Core Academic Skills Assessment Core Academic Skills MCQ 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student wants to determine the main idea of a passage. Where is the main idea most commonly found?
- Only in the final paragraph
- In a supporting detail sentence in the middle
- In the thesis or topic sentence, often at the beginning or end (Correct answer)
- Always in the title alone
Correct answer: In the thesis or topic sentence, often at the beginning or end
The main idea is typically expressed in the thesis or topic sentence, which can appear at the start or end of a passage.
Question 2: Identify the error in the following sentence: 'Between you and I, the results were surprising.'
- 'Results' should be plural
- 'Between' requires the objective pronoun 'me,' not 'I' (Correct answer)
- The sentence lacks a comma after 'Between you and I'
- No error exists in this sentence
Correct answer: 'Between' requires the objective pronoun 'me,' not 'I'
Prepositions like 'between' require objective pronouns; 'me' is correct, not 'I.'
Question 3: A store discounts a $120 jacket by 15%. What is the sale price?
- $18
- $102 (Correct answer)
- $105
- $108
Correct answer: $102
Discount = 15% × $120 = $18; sale price = $120 − $18 = $102.
Question 4: A table shows that City A has a population of 350,000 and City B has 280,000. Approximately what percentage larger is City A than City B?
- 20%
- 25% (Correct answer)
- 30%
- 15%
Correct answer: 25%
(350,000 − 280,000) / 280,000 × 100 ≈ 25%.
Question 5: Which of the following is an example of an ad hominem fallacy?
- Rejecting an argument because it relies on a single source
- Dismissing a scientist's findings because she once failed an exam (Correct answer)
- Concluding a policy works because many people support it
- Arguing that two events are linked without evidence
Correct answer: Dismissing a scientist's findings because she once failed an exam
Ad hominem attacks the person making the argument rather than addressing the argument itself.
Question 6: What is the least common multiple (LCM) of 6 and 8?
- 12
- 24 (Correct answer)
- 48
- 16
Correct answer: 24
Multiples of 6: 6, 12, 18, 24… Multiples of 8: 8, 16, 24… The LCM is 24.
Question 7: Which revision makes the following sentence more concise? 'Due to the fact that it was raining, the game was cancelled.'
- Because of the fact that rain occurred, the game was cancelled.
- Because it was raining, the game was cancelled. (Correct answer)
- On account of it raining outside, the game saw cancellation.
- The game was cancelled, due to the fact that raining happened.
Correct answer: Because it was raining, the game was cancelled.
'Because' is a single word that replaces the wordy phrase 'due to the fact that.'
Core Academic Skills Assessment Core Academic Skills MCQ 4
A student wants to determine the main idea of a passage.
Where is the main idea most commonly found?