replace sentence 23, the bare closing line “People should study martial arts,” to best support the topic of the passage. Students must keep all five paragraphs in view, from mental discipline to fitness to ways of getting started, because every choice sounds like a reasonable final line when read on its own.
- NYS standards
- 7W2e concluding informative writing
- Grade level
- Grade 8 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- Above grade 7 Grade 7 writers choose conclusions that follow from a passage’s topic. This passage covers mental and physical benefits for different ages, and each long choice picks up a real thread, so judging the best fit takes more than typical grade 7 work.
- Estimated difficulty
- Hard: combines ideas, needs a plan, and has more than one tempting wrong answer.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- Evidence in several places moderate
- A lot to read minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 402 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 106 words.
- Corrected from the DOE handbook
- The DOE printed this question’s explanation after a different question; the site matches the question with its own explanation.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Every ending borrows something real from the passage: ways to begin, ranks, mental and physical benefits, or adults’ quick results. The work is deciding what the whole passage is about, the benefits of martial arts for mind and body, and then noticing which ending adds a new claim or shrinks the topic. The rank-based ending is hardest to reject because it is shaped like the key and promises help “in life,” but its focus is how easily people discover rank skills.
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The rank choice is built like the key, a phrase about ways or chances to train followed by what people gain; it differs in resting on the vague “skills needed to progress in rank.” (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The topic is pieced together from all five paragraphs, from the opening’s mind-and-body claim through teens, adults’ fitness and ways to learn, so a fitting ending must cover both kinds of benefit. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
A lot to read minor Understanding the question
Each choice is a two-part sentence of 21 to 26 words, and each picks up a real thread of the passage, so all four must be held against the topic. (Kintsch, 1998; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)
Strategy: State the passage’s topic in a few words using all five paragraphs, then test each ending: does it sum up that topic, or does it narrow it or add a new claim?
Traps
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Follows on from the last paragraph’s many ways to start, but rests the ending on vague “skills needed to progress in rank,” one thread of paragraphs 2 and 3, not the benefits overall.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Names the passage’s “mental and physical benefits,” which fits, but ends on rising enrollment, a claim about numbers of students that the passage never discusses.
D Half right (King et al., 2004; Thissen, Steinberg & Fitzpatrick, 1989)
Rightly says training can improve health for young people and adults, but adds that adults clearly benefit sooner, a comparison the passage never makes, and drops the mental benefits.
What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why
- Explanation: In the DOE’s explanations appendix, the explanation printed after this question belongs to question 39 (“the sentence that would best follow and support sentence 18”) and marks C correct, and this question’s explanation (“the concluding sentence that best replaces sentence 23 and supports the topic presented in the passage”) is printed after question 39, marking B correct. Read page by page, the appendix gives this question the answer C. The site gives the question the explanation that restates it, and the answer follows that explanation: B, because it sums up the passage’s topic, the benefits of studying martial arts.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This asks for a better last sentence. A good concluding sentence sums up the topic of the whole passage. Sentence 23, “People should study martial arts,” is short and plain. It doesn’t remind the reader why.
Find the passage’s topic
Sentence 5 states the topic. Martial arts can help students “enhance their mental discipline as well as their physical fitness.” Enhance means improve. Paragraph 2 covers discipline, focus and respect. Paragraph 3 covers teens and goals. Paragraph 4 covers adults and fitness. Paragraph 5 lists ways to start. So the topic is how martial arts help both mind and body.
Name the rule
A conclusion should sum up the main point. It should not shrink the point or add a brand-new claim. For example, after a report on why sleep matters, a good ending is Getting enough sleep helps both your body and your mind. A poor one is More people buy pillows now.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. It rests on vague “skills needed to progress in rank,” one small part of the passage.
- B is right. “Opportunities to practice” follows paragraph 5. “Achieving goals” and “improving themselves” sum up the benefits.
- C is wrong. Enrollment is the number of people who sign up. The passage never says it has gone up.
- D is wrong. The passage never says adults see results sooner than young people. D also leaves out the benefits to the mind.
Watch out: A is built like B and promises help “in life.” But it shrinks the topic to rank skills.
Choose the answer
B sums up what the whole passage says martial arts offer. So the answer is B, “By taking advantage of opportunities to practice martial arts, people can experience the satisfaction of achieving goals while also improving themselves.”
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. Like B, it starts with ways to begin and ends with what people gain. But its gain is vague “skills needed to progress in rank.” That is only one thread of the passage. B sums up the whole topic: reaching goals and improving yourself.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “Martial Arts for the Mind and Body” as printed (page 52)
Question 5 of 16
2024 Test A English, question 5Passage The Free College Debate
The Free College Debate
(1) A college degree has become an essential tool in an increasingly competitive job market. (2) Yet the price of higher education, at both private and public universities, continues to rise. (3) Helping students cover the cost of attending college is an important issue.
(4) Many people agree that a college education should be a financially realistic option for those who aspire to obtain a degree. (5) For example, in 2017, the New York State legislature passed a bill creating a program to cover the tuition costs for nearly one million students. (6) The state of Tennessee also has a program that offers all students scholarships and mentoring services if they attend one of the state’s community colleges. (7) Proponents generally believe that these programs are a step in the right direction for making college affordable for students who would have had to take out loans or who would have decided not to pursue higher education at all.
(8) On the other hand, some people oppose bills like the ones in New York and Tennessee because they believe “free” college programs are unsustainable. (9) In order to implement these types of programs, a state pays the college on behalf of the students using funds from the state’s budget, which primarily comes from state taxes. (10) As more students choose to attend college, more funds will be needed to cover the costs. (11) Additionally, many students do not finish college within four years because they switch majors or because they have to work. (12) Critics believe that these circumstances will inevitably lead to an increase in taxes, a decline in the quality of the education offered by the schools, or both. (13) They think narrower college-affordability efforts that target the students who need the most support, such as first-generation college students, may be more effective and viable solutions.
(14) Faculty and students at higher-education institutions can work to keep costs down. (15) In light of increased access to computers, mobile devices, and the Internet, there are more opportunities for students to take courses online, thus reducing the need for and cost of maintaining physical classrooms. (16) Additionally, colleges should account for experience by allowing students to demonstrate their knowledge in order to avoid having to pay to sit through classes on subjects they have already mastered. (17) Similarly, college-bound high school students need to be prepared for college-level work so that they do not have to spend money on remedial classes.
(18) The solutions to the problems associated with rising college costs are not simple. (19) Passing legislation that boosts college affordability will take time, input from experts with different ideas, and careful planning.
Question
Which sentence should replace sentence 3 to best state the topic of the passage?
- ASeveral states have implemented scholarship programs that allow students to attend public universities and community colleges at a very low tuition rate or for free.
- BDetermining the most effective way to make college affordable is a complex issue, and there are differing opinions about how to approach the problem.
- CHigher-education institutions should reduce the cost of a college education by finding ways to help students avoid paying for unnecessary classes and materials.
- DThe main concern related to the issue of college affordability is that helping students cover tuition could affect the quality of the education they receive.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks which sentence should replace sentence 3 to best state the topic of the passage.
A. Incorrect. Although this sentence mentions that “several states have implemented scholarship programs,” it does not clearly introduce the topic of the passage, which is differing opinions about and approaches to solving the problem of the cost of college.
B. CORRECT. This sentence best replaces sentence 3 because it clearly states the topic of “determining the most effective way to make college affordable.” It also provides an introduction to the “differing opinions” of proponents, who believe that states should provide low-cost or free tuition, and opponents, who believe that such state programs are “unsustainable” (sentence 8).
C. Incorrect. This sentence mentions the role of higher-education institutions in helping “reduce the cost of a college education” for students, which is an idea discussed in sentences 14 and 15 in the passage. Although the sentence provides details to support the topic of the passage by referring to “ways to help students avoid paying for unnecessary classes and materials,” it does not state the topic, which is differing opinions about and approaches to solving the problem of the cost of college.
D. Incorrect. Even though this sentence mentions “college affordability,” it is primarily focused on a problem that is related to, but different from, the issue discussed in the passage. The passage is concerned with “the price of higher education” (sentence 2), not how tuition rates “affect the quality of the education [students] receive.”
Question analysis
This revising question uses a passage about the rising cost of college and state programs that cover tuition, and asks which sentence should replace sentence 3 to state the passage's topic. Every choice is about college affordability, so students must tell a sentence that covers the whole passage from one that fits a single paragraph.
- NYS standards
- 7W2a introducing and organizing a topic
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a sentence that states a passage's topic is core grade 7 writing work. The passage is formal and five paragraphs long, but each paragraph opens by signalling its part of the subject, so the demand is typical.
- Estimated difficulty
- Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- The right answer is reworded minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 12, 427 words; question and choices: about grade 14, 110 words.
- Corrected from the DOE handbook
- A grammar slip in the explanation was corrected.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The replacement must cover a passage that argues both sides of free college and then turns to campus cost-cutting, so a sentence about any one part falls short. Students most often take the state scholarship programs for the topic, because those programs fill the two middle paragraphs. Summing up each paragraph in a few words before reading the choices shows that only a sentence about the debate over how to make college affordable fits them all.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The topic shows only across all five paragraphs: supporters of state programs in sentences 4–7, critics in 8–13, campus cost-cutting in 14–17, and the closing warning that solutions are not simple. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer
The right sentence says “complex issue” and “differing opinions,” words the passage never uses, while wrong ones echo its “scholarship,” “community colleges” and “helping students cover.” (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)
Strategy: Note in a few words what each of the five paragraphs does, then choose the sentence that would prepare a reader for all of them rather than for one paragraph's details.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Picks the state scholarship programs, which do fill paragraphs 2 and 3, but they are what the two sides argue about, not a topic that also covers paragraph 4.
C Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Takes paragraph 4's cost-cutting ideas, such as not paying for classes already mastered, as the topic, though they are one approach among several and leave out the debate over state programs.
D Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Echoes the original sentence's “helping students cover” and sounds like a thesis, but it makes the passage about quality, which comes up once, among the critics' fears in sentence 12.
What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why
- Explanation: In its reason for rejecting choice C, the handbook reads “which is a idea discussed in sentences 14 and 15.” It now reads “an idea.”
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
The new sentence 3 should state the topic of the whole passage. The topic is what the passage is about overall. So the sentence must fit every paragraph, not just one part.
Sum up each paragraph
- Paragraph 1 (sentences 1–3): college matters, but it keeps costing more.
- Paragraph 2 (sentences 4–7): some people support state programs that pay for college.
- Paragraph 3 (sentences 8–13): critics say those programs can’t last.
- Paragraph 4 (sentences 14–17): colleges and students can cut costs.
- Paragraph 5 (sentences 18–19): the solutions “are not simple.”
Find the big idea
Put together, the passage is about one problem: how to make college affordable. Affordable means cheap enough to pay for. People disagree about the best way to do it. And the answers are not simple. The right sentence should say that.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. State programs fill paragraphs 2 and 3. But they are only what people argue about. A says nothing about the critics or about cutting costs.
- B is right. “A complex issue” and “differing opinions” cover the whole debate.
- C is wrong. Not paying for classes you don’t need is an idea from paragraph 4 only.
- D is wrong. The worry about quality comes up just once, in sentence 12.
Watch out: A is tempting because the state programs take up so much space. But a topic must cover all of the passage.
Choose the answer
B prepares the reader for both sides of the debate and for the cost-cutting ideas too. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. It names the state scholarship programs, which fill two paragraphs. But those programs are one thing people argue about, not the whole topic. A leaves out the critics and the ways to cut costs. B calls the issue “complex” and says opinions differ. That fits every paragraph.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “The Free College Debate” as printed (page 38)
Question 6 of 16
2024 Test A English, question 9Uses the passage above: “The Free College Debate”.
Question
Which concluding sentence should be added after sentence 19 to support the topic of the passage?
- AThe increasing use of technology in college classrooms and the financial support from tuition scholarship programs will make colleges more affordable for many students.
- BStatewide tuition scholarship programs will make college more affordable for many students, but these programs may lead to new problems.
- CUntil the problems associated with the rising cost of college are solved, many students will pursue other options after graduating high school.
- DWhen the issue of college affordability is resolved, students will be able to make decisions about pursuing higher education without cost being the deciding factor.
Show the answer
Correct answer: D
The question asks which concluding sentence should be added after sentence 19 to support the topic of the passage.
A. Incorrect. Although sentence 15 cites “increased access to computers, mobile devices, and the Internet” and states that “there are more opportunities for students to take courses online, thus reducing the need for and cost of maintaining physical classrooms,” the primary topic discussed throughout the passage is that making college affordable is a complex issue on which people hold differing opinions, and sentences 18 and 19 stress that the solutions “are not simple” and “will take time.” The option instead states that technology and scholarship programs will make colleges more affordable. Therefore, the sentence should not be added after sentence 19, because it does not support the topic.
B. Incorrect. Sentence 5 presents the example of the New York State legislature, which “passed a bill creating a program to cover the tuition costs for nearly one million students.” Sentence 12 states that critics of this type of program believe that certain circumstances “will inevitably lead to an increase in taxes” or other issues such as low-quality education. However, the option covers only the statewide programs and their critics (sentences 4–13). It leaves out the ways faculty and students can keep costs down (sentences 14–17) and the closing point that solutions will take time and careful planning (sentences 18 and 19). Therefore, the sentence should not be added after sentence 19, because it does not support the topic.
C. Incorrect. Although sentence 7 states that scholarship programs are helpful “for students who would have had to take out loans or who would have decided not to pursue higher education at all,” the passage does not state that many students will stop pursuing higher education until the affordability issues are solved. In fact, sentence 14 states that there are ways faculty and students can “work to keep costs down.” Therefore, the sentence should not be added after sentence 19, because it does not support the topic.
D. CORRECT. The sentence in this option should be added after sentence 19 to support the topic because it acknowledges that the issue of college affordability discussed throughout the passage is not “resolved” but that when it is, students will be able to make decisions about attending college without concerns about cost. Sentence 18 states that “the solutions to the problems associated with rising college costs are not simple,” and sentence 19 adds that “passing legislation that boosts college affordability will take time,” ideas, and planning.
Question analysis
This revising question asks which concluding sentence should be added after the final sentence of a passage about the debate over making college affordable. Students must keep the whole passage in view and pick the ending that follows from its last paragraph, because several choices repeat real details or offer predictions that sound reasonable.
- NYS standards
- 7W2e concluding informative writing
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a conclusion that follows from a passage's central idea is standard grade 7 writing work. The passage is five formal paragraphs that present two sides and then practical steps, which the student must hold together, a typical grade 7 challenge.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 12, 427 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 106 words.
- Corrected from the DOE handbook
- The explanation misstated the topic of the passage; that sentence was corrected.
- An inaccurate statement about the passage in the explanation was corrected.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The strongest wrong ending is a fair summary of the passage's middle, the state programs and their critics, so it feels like a conclusion. It falls short because it drops the campus steps and the closing point that solutions are slow and complicated. Other endings echo the final paragraph's words or bundle two solutions into a promise, and students who keep the passage's caution in mind reject those quickly.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
Judging an ending means holding the whole passage: the debate over state programs in sentences 4–13, the campus cost-cutting in 14–17, and the warning in 18–19 that solutions take time. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The new sentence follows “will take time,” so an ending that looks ahead to when the problem “is resolved” continues the thought, while a confident promise of affordability contradicts it. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: State the passage's topic and its final point in your own words, then test each ending: does it follow from both, or does it bring in a claim the passage never supports?
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Bundles paragraph 4's online courses with the state scholarships and promises they “will make colleges more affordable,” a certainty the passage rejects just before by calling solutions “not simple.”
B Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Sums up paragraphs 2 and 3 fairly, programs that help and the problems critics foresee, but leaves out the campus cost-cutting and the closing point about time and planning.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Borrows “the problems associated with” rising costs from sentence 18 and adds a prediction about students choosing other paths, which the passage never makes.
What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why
- Explanation: In rejecting choice A, the handbook says the topic of the passage is that “state and federal governments, not faculty and students, must resolve the issue of college affordability.” The passage never mentions the federal government, and sentences 14–17 are about what faculty and students can do. The topic, as question 5's answer puts it, is that making college affordable is a complex issue with differing opinions about how to approach it. The explanation now says so, and that choice A instead states that technology and scholarships will make college more affordable.
- Explanation: In rejecting choice B, the handbook says “the idea that these types of programs may lead to new problems is not thoroughly discussed in the passage.” Sentences 8–13 discuss exactly that: critics expect higher taxes or lower-quality education. Choice B falls short because it covers only the statewide programs and their critics, leaving out sentences 14–17 (what faculty and students can do) and the closing point that solutions take time and planning. The explanation now says that. The answer, D, is unchanged.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a last sentence for the passage. A good conclusion fits the topic of the whole passage. It should also follow from sentence 19, the sentence right before it.
Recall the topic and the ending
The passage shows that making college affordable is a complex issue. People have different opinions about how to do it. Sentence 18 says the solutions “are not simple.” Sentence 19 says new laws “will take time, input from experts with different ideas, and careful planning.” So the passage ends by saying the problem is not solved yet.
Find the sentence that follows
D begins “When the issue of college affordability is resolved.” Resolved means solved. That fits right after “will take time.” It looks ahead to a day when the problem is fixed. Then cost won’t decide whether a student goes to college.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. It promises that technology and scholarships “will make colleges more affordable.” But the passage just said solutions are not simple.
- B is wrong. It sums up only the state programs and their critics. It leaves out the cost-cutting ideas and the point about time and planning.
- C is wrong. The passage never says students will choose other paths after high school.
- D is right. It fits the topic and follows sentence 19.
Watch out: B is a fair summary of paragraphs 2 and 3. That makes it feel like a conclusion. But it covers only part of the passage.
Choose the answer
D keeps the passage’s careful tone and looks ahead to a time when cost no longer decides. So the answer is D.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
B is the closest wrong answer. The passage really does discuss state programs and the problems critics expect. But B leaves out paragraph 4, on cutting costs, and the closing point that solutions take time. D follows “will take time” by looking ahead to when the issue “is resolved.”
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 7 of 16
2024 Test B English, question 6Passage Find Time to Volunteer
Find Time to Volunteer
(1) Many people believe that they gain a greater sense of purpose by giving their time to serve others. (2) These are the people who spend their free time volunteering at various places within the community. (3) Those who are served benefit from the work of these volunteers. (4) However, research shows that those who volunteer also receive benefits.
(5) For many students, this proposition may sound impossible. (6) Schoolwork can require hours of study each week. (7) Volunteering at a retirement center or homeless shelter requires both time and energy. (8) Extracurricular activities fill up after-school time. (9) Family obligations and part-time jobs often have to be worked into the schedule, too. (10) However, if students can find time to volunteer, even for a few hours a month, they may find that the benefits outweigh the scheduling difficulties.
(11) To begin with, students who engage in volunteer activities acquire valuable skills and experience, which can help them focus on potential fields of study and career options. (12) Furthermore, when students list volunteer work on college applications, admissions counselors see applicants who care about making their community and college campus a better place.
(13) Volunteerism benefits more than students applying to college. (14) This type of experience is equally important for students moving directly into the workforce after high school. (15) Volunteering demonstrates initiative, dedication, and a strong work ethic, qualities that companies value in a potential employee. (16) In a CareerBuilder study, 60 percent of managers regarded volunteerism as a significant asset when considering applicants.
(17) Students who volunteer undoubtedly make a positive investment in their future, but they also affect their present quality of life. (18) Studies have shown that volunteering is good for both the mind and the body. (19) Volunteering can boost mood levels and reduce anxiety. (20) According to the Mayo Clinic,1 the feeling of doing something meaningful and the appreciation received from that action can reduce stress.
(21) Even the busiest of students can find a way to donate some time to a worthy cause. (22) Though managing different commitments may seem overwhelming at times, students are sure to feel a sense of fulfillment in volunteerism.
1Mayo Clinic: a nonprofit medical organization dedicated to treatment and research
Question
Which sentence should follow sentence 4 to introduce the main claim of the passage?
- AWith that in mind, high school students should consider engaging in some form of regular volunteerism.
- BFortunately for students, these benefits are guaranteed to produce both immediate and long-term results.
- CIn fact, studies have confirmed that volunteerism can be beneficial for students, the family, and the community.
- DFor this reason, high school students should learn about how helping others can strengthen their communities.
Show the answer
Correct answer: A
The question asks which sentence should follow sentence 4 to introduce the main claim of the passage.
A. CORRECT. Sentence 4 states that “research shows that those who volunteer also receive benefits.” The sentence in the option logically follows the ideas in sentence 4 and provides the best thesis statement for the passage because it introduces the main claim that high school students should consider the benefits of volunteerism.
B. Incorrect. While the sentence refers to the “benefits” mentioned in sentence 4, it erroneously asserts that “immediate and long-term results” are “guaranteed.” In addition, the sentence does not introduce the main claim of the passage that volunteering is beneficial for high school students.
C. Incorrect. Although the sentence states that “volunteerism can be beneficial for students,” it introduces the idea that “the family, and the community” benefit as well, which is not part of the main argument. Therefore, this sentence should not follow sentence 4 to introduce the main claim of the passage.
D. Incorrect. Although the sentence introduces the claim that “high school students should learn about” volunteering, it focuses on the idea that volunteering strengthens the community, which is not the main claim. This sentence does not accurately introduce the claim that volunteering is beneficial for high school students and thus should not follow sentence 4.
Question analysis
This introduction question asks which sentence should come right after sentence 4 of the volunteering essay to state its main claim. Students must work out what the whole essay argues and match it to an opening line, while the choices mention benefits, studies and communities in ways that sound like a thesis.
- NYS standards
- 7W1a introducing claims and counterclaims
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Stating a precise claim is a core grade 7 argument skill. Students must sense the essay’s claim from all six paragraphs and test four openers that each sound like a thesis, typical of careful grade 7 revision.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 354 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 76 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Three of the four sentences sound like a thesis, and two contain “high school students should,” so tone decides nothing. Students go wrong when they choose a sentence that only repeats the research point of sentence 4, or one that urges a different action. The question rewards stating the essay’s claim first, that students should volunteer because it pays off for them, and then finding the sentence that says exactly that.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The essay never states its claim in one sentence; it has to be pieced together from the benefits for college, work and health in paragraphs 3 to 5 and sentence 21’s “Even the busiest of students can find a way.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The right sentence and the one about strengthening communities both open with a linking phrase and “high school students should”; they part only on what students should do, volunteer or learn about communities. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The new sentence follows sentence 4’s “those who volunteer also receive benefits,” so it must turn that research point into what students should do about it. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Skim the body paragraphs and state in a few words what the essay wants its readers to believe. Then choose the sentence that says exactly that and follows naturally from sentence 4.
Traps
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
The wrong answers, classified
B Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Follows the word “benefits” from sentence 4 but overstates them as “guaranteed” and never says what students should do, so no claim is introduced.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Likes the research-sounding “studies have confirmed,” but it restates sentence 4 as a fact rather than a claim and widens the benefits to families and the community.
D Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Sees the thesis-like “high school students should,” but it asks students to learn about strengthening communities, a point the essay never develops, instead of urging them to volunteer.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a sentence to go right after sentence 4. It must introduce the main claim. A claim is the main point a writer wants you to believe or act on. In an essay like this, it is often a should statement. Example: Students should get more sleep. So first figure out what the whole essay argues.
Find the essay’s main claim
The essay keeps urging students to make time to help. Sentence 10 says “if students can find time to volunteer, even for a few hours a month, they may find that the benefits outweigh the scheduling difficulties.” Paragraphs 3 to 5 give benefits for college, jobs and health. Sentence 21 says “Even the busiest of students can find a way to donate some time to a worthy cause.” So the claim is: high school students should volunteer, because it helps them.
Use the clue in sentence 5
The new sentence will sit just before sentence 5. Sentence 5 says “For many students, this proposition may sound impossible.” A proposition is a suggestion. So the sentence before it must suggest something students could do. That points to a sentence telling students to volunteer.
Check each choice
- A says students “should consider engaging in some form of regular volunteerism.” That is the essay’s claim. “With that in mind” links it to the benefits in sentence 4.
- B says the benefits are “guaranteed.” That overstates them, and it never tells students to do anything.
- C just repeats that studies found benefits. It also adds families, which the essay never discusses.
- D tells students to “learn about” helping communities. The essay never argues for that.
Pick the answer
Watch out: D also says “high school students should,” so it sounds like a claim. But it asks them to learn, not to volunteer. Only one choice states what the essay argues. So the answer is A.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
D is the closest wrong answer, because it also tells high school students what they should do. But the essay never asks students to study how helping makes communities stronger. It argues that volunteering pays off for the students themselves. A says exactly that, and it sets up “this proposition” in sentence 5.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “Find Time to Volunteer” as printed (page 163)
Question 8 of 16
2024 Test B English, question 9Uses the passage above: “Find Time to Volunteer”.
Question
Which concluding sentence should replace sentence 22 to provide the best support for the argument presented in the passage?
- AIn every city, there are homeless shelters, food pantries, youth centers, and political campaigns that depend on the support and commitment of hardworking young people.
- BClearly, students who volunteer will experience a host of benefits, such as learning new skills, meeting interesting people, opening up opportunities for the future, and gaining a sense of satisfaction.
- CWhen students carefully evaluate their activities and prioritize volunteerism, they find a way to work it into their schedule and are soon encouraging their peers to do the same.
- DWhether they are seeking admission to college, preparing to enter the workforce, or simply looking to reduce stress, high school students who volunteer can help themselves as much as they help others.
Show the answer
Correct answer: D
The question asks which concluding sentence should replace sentence 22 to provide the best support for the argument presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. Although the sentence lists examples of organizations that depend on “hardworking young people” as volunteers, it should not replace sentence 22, because its use of specific examples does not provide a strong conclusion to the main idea in the passage, and it does not best support the main argument that students benefit themselves and their community when volunteering.
B. Incorrect. While the sentence supports the argument that students “will experience a host of benefits” through volunteerism, it should not replace sentence 22 as a concluding sentence, because it does not best support the main argument that volunteerism benefits both the students and their community.
C. Incorrect. Although the sentence emphasizes the importance of prioritizing volunteerism, it should not replace sentence 22, because it focuses on the main idea in the second paragraph (“For many students, this proposition may sound impossible.”), rather than the main argument that volunteerism benefits both students and their community. This sentence introduces the idea that student volunteers “are soon encouraging their peers” to volunteer, which does not best support the argument presented in the passage.
D. CORRECT. This sentence should replace sentence 22 to conclude the passage because it lists specific reasons for volunteering (“Whether they are seeking admission to college, preparing to enter the workforce, or simply looking to reduce stress”) and best supports the main argument that volunteering not only helps students but can also help their community (“high school students who volunteer can help themselves as much as they help others”).
Question analysis
This conclusion question asks which sentence should replace the last line of the essay urging high school students to volunteer. Students need a closing statement that best supports the argument as a whole. Several options list benefits or name real places to volunteer, so the challenge is telling an ending that fits the whole essay from one that drifts.
- NYS standards
- 7W1e concluding an argument
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Writing a conclusion that sums up an argument is a grade 7 standard. Students recognize one rather than write it, but they must keep the essay’s several reasons in mind while judging four endings that all sound final.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 354 words; question and choices: about grade 15, 134 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
All four endings sound final, and the strongest wrong one is a fair-sounding list of benefits that opens with “Clearly.” The right ending wins on fit: its three reasons are the essay’s own, college, work and stress, and it keeps the opening idea that volunteers help others as well as themselves. Students who sketch the essay’s reasons paragraph by paragraph before reading the endings can see which one gathers them and which adds a point of its own.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The reasons a conclusion must gather sit in three body paragraphs, college admission in paragraph 3, the workforce in paragraph 4 and stress in paragraph 5, well before sentence 22. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The right ending and the “host of benefits” ending both list what volunteers gain; they part on whether the list matches the essay’s own reasons and keeps the help volunteers give others. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
Strategy: List the essay’s reasons for volunteering, one phrase per paragraph, then pick the ending that pulls them together without bringing in a new point.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Likes the concrete list of shelters, pantries and campaigns, but naming groups that need young volunteers sums up none of the essay’s reasons for volunteering.
B Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Sums up only what students gain, adding “meeting interesting people,” which the essay never mentions, and drops the point that volunteers help others too.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Carries on sentence 21’s point that busy students can find time, then adds students recruiting their peers, so it ends on scheduling instead of the reasons to volunteer.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a new last sentence for the essay. A good conclusion sums up the argument. It pulls the main reasons together without adding a new idea. Example: an essay on biking to school might end, Biking keeps you fit, saves money and helps clean the air. So first list this essay’s reasons.
List the essay’s reasons
- Paragraph 1: volunteers help others, and “those who volunteer also receive benefits” (sentence 4).
- Paragraph 3: volunteering helps with college applications.
- Paragraph 4: it helps students “moving directly into the workforce,” which means starting a job.
- Paragraph 5: it helps the mind and body, and it “can reduce stress.”
So a good ending names college, work and stress. It also keeps the idea that volunteers help both others and themselves.
Check each choice
- D names all three: “seeking admission to college, preparing to enter the workforce, or simply looking to reduce stress.” It ends with students who “help themselves as much as they help others.” That matches the essay.
- B lists benefits, but it adds “meeting interesting people.” The essay never says that. It also leaves out helping others.
- A lists places that need volunteers. It sums up none of the essay’s reasons.
- C is about fitting volunteering into a schedule and getting friends to join. Getting friends to join is a new idea.
Pick the answer
Watch out: B starts with “Clearly” and lists good things, so it sounds like an ending. But its list is not the essay’s list. So the answer is D.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
B is the closest wrong answer, because it also sums up what volunteers gain. But it adds a benefit the essay never discusses, and it drops the help volunteers give others. D gathers the essay’s own reasons, college, work and stress, and keeps both sides of the essay’s idea.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 9 of 16
2023 Test B English, question 9Passage The End of an Era
The End of an Era
(1) In 2004, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) landed a rover, or robotic vehicle, named Opportunity on the surface of Mars. (2) The rover’s mission was to search for evidence of water and life on the planet. (3) The rover was designed to gather data on Mars for about 90 days, but Opportunity’s assignment did not come to an end until nearly 15 years later in 2019.
(4) During the rover’s mission, a high-resolution camera on the rover’s robotic arm took magnified photographs of the surface of Mars. (5) The photographs revealed small round rocks scattered across the surface of the planet. (6) The scientists nicknamed these rocks “blueberries” based on the rocks’ resemblance to the fruit. (7) These rocks were important because their spherical shape suggested that liquid water may have flowed over them for a substantial amount of time.
(8) Opportunity continued to provide valuable data about craters and other surface features. (9) Throughout the mission, the rover traveled a total of 28.06 miles across Mars’ surface. (10) When Opportunity had traveled nearly the length of a marathon, scientists celebrated the accomplishment by naming the valley that the rover was in Marathon Valley. (11) However, in 2018, a dust storm spread all over the planet, putting the rover’s progress on hold.
(12) Prior to this planet-wide dust storm, minor dust storms had periodically deposited a layer of dust onto the solar panels of the rover. (13) These prevented it from charging its batteries. (14) Scientists then had to rely on the passing winds and dust devils to clean off the solar panels. (15) After the massive 2018 dust storm subsided, scientists expected to be able to reestablish communication with Opportunity. (16) They made repeated attempts but to no avail. (17) In 2019, NASA finally declared Opportunity’s mission complete.
(18) Opportunity was an important asset in scientists’ study of Mars; it returned valuable data about our neighbor planet and survived powerful dust storms. (19) NASA described the mission of Opportunity as “one of the most successful and enduring feats of interplanetary exploration.” (20) Even though this rover’s journey ended, other rovers still roam the surface of Mars.
Question
Which concluding sentence should be added after sentence 20 to best support the information presented in the passage?
- AThese rovers, including one named Curiosity, will help scientists answer their lingering questions about the planet.
- BToday’s rovers continue to add to Opportunity’s discoveries and will help us learn even more about the planet.
- CAnd in conjunction with these rovers, NASA is using other resources, including an orbiting spacecraft known as Mars Odyssey, for the exploration of the planet.
- DWith its red dust, rocky surface, and freezing temperatures, Mars will continue to be a challenging environment for today’s rovers.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks for the concluding sentence that should be added after sentence 20 to best support the information presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. The sentence does not summarize or make reference to the focus of the passage, which is the Opportunity rover.
B. CORRECT. This sentence summarizes the ideas about the Opportunity rover while also extending those ideas to future research, an effective combination for a sentence that concludes a piece about a scientific topic.
C. Incorrect. This sentence not only begins with the phrase “And in conjunction,” which is repetitive, but also introduces an entirely new idea (Mars Odyssey) instead of concluding on the main topic of the passage (the Opportunity rover).
D. Incorrect. This sentence puts emphasis on Mars’s characteristics and makes a conclusion about “today’s rovers,” instead of referring back to the Opportunity rover, the main focus of the passage.
Question analysis
This concluding-sentence question on “The End of an Era,” a passage about NASA’s Opportunity rover, which explored Mars from 2004 until NASA declared its mission complete in 2019, asks which sentence should follow sentence 20. That last sentence notes that other rovers still roam Mars, and every choice builds on it, so students must judge which ending best supports the passage as a whole.
- NYS standards
- 7W2e concluding informative writing
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a concluding sentence for an informational passage is standard grade 7 writing work. The rover passage is twenty plain sentences, and all four endings follow on from its last line, so the comparison is careful but typical.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- Evidence in several places minor
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 337 words; question and choices: about grade 13, 96 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Sentence 20 hands every ending a ready link, the rovers still on Mars, so each choice sounds like a natural next line. The question is which one returns to the subject the passage built over twenty sentences, and only one connects today’s rovers to what Opportunity found. The near-twin that names Curiosity draws students who check smoothness rather than focus, while the other two drift to a spacecraft and to the planet’s harsh conditions.
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The ending that names Curiosity and the right one both say today’s rovers will help answer questions about Mars; they differ only in whether the sentence ties those rovers back to Opportunity’s discoveries. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
Evidence in several places minor Working it out
The passage’s subject, Opportunity, runs through all five paragraphs, from its 2004 landing to the “blueberries,” the 28.06 miles and the dust storms, so judging an ending means holding that whole thread in mind. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
Sentence 20 turns to “other rovers” that “still roam the surface of Mars,” and all four endings pick up from it, so fit with the last sentence alone rules none of them out. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Say in a few words what the whole passage is about, then read each ending after sentence 20 and ask whether it closes that subject or turns to something the passage never covered.
Traps
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Continues smoothly from “other rovers” in sentence 20 and looks ahead as a conclusion should, but it names Curiosity and never returns to Opportunity, the rover the passage is about.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Is drawn by a specific new fact, the orbiting Mars Odyssey, which the passage never mentions; after the wordy “And in conjunction with,” the ending leaves Opportunity behind.
D Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Builds on the dust storms Opportunity survived and adds rocky ground and freezing cold, but it ends on the hardships facing today’s rovers rather than on what Opportunity achieved.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a concluding sentence. That is the last sentence of a piece of writing. A good one wraps up the main topic and leaves the reader with a final thought. So first, decide what the whole passage is about.
Name the main topic
Every paragraph is about one rover, Opportunity. Paragraph 1 tells when it landed on Mars in 2004. Paragraph 2 tells about the “blueberries,” small round rocks it found. Paragraph 3 gives the 28.06 miles it traveled. Paragraph 4 tells how its mission ended in 2019. Paragraph 5 says it “returned valuable data about our neighbor planet.” A good ending should come back to this rover.
Read the last sentence
Sentence 20 says: “Even though this rover’s journey ended, other rovers still roam the surface of Mars.” Roam means travel around. All four choices pick up from these other rovers. So fitting with sentence 20 is not enough. The best choice must also tie back to Opportunity.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. It names a new rover, Curiosity, and never mentions Opportunity.
- B is right. It says today’s rovers add to Opportunity’s discoveries. That links them back to the topic. It also looks ahead: they “will help us learn even more about the planet.”
- C is wrong. It brings in a spacecraft, Mars Odyssey, that the passage never talks about. An ending should not start a new topic.
- D is wrong. It ends on how harsh Mars is for today’s rovers, not on what Opportunity did.
Watch out: A sounds like a strong ending because it looks to the future. But it leaves out the rover the passage is about.
Choose the answer
Only B ties today’s rovers back to Opportunity and also looks ahead to new learning about Mars. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. Like B, it says today’s rovers will help answer questions about Mars. But A talks about Curiosity instead. B is better because it connects those rovers to Opportunity’s discoveries, the subject of all five paragraphs.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “The End of an Era” as printed (page 60)
Question 10 of 16
2022 Test A English, question 7Passage Cracking the Code
Cracking the Code
(1) Computer code is part of every electronic interaction, from video games to home thermostats to vehicle GPS systems. (2) Code is a language that computers can interpret, and programmers use it to instruct computers to perform different tasks, such as finding, sorting, or calculating data. (3) People who code have to learn this language. (4) They can construct programs that will perform detailed tasks. (5) The programs can also perform complex tasks.
(6) A coding language uses letters, numbers, and symbols that are arranged in a way that makes sense to a computer. (7) The code that makes up a program tells a computer how to process information. (8) Studying a coding language involves learning the rules for combining phrases and instructions so that they are recognizable to the computer. (9) Once a person understands coding rules, the possibilities for applying them are infinite.
(10) Coding skills are becoming important in many occupational fields. (11) For example, code can be used to create programs to track, analyze, and predict changes in the stock market. (12) Code can also be designed to help doctors track and monitor a patient’s health. (13) Jobs that require coding skills are typically higher paying, offering salaries that are up to as much as $22,000 a year more than jobs that do not require coding knowledge.
(14) People have a variety of opportunities to learn how to code. (15) In some schools, young people can study computer science and coding just as they study foreign languages. (16) Computer science teachers can use websites and apps that employ games designed to help everyone understand how code works. (17) Even high school students who do not take computer science can learn coding by attending coding workshops and online classes or by watching tutorials online. (18) After studying the basics of coding, some students may become interested in learning how to create programs, such as games and apps.
(19) The late Steve Jobs, a pioneer in computer technology, once said, “Everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer . . . because it teaches you how to think.” (20) Learning to code can seem challenging, but one does not need to become an expert programmer to reap the benefits of understanding this language.
Question
Which sentence should follow sentence 5 to best state the main claim in the passage?
- APeople should take advantage of opportunities to study and learn basic coding because of its many valuable benefits.
- BPeople should attempt to understand how code can be used to design programs that are beneficial for a variety of industries and businesses.
- CSchools should offer coding classes because knowing how to code will help students succeed in many types of businesses.
- DStudents should prepare for the future job market by studying code and learning how to code programs.
Show the answer
Correct answer: A
The question asks for the sentence that should follow sentence 5 to best state the main claim in the passage.
A. CORRECT. This sentence logically follows sentence 5 and introduces the main idea of the passage: that due to the high demand for coding skills across a wide range of industries and disciplines, learning basic coding skills can provide a range of opportunities for personal growth.
B. Incorrect. While this sentence incorporates a point made in the passage about how coding can benefit many occupational fields (sentence 10), this idea alone does not address the entire argument in the passage. This sentence does not capture the passage’s emphasis on the variety of ways people can learn how to code (sentence 14).
C. Incorrect. While this sentence incorporates ideas about opportunities to learn coding skills in school (fourth paragraph), the larger claim presented in the passage is not about opportunities schools should offer in order to help students learn to code. The passage primarily focuses on the opportunities offered to people who take on the challenge of learning to code.
D. Incorrect. Although the passage discusses the opportunities that are available to some students to learn coding skills in school (sentences 15–16), this point is a supporting detail of the passage, not the main claim of the passage.
Question analysis
This introduction question asks which sentence, added after sentence 5 of “Cracking the Code,” would best state the main claim of the passage. Students must work out what the whole argument is driving at, across paragraphs on what code is, how it is used at work and where people can learn it, and then choose among four sentences that each sound like a claim.
- NYS standards
- 7W1a introducing claims and counterclaims
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Introducing a precise claim is a core grade 7 argument skill. Students must find the claim behind all five paragraphs, since the first paragraph only explains what code is, and compare four sentences that each tell someone what to do.
- Estimated difficulty
- Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- Every choice must be checked minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 10, 357 words; question and choices: about grade 10, 91 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The claim is clearest at the very end, where sentence 20 says anyone can benefit from understanding code without becoming an expert. Each wrong option grows out of one paragraph, the industries of paragraph 3 or the students and schools of paragraph 4, so it sounds supported but speaks to too few people or asks for the wrong action. The question rewards naming the whole argument before reading the options.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The first paragraph only explains what code is, so the claim must be pieced together from later parts: coding’s value at work in paragraph 3, the ways to learn in paragraph 4 and sentence 20’s benefits for non-experts. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer
All four options are “should” statements built from real material in the passage, so each has to be checked for whom it addresses and what it asks them to do. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)
Strategy: Before reading the choices, note in a phrase what each paragraph adds, then say in one sentence what the whole passage wants its readers to do, and pick the option that matches all of it.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
B Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Builds on the stock-market and medical programs of paragraph 3, but asks people only to understand how code serves industries, never to learn it, and leaves out the ways to learn.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Takes the schools of sentence 15 as the heart of the argument and turns the claim into a duty for schools, a demand the passage never makes of them.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Joins the higher-paying jobs of sentence 13 to the students of paragraph 4, but limits the claim to students preparing for jobs, while the passage addresses everyone and promises benefits beyond pay.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This asks for the main claim of the whole passage. A claim is the main point a writer argues for. The new sentence goes after sentence 5, at the end of the first paragraph. So it should tell the reader what the whole passage will argue. Each choice tells someone what they “should” do. Find the one that fits all five paragraphs.
Sum up each paragraph
- Paragraph 1 (sentences 1–5): code is everywhere, and coders must learn its language.
- Paragraph 2 (sentences 6–9): how a coding language works.
- Paragraph 3 (sentences 10–13): coding skills matter in many jobs and can mean higher pay.
- Paragraph 4 (sentences 14–18): “People have a variety of opportunities to learn how to code.”
- Paragraph 5 (sentences 19–20): everybody should learn, and you don’t have to be an expert.
Find the claim in the ending
The end of a passage often makes its point clearest. Sentence 19 quotes Steve Jobs: “Everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer.” Sentence 20 says “one does not need to become an expert programmer to reap the benefits of understanding this language.” To reap benefits is to get good things from something. So the claim is this: everyone should learn at least basic coding, because it helps in many ways.
Check each choice
- A fits. It speaks to all people. “Basic coding” matches sentence 20. “Opportunities” matches paragraph 4. “Many valuable benefits” covers jobs, pay and more.
- B does not fit. It asks people only to understand how businesses use code, the idea of paragraph 3. It never says to learn coding.
- C does not fit. The passage never tells schools what to do. Schools are just one place to learn, in sentence 15.
- D does not fit. It speaks only to students, and only about jobs. The passage speaks to everybody.
Choose the answer
Watch out: D sounds right because the passage does talk about students and jobs. But those are only parts of paragraphs 3 and 4. Only A covers who the passage speaks to and why they should learn. So the answer is A.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
D is a close wrong answer, because studying code for good jobs is part of the passage. But D limits the claim to students and to jobs. Sentence 19 says “Everybody” should learn. The reason Steve Jobs gives is that it “teaches you how to think,” which is not about jobs at all. A speaks to all people and all the benefits.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “Cracking the Code” as printed (page 40)
Question 11 of 16
2022 Test A English, question 10Uses the passage above: “Cracking the Code”.
Question
Which concluding sentence would best follow sentence 20 and support the argument presented in the passage?
- APeople should understand that knowing how to code is becoming an essential requirement for most high-paying jobs.
- BBy understanding basic coding concepts, people can participate in an increasingly digital job market.
- CStudents who want to secure a high-paying job in the technology industry should become proficient in coding.
- DSince coding is a valuable marketplace skill, today’s students should begin to write their own computer programs.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks which concluding sentence would best follow sentence 20 and support the argument presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. While the passage does state that “jobs that require coding skills are typically higher paying” (sentence 13), it does not say or imply that coding skills are needed for most high-paying jobs.
B. CORRECT. The sentence successfully summarizes the main argument of the passage, which is that coding is involved in all electronic interaction (sentence 1) and is a useful skill to master, especially in many occupational fields (sentence 10).
C. Incorrect. In the fourth paragraph, the passage does promote students taking advantage of opportunities to learn coding; however, this information is a supporting detail and would not serve as a strong conclusion to the argument presented in the passage.
D. Incorrect. Some readers may choose this sentence because the fourth paragraph discusses how “some students may become interested in learning how to create programs, such as games and apps” (sentence 18), but this detail is only one part of the overall argument in the passage.
Question analysis
This conclusion question asks which sentence should come after sentence 20, the last line of “Cracking the Code,” to close the passage and support its argument. The options mention high-paying jobs, students, the technology industry and the job market, so students must decide which ending fits the whole passage rather than one of its details.
- NYS standards
- 7W1e concluding an argument
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 A closing statement that explains why an argument matters is part of the grade 7 writing standards. Here the ending must follow sentence 20 and reflect all five paragraphs, a typical grade 7 revising task with several reasonable-sounding options.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- The right answer is reworded minor
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 10, 357 words; question and choices: about grade 11, 80 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Each wrong ending grows from something the passage does say, about high pay, students or creating programs, which makes it feel supported. The trap is in how far each one goes: one inflates better pay into a requirement for most good jobs, and two shrink the argument to students and programming. Keeping sentence 20’s point about non-experts in mind rules out most of them at once.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
A closing sentence must gather the whole argument: code is everywhere (sentence 1), it matters in many jobs (paragraph 3), anyone can learn it (paragraph 4) and even a basic grasp pays off (sentence 20). (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer
The best ending uses words the passage never does, “basic coding concepts” and “increasingly digital job market,” while the others echo the “higher paying” jobs of sentence 13 or the programs of sentence 18. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The ending follows sentence 20, which says one need not become an expert programmer, so options that call for proficiency or for writing programs clash with the line just before them. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Reread sentence 20 and list the passage’s main points in a phrase each, then choose the ending that follows sentence 20 and covers those points without claiming more than they show.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Builds on sentence 13’s point that coding jobs pay more but inflates it into coding being “an essential requirement for most high-paying jobs,” a claim the passage never makes.
C Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Is drawn by “high-paying job,” but it addresses only students aiming at the technology industry and asks for proficiency, though sentence 20 says no one needs to become an expert.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Builds on sentence 18’s students who may go on to create games and apps, so it ends on one detail of paragraph 4 instead of the passage’s case for everyone.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This asks for the best concluding sentence, the last line of the passage. A good conclusion follows from the sentence before it and sums up the whole argument. It shouldn’t claim more than the passage shows. It also shouldn’t shrink the point down to one detail.
Reread sentence 20
Sentence 20 says “Learning to code can seem challenging, but one does not need to become an expert programmer to reap the benefits of understanding this language.” An expert is someone with great skill. So you don’t need great skill to gain from coding. Even a basic grasp helps. The last sentence should build on that idea.
List the passage’s main points
- Code is everywhere. It is “part of every electronic interaction” (sentence 1).
- Coding skills matter “in many occupational fields” (sentence 10).
- Anyone can find ways to learn (paragraph 4).
- Even a basic understanding pays off (sentence 20).
Check each choice
- A does not fit. Sentence 13 says coding jobs usually pay more. It never says coding is needed for “most high-paying jobs.” That claims too much.
- B fits. “Basic coding concepts” matches sentence 20: you don’t need to be an expert. “People” means everyone. Digital means done with computers. So an “increasingly digital job market” ties together code being everywhere and its use in many jobs.
- C does not fit. It speaks only to students who want tech jobs. Proficient means highly skilled, which sentence 20 says you don’t need to be.
- D does not fit. Writing programs is one detail from sentence 18. It is not the whole argument.
Choose the answer
Watch out: A sounds like a strong ending, and it builds on sentence 13. But it turns “typically higher paying” into a requirement for most good jobs. Only B follows sentence 20 and fits the whole passage. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. It grows out of sentence 13, which says coding jobs “are typically higher paying.” But paying more is not the same as being required. A claims more than the passage shows. B stays inside the passage: a basic understanding of coding helps people take part in a world of work full of computers.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 12 of 16
2019 Test A English, question 9Uses the passage above: “Cracking the Code”.
Question
Which concluding sentence would best follow sentence 20 and support the argument presented in the passage?
- APeople should understand that knowing how to code is becoming an essential requirement for most high-paying jobs.
- BBy understanding basic coding concepts, people can participate in an increasingly digital marketplace.
- CStudents who want to secure a high-paying job in the technology industry should become proficient in coding.
- DSince coding is a valuable marketplace skill, today’s students should begin to write their own computer programs.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks which concluding sentence would best follow sentence 20 and support the argument presented in the passage.
A. Incorrect. While the passage does state that “jobs that require coding skills are typically higher paying” (sentence 13), it does not say or imply that coding skills are needed for most high-paying jobs.
B. CORRECT. The sentence successfully summarizes the main argument of the passage, which is that coding is involved in all electronic interaction (sentence 1) and is a useful skill to master, especially in many occupational fields (sentence 10).
C. Incorrect. In the fourth paragraph, the passage does promote students taking advantage of opportunities to learn coding; however, this information is a supporting detail and would not serve as a strong conclusion to the argument presented in the passage.
D. Incorrect. Some readers may choose this sentence because the fourth paragraph discusses how “some students may become interested in learning how to create programs, such as games and apps” (sentence 18), but this detail is only one part of the overall argument in the passage.
Question analysis
To finish “Cracking the Code,” a short argument for learning to code, students must pick the concluding sentence that would best follow sentence 20. Several options grow from details the passage does mention, such as higher pay and students creating programs, so each ending must be weighed against the passage as a whole.
- NYS standards
- 7W1e concluding an argument
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing an ending that sums up a whole argument is ordinary grade 7 revising work. The passage is short and clear; what takes care is that each option is linked to something real in the passage, so overreach must be spotted.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- The right answer is reworded minor
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 10, 357 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 79 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Each tempting ending starts from something the passage really says, about better pay, students or making programs, so each feels grounded. What separates them is scale: one inflates better pay into a requirement for most good jobs, and two shrink a case made for everyone into advice for students. Holding on to sentence 20, that understanding the basics is enough, removes most of them at once.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
A closing line has to gather points made far apart: code runs everyday devices (sentence 1), many occupations need it (sentence 10), anyone can learn it (paragraph 4) and a basic grasp is enough (sentence 20). (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
The right answer is reworded minor Choosing the answer
The best ending speaks of “basic coding concepts” and an “increasingly digital marketplace,” words the passage never uses, while the others recycle sentence 13’s higher pay or sentence 18’s student-made programs. (Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The ending must follow sentence 20, which says no one has to become an expert programmer, so a call for proficiency or for writing programs clashes with the line just before it. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Note what sentence 20 says about becoming an expert, then test each ending twice: does it fit the passage as a whole, and does it stay within what the passage claims?
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Starts from sentence 13’s higher salaries for coding jobs and inflates them into coding being “an essential requirement for most high-paying jobs,” a claim the passage never makes.
C Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Is caught by “high-paying job,” but it speaks only to students aiming at the technology industry and demands proficiency, which sentence 20 says no one needs.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Builds on sentence 18’s students who go on to create games and apps, so it closes the passage on one detail of paragraph 4 instead of its case for everyone.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
This asks for the best concluding sentence, the one that would end the passage. It must follow sentence 20 smoothly. It must also sum up the argument, the passage’s main point. A good ending doesn’t claim more than the passage shows. It also doesn’t shrink to one small detail. For example, an essay on sleep might end: Getting enough sleep helps you think, grow and stay well.
Reread sentence 20
Sentence 20 says “one does not need to become an expert programmer to reap the benefits of understanding this language.” An expert is someone with great skill. To reap the benefits means to get the good things that come from something. So even a basic understanding of coding helps. The last sentence should build on that.
List the passage’s main points
- Code is part of everything electronic, from video games to GPS (sentence 1).
- Coding skills matter “in many occupational fields,” or kinds of jobs (sentence 10).
- Anyone can find ways to learn (paragraph 4).
- Even a basic grasp pays off (sentence 20).
Check each choice
- A does not fit. Sentence 13 says coding jobs are “typically higher paying.” It never says coding is required for “most high-paying jobs.” That claims too much.
- B fits. “Basic coding concepts” matches sentence 20. A marketplace is the world of buying, selling and jobs. Digital means run by computers. So B ties together code being everywhere and its use in many jobs.
- C does not fit. It speaks only to students who want tech jobs. Proficient means highly skilled, which sentence 20 says you don’t need to be.
- D does not fit. Writing your own programs is one detail from sentence 18. It is not the whole argument.
Choose the answer
Watch out: A sounds like a strong ending, and it grows out of sentence 13. But paying more is not the same as being required. Only B follows sentence 20 and fits the whole passage. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. It starts from a real fact: coding jobs usually pay more. But it stretches that into a rule for “most high-paying jobs,” which the passage never says. B stays within the passage. A basic grasp of coding helps people take part in a world of work that runs on computers.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 13 of 16
2018 Test A English, question 4Passage Moving through Mountains
Moving through Mountains
(1) An age-old proverb says that necessity is the mother of invention. (2) Centuries of human ingenuity in the face of obstacles prove this to be true. (3) For many years the Swiss Alps, a mountain range spanning southern Switzerland and northern Italy, were such an obstacle. (4) Roads and railways had to navigate around the mountains or through winding tunnels inside the mountains, making the transportation of people and goods difficult and time consuming. (5) In 2016 these burdens were eased with the completion of the Gotthard Base Tunnel.
(6) Construction of the high-speed railway tunnel began in 1996. (7) The tunnel was created through the use of tunnel-boring machines, which are giant drills with a flat rotating head called a cutter head. (8) Each of the tunnel-boring machines used during the construction of the tunnel was about the length of four football fields arranged end-to-end. (9) During the seventeen-year construction period, 28 million tons of rock were removed, enough to rebuild the Great Pyramid of Giza five times. (10) This massive construction project is reported to have cost $12 billion. (11) After that, 4 million cubic meters of concrete, or enough concrete to build eighty-four Empire State Buildings, were used to construct and support the tunnel.
(12) By 2020 the high-speed railway will carry more than 250 freight trains and 55 passenger trains a day, with most traveling at speeds of around 100 to 125 miles per hour. (13) It will be faster for people to travel between northern and southern Europe. (14) The travel time between the European cities of Zurich, Switzerland, and Milan, Italy, will be reduced by an hour. (15) Many European leaders compare the Gotthard Base Tunnel to the Channel Tunnel, a 33-mile underwater tunnel that connects the United Kingdom and France. (16) While there is no roadway in the Channel Tunnel, people can drive their cars onto special trains that will carry vehicles through to the other side.
(17) Just as traffic congestion in major cities led to the construction of underground local transportation, natural formations, such as mountain ranges, have also sent people underground for faster, easier, and cheaper methods of transportation across larger areas. (18) There is renewed interest in constructing innovative methods of transportation that will help eliminate problems associated with traveling to and from certain areas.
Question
Which sentence should be added after sentence 5 to introduce the main topic of the passage?
- AThe construction of the Gotthard Base Tunnel was approved by Swiss voters in 1992 and was funded by tolls, fuel taxes, and government loans.
- BLeaders from several European countries attended the opening ceremonies for the Gotthard Base Tunnel, a Swiss tunnel.
- CThe Gotthard Base Tunnel is the world’s longest and deepest railway tunnel, stretching 35.5 miles straight through the base of the Swiss Alps.
- DThe Gotthard Base Tunnel continues to help reduce the number of freight trucks on the roadways in the Swiss Alps.
Show the answer
Correct answer: C
The Answer is (C)
The question asks which sentence should be added to the end of the first paragraph in order to introduce the topic of the passage, which is the description, construction, and use of the Gotthard Base Tunnel.
Option C correctly presents and describes the Gotthard Base Tunnel.
Option A is incorrect because it offers overly detailed information about the funding used to build the Gotthard Base Tunnel, and it does not provide a description of the tunnel.
Option B is incorrect because it gives details about the opening ceremony of the tunnel, and it does not provide a description of the tunnel.
Option D is incorrect because it offers a result of completing the Gotthard Base Tunnel, rather than offering an introductory statement presenting and describing the tunnel.
Question analysis
This revising question uses a short informational passage about the Gotthard Base Tunnel through the Swiss Alps and asks which sentence best introduces the main topic at the end of the first paragraph. Several choices offer true-sounding facts about the tunnel, so students must tell an introduction apart from a supporting detail.
- NYS standards
- 7W2a introducing and organizing a topic
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Choosing a sentence that introduces a topic and previews what follows is standard grade 7 writing work. The passage is short and factual, and the wrong choices are related details, much like a classroom revision exercise.
- Estimated difficulty
- Straightforward: two steps or one careful reading.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 362 words; question and choices: about grade 9, 97 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
Most students find the descriptive sentence once they ask what a reader needs right after the tunnel is first named. Points are lost to sentences that follow on smoothly from the word “completion” or that name a real benefit, but which set up a passage about something else. The right sentence even adds facts the passage never states, so students should judge fit rather than hunt for repeated words.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The topic the new sentence must introduce only emerges across all four paragraphs: what the Gotthard Base Tunnel is, how it was dug, and what it will do for travel. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
The added sentence follows sentence 5, which names the tunnel only as what eased the burdens, so it should present the tunnel itself before paragraph 2 turns to its construction. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Skim the first sentence of each paragraph to see what the passage as a whole covers, then pick the sentence that would prepare a reader for all of it.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Picks voter approval in 1992 and funding by tolls, fuel taxes and loans, background that would set up a passage about financing, which this one never discusses.
B Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Follows naturally from “the completion of the Gotthard Base Tunnel” in sentence 5, but an opening ceremony with European leaders is not what the passage goes on to describe.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Offers one result, fewer freight trucks on Alpine roads, which echoes the difficult roads of sentence 4 but does not present the tunnel before the passage explains it.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
The new sentence goes at the end of paragraph 1, right after sentence 5. It must introduce the main topic, which is what the whole passage is mostly about. So first you need to know what the whole passage covers.
Skim the passage for its topic
Sentence 5 ends paragraph 1: “In 2016 these burdens were eased with the completion of the Gotthard Base Tunnel.” Paragraph 2 tells how the tunnel was built. Paragraph 3 tells how it will make travel faster. Paragraph 4 tells why people build tunnels like it. So the passage is about the Gotthard Base Tunnel: what it is, how it was built, and what it does.
See what sentence 5 leaves out
Sentence 5 names the tunnel, but it doesn’t say what the tunnel is. A reader doesn’t yet know how long it is or what makes it special. Then paragraph 2 jumps right into building it. So the new sentence should describe the tunnel itself. That gets the reader ready for the rest.
Check each choice
- A is about voters and money from tolls and taxes. The passage never discusses how the tunnel was paid for.
- B is about an opening ceremony. The passage never describes one.
- C says what the tunnel is: “the world’s longest and deepest railway tunnel,” running “straight through the base of the Swiss Alps.”
- D gives one result, fewer trucks on the roads. That is a detail, not an introduction.
Watch out: D links back to the slow roads in sentence 4, so it seems to fit. But it is one benefit, and the passage never mentions trucks.
Pick the answer
Choice C presents the tunnel and tells what makes it special. So the answer is C.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
Choice D is the closest wrong answer. It is about the tunnel, and it ties back to the hard travel in sentence 4. But it gives a result before the reader even knows what the tunnel is. C describes the tunnel itself, and that is what an introduction needs.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “Moving through Mountains” as printed (page 48)
Question 14 of 16
2018 Test A English, question 9Uses the passage above: “Moving through Mountains”.
Question
Which concluding sentence should be added after sentence 18 to support the topic presented in the passage?
- AThere is proof that underground tunnels such as the Gotthard Base Tunnel are beneficial to the economy of the surrounding area.
- BThe Gotthard Base Tunnel is an extraordinary example of how human ingenuity and persistence can overcome great obstacles.
- CThe completion of the Gotthard Base Tunnel shows that people can work together to achieve important goals.
- DThe Swiss government is confident that the economic impact of the Gotthard Base Tunnel will be worth its construction cost.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The answer is (B)
The question asks for a concluding sentence that supports key ideas about the topic developed earlier in the passage.
Option B is correct because it supports the points made in the introductory paragraph by affirming the idea that the Gotthard Base Tunnel is an example of a way people have improved life by overcoming obstacles.
Option A is incorrect because the economies of surrounding areas were never mentioned in the passage.
Option C is incorrect because, although the construction of the Gotthard Base Tunnel appears to have required many people to work together, the passage does not explicitly mention people or groups working together.
Option D is incorrect because it focuses on the cost of the Gotthard Base Tunnel, which is referred to only in sentence 10 of the passage.
Question analysis
This revising question asks which concluding sentence should end the passage about building the Gotthard Base Tunnel. Students must recognize the passage's overall point and choose a conclusion that sums it up, avoiding sentences that sound reasonable but add claims the passage never supports.
- NYS standards
- 7W2e concluding informative writing
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Picking a concluding sentence that reflects a passage's central idea is standard grade 7 writing work. Students must keep the whole short passage in mind and reject conclusions that bring in claims it never makes.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 362 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 92 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The conclusion has to return to the idea the passage opened with, which sits at the far end of the text from where the new sentence goes. Students who have forgotten the proverb about necessity tend to choose by tone, and three choices sound like fitting final lessons or benefits. What the question rewards is matching the conclusion to the opening's own words, ingenuity and obstacles.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The passage's point is set out in sentences 1 to 3, the proverb about necessity and “human ingenuity in the face of obstacles”, about fifteen sentences before the spot where the conclusion goes. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The right conclusion and the teamwork one share a frame, the tunnel as proof of what people can do, and differ only in the lesson: ingenuity against obstacles, from sentences 1 to 3, or teamwork, which the passage never mentions. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
Strategy: Say in one sentence what the whole passage is about, then choose the conclusion that restates that idea without adding claims the passage never makes.
Traps
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
The wrong answers, classified
A Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Ends on a claim of “proof” that tunnels help local economies, a benefit that sounds right for a conclusion but that the passage never discusses.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Sees that the ending should state a broad human lesson but picks teamwork, which the passage never raises, instead of the ingenuity against obstacles it opened with.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Seizes on the $12 billion cost, mentioned once in sentence 10, and adds a government opinion the passage never reports, narrowing the ending to one detail.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a last sentence for the passage. A good conclusion sums up the main idea. It often goes back to the point made at the start. It should not add new claims that the passage never made.
Find the main idea at the start
Sentence 1 says: “An age-old proverb says that necessity is the mother of invention.” Sentence 2 says: “Centuries of human ingenuity in the face of obstacles prove this to be true.” Sentence 3 says the Swiss Alps “were such an obstacle.”
Put the main idea in plain words
A proverb is an old saying. Necessity is the mother of invention means that when people really need something, they find a clever way to get it. Ingenuity means cleverness. An obstacle is something in the way. So the passage says people use cleverness to get past what blocks them. The tunnel is the example.
Check each choice
- B says the tunnel shows “how human ingenuity and persistence can overcome great obstacles.” This repeats the opening idea. Persistence means not giving up.
- A is about the economy, meaning money and jobs, of nearby areas. The passage never discusses that.
- C is about people working together. The passage never mentions teamwork.
- D is about the cost and the government’s opinion. The cost comes up only once, in sentence 10.
Watch out: C sounds like a fine life lesson for an ending. But a conclusion must match this passage, and teamwork is not its point.
Pick the answer
Choice B restates the passage’s main idea without adding anything new. It ties the ending back to the beginning. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
C is the closest wrong answer, because it also uses the tunnel to teach a lesson. But teamwork never comes up in the passage. B uses the passage’s own words, “human ingenuity” against “obstacles,” so it closes the passage the way it opened.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
Question 15 of 16
2018 Test B English, question 5Passage The Local Library
The Local Library
(1) According to a 2015 survey, more than two-thirds of Americans own a smartphone, which means that obtaining information or communicating with people is easier than ever before. (2) With the swipe of a finger, the tap of an icon, or a verbal command, people have instant access to articles, blogs, news, and social networking websites. (3) Even with all these immediately available sources of information, one of the best resources for many members of the community also happens to be one of the oldest. (4) The public library is a great place for people to get information.
(5) The public library serves a truly critical role in promoting community. (6) With the explosion of digital media in recent years, people in different locations can now communicate almost instantaneously. (7) And yet many people complain of feeling more isolated and alone than ever before. (8) The library stands in a rare position to help community members meet this universal need for human connection and companionship.
(9) Furthermore, libraries provide certain amenities, such as access to the Internet, for free to all people. (10) A student who does not have a computer at home can research and type a paper for school. (11) Similarly, an unemployed adult without access to the Internet can make use of library resources to find job opportunities. (12) The free items that are found at the library can help people get a lot done.
(13) Public libraries also offer a variety of resources to community members. (14) One important resource is the local librarian, who does far more than check out books and collect fines. (15) Other library resources include free or low-cost tutoring and training programs. (16) Additionally, lectures, book groups, and town meetings promote critical thinking and community engagement. (17) A typical librarian holds a master’s degree and can help library patrons navigate through the flood of information available in print and on the Internet.
(18) The hallmark of a public library is that its materials and services are accessible to all. (19) The library connects people to a network of information and resources and is an important part of a community.
Question
Which sentence should replace sentence 4 to best introduce the main claim of the passage?
- AIn this age of smartphones and search engines, the public library is a valuable resource that all members of a community should use.
- BFinding information is easier than ever, but going to the public library is still a valuable learning experience.
- CThough today’s computers are highly advanced, the resources available at a public library are more useful for students.
- DDespite the proliferation of social networking sites, a public library is a great place for people who are interested in improving their community.
Show the answer
Correct answer: A
The question asks for a sentence that should replace sentence 4 to introduce the main claim of the passage.
Option A is correct because it best presents the main claim that the public library is a valuable resource and should be used by community members.
Option B is incorrect because it states that going to the library can be a learning experience. This idea is implied in sentences 17 and 18, but it is not the main claim of the passage.
Option C is incorrect because it states the idea that the library is useful for students, which would be supporting evidence rather than an introductory statement expressing the main claim.
Option D is incorrect because it states that local libraries provide services to help improve communities, which is explained in sentences 15–18, but it does not present the main claim.
Question analysis
This introduction question uses a persuasive essay about public libraries that opens with statistics on smartphone ownership. Students choose a new fourth sentence that states the passage’s main claim. Every option contrasts technology with libraries, so the challenge is telling the overall argument apart from single supporting points.
- NYS standards
- 7W1a introducing claims and counterclaims
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Grade 7 writers learn to state a precise claim; here students must find the claim behind a whole five-paragraph essay and test each candidate opener against all of its reasons, not just one paragraph.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- A very close wrong answer moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 341 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 96 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
The risk here is settling for a true point from the essay instead of its overall claim. Every opener sets technology against the library, so the contrast itself decides nothing; what decides is whether the library is presented as a resource for the whole community or as a benefit to one group. Students who state the claim in their own words before reading the choices avoid the near-copy that narrows it to learning.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
The main claim is never stated in one place: it has to be pieced together from paragraphs on human connection, free Internet access, librarians and tutoring, and access for all, ending with “an important part of a community.” (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer
The learning-experience opener has the right one’s shape, a nod to technology and then “valuable,” and differs in one part of the claim: “a valuable learning experience” instead of “a valuable resource that all members of a community should use.” (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
Sentence 3 builds up to an unnamed “one of the best resources,” so the new sentence 4 must name the library as that resource and say why everyone should use it. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Before reading the choices, sum up in your own words what the essay wants readers to believe about the library, drawing on every paragraph, then find the opener that matches it.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Too broad or too strong: A choice overstates, generalizes, or uses absolute words the text does not support.
The wrong answers, classified
B Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Echoes sentence 1’s “easier than ever” and sounds balanced, but reduces the claim to one benefit, learning, and drops the community and the free services the essay argues for.
C Too broad or too strong (King et al., 2004)
Builds on the student in sentence 10 and the essay’s technology contrast, but claims libraries beat computers, a ranking the essay never makes, since libraries offer the Internet.
D Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Keeps the original sentence’s vague “great place for people” and narrows the audience to those improving their community, one point from paragraphs 2 and 4 rather than the claim.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a new sentence 4. Sentence 4 ends the first paragraph, so it should state the main claim. A claim is the big point a writer tries to prove. Here it must fit the whole essay.
Sum up what the essay argues
Look at what each paragraph says about the library.
- Paragraph 2: it helps people meet the “need for human connection and companionship.”
- Paragraph 3: it offers things like “access to the Internet, for free to all people.”
- Paragraph 4: it offers librarians, tutoring, lectures and book groups.
- Paragraph 5: it is “an important part of a community.”
So the claim is this: the library is a valuable resource that everyone in the community should use.
See how sentence 4 must fit
Sentence 1 talks about smartphones. Sentence 3 says that “one of the best resources” is also “one of the oldest.” Sentence 4 should name that old resource, the library. It should also say why everyone should use it.
Check each choice
- A is right. It links back to the smartphones. It calls the library “a valuable resource that all members of a community should use.” That is the whole claim.
- B is wrong. It shrinks the claim to learning. It leaves out the free services and the human connection.
- C is wrong. It talks only about students. It also says the library beats computers, which the essay never says. The library even offers the Internet.
- D is wrong. It talks only about people who want to improve their community. It keeps the vague words “a great place.”
Watch out: B repeats “easier than ever” from sentence 1, so it sounds like it belongs. But it covers only one benefit.
Choose the answer
A names the library, calls it valuable and tells everyone to use it. So the answer is A.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
B is the closest wrong answer. It also starts with how easy it is to find information today, and it calls the library valuable. But it calls the library “a valuable learning experience.” The essay argues for much more than learning: free Internet, librarians, programs and a place to meet people. A covers all of that.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
The passage “The Local Library” as printed (page 120)
Question 16 of 16
2018 Test B English, question 9Uses the passage above: “The Local Library”.
Question
Which concluding sentence should be added after sentence 19 to support the argument presented in the passage?
- ATherefore, patrons of the public library can grow in both their social life and their level of community engagement.
- BClearly, it is in the best interest of community members to maintain, support, and use their public library.
- CAfter all, the public library has been a part of American communities since the first library was founded in 1833.
- DIn fact, community leaders must work together to find ways to generate more involvement in events at the public library.
Show the answer
Correct answer: B
The question asks for a concluding sentence that would follow sentence 19 and support the argument presented in the passage.
Option B is correct because it logically follows sentence 19 and supports the argument that the public library facilitates connections within a community and provides valuable services—some at no cost—by urging community members to use, maintain, and support their local public library.
Option A is incorrect because it does not provide a logical conclusion that fully supports the argument in the passage; the sentence addresses only one benefit of having a public library, ignoring the valuable services and resources it provides.
Option C is incorrect because it presents the idea that the library has been in existence since 1833, which does not logically provide a conclusion for the passage or support the argument developed in the passage.
Option D is incorrect because it presents a new claim—community leaders must work together to support library events—instead of a conclusion that supports the argument presented in the passage.
Question analysis
This conclusion question asks which sentence should be added after the library essay’s last line. Students choose a closing statement that best supports the argument as a whole. Several endings sound final, so the challenge is judging which one fits the complete argument rather than one part of it.
- NYS standards
- 7W1e concluding an argument
- Grade level
- Grade 7 reading and task
- Compared with grade 7
- At grade 7 Writing a conclusion that explains an argument’s significance is a grade 7 standard. This item asks students to recognize one rather than write it, but they must keep the essay’s full argument in mind to judge which closing sentence fits best.
- Estimated difficulty
- Moderate: several steps, or a close reading with one strong distractor.
- Thinking it demands
- Depth of knowledge 2, skills and concepts · mainly evaluate
- What makes it hard
- Evidence in several places moderate
- How sentences fit together minor
- Evidence
- Answered from the whole text
- Reading level
- Passage: about grade 11, 341 words; question and choices: about grade 12, 92 words.
- Students, last 30 days
- Not enough answers yet to show (it takes 10).
Why it is hard, traps and wrong answers (shows the answer)
Why it is hard
All four endings open with a word that sounds conclusive, “Therefore,” “Clearly,” “After all” or “In fact,” so the opening word is no guide. Students lose the point when they accept a closing line that is true to one part of the essay, or one that introduces something new such as a date or a task for community leaders. The right ending turns the essay’s reasons into a call to keep using and supporting the library.
Evidence in several places moderate Working it out
To judge whether an ending covers the whole argument, students must recall that the free Internet access and the tutoring sit in paragraphs 3 and 4, far from the last sentence. (Kirsch & Mosenthal, 1990; Gorin & Embretson, 2006)
How sentences fit together minor Working it out
Sentence 19 already calls the library “an important part of a community,” so the added line has to build on it, moving from praise to what readers should do. (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Strategy: Jot down the essay’s main reasons in a phrase each, then choose the ending that ties them together without bringing in a new fact or a new claim.
Traps
- Too narrow: A single detail offered as the central idea or a summary, or a summary that keeps minor details and leaves out an essential part.
- Off the point: Adds or keeps something that does not support the paragraph's or the passage's focus, or an introduction or conclusion that misses the main point.
The wrong answers, classified
A Too narrow (King et al., 2004)
Sounds conclusive with “Therefore” and restates the social and community-engagement benefits, but omits the free services and resources that make up half the argument.
C Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Is drawn by the authoritative “After all” and a historical date, but a founding in 1833 appears nowhere in the essay and supports none of its reasons.
D Off the point (Halliday & Hasan, 1976)
Knows a persuasive essay often ends with a call to action, but this one assigns a new task to community leaders instead of urging readers to use the library.
Working it out, step by step
Figure out what the question asks
You need a concluding sentence: a last sentence that wraps up the argument. A good conclusion pulls the main points together. It does not bring in a new fact or a new claim.
List the essay’s main reasons
- The library helps people connect with others (paragraph 2).
- It gives free things, like Internet access (paragraph 3).
- It offers librarians, tutoring and lectures (paragraph 4).
- It is open to all and is “an important part of a community” (paragraph 5).
All of these support one claim: people should value and use their library.
Decide what the ending should do
Sentence 19 already says the library “connects people to a network of information and resources.” The new last sentence should build on that. It can tell readers what to do, now that they know the reasons. This kind of ending is called a call to action.
Check each choice
- A is wrong. It covers only social life and community involvement. It leaves out the free services and resources.
- B is right. It tells community members to “maintain, support, and use” the library. That fits every reason in the essay.
- C is wrong. The year 1833 is a new fact that the essay never mentions. It proves nothing about the library’s value.
- D is wrong. It makes a new claim about what community leaders must do.
Watch out: A starts with “Therefore,” so it sounds like a conclusion. But it sums up only part of the argument.
Choose the answer
B ties all the reasons together and tells readers what to do. So the answer is B.
Why this answer and not the closest wrong one
A is the closest wrong answer. It sounds like an ending and repeats ideas from the essay. But it names only the social side of the library. B covers the whole argument: because the library does all these things, people should keep it going and use it.
More questions like this
The original DOE question
