ELAR - English Language Arts and Reading Inquiry and Research Skills Questions and Answers

Question 1

A student begins a research project with the topic 'the internet.' The teacher guides the student to narrow the topic into a more effective research question. Which of the following questions is the most effective for a high school research paper?

Accepted Answer

How has the proliferation of high-speed internet in rural American households affected their access to educational resources?

Answer

An effective research question is focused, complex, and researchable. Choice B is specific (high-speed internet, rural households, educational resources), requires analysis of multiple sources rather than a simple fact or a 'yes/no' answer, and is complex enough for a research paper.

Question 2

A student is writing a research paper on the D-Day invasion during World War II. Which of the following sources would be considered a primary source?

Accepted Answer

A letter from a soldier written on June 7, 1944, describing his experiences during the landing on Omaha Beach.

Answer

A primary source is a firsthand account or original material created at the time of an event. The soldier's letter is a direct, personal account from the period being studied, making it a primary source. The other options are secondary sources because they analyze, summarize, or interpret events after they have occurred.

Question 3

When guiding students to evaluate the credibility of an online article for a research project, which of the following questions is the MOST critical for them to ask?

Accepted Answer

Who is the author, and what are their credentials and affiliations?

Answer

Evaluating the author's expertise, credentials, and potential biases (indicated by their affiliations) is the most critical step in determining a source's credibility. While other factors can be considered, the authority of the author is paramount to trusting the information presented.

Question 4

A student finds three different articles about the causes of the American Revolution. One article emphasizes economic factors, another focuses on political philosophy, and a third highlights social tensions. Which of the following actions best demonstrates that the student is synthesizing the information from these sources?

Accepted Answer

Creating a paper that argues the American Revolution had multiple, interconnected causes, using evidence from all three articles to support this new thesis.

Answer

Synthesis involves combining information and ideas from multiple sources to create a new, more complex understanding or argument. Simply summarizing or listing points does not constitute synthesis; the key is to integrate the ideas to form a new, cohesive whole.

Question 5

A student reads a passage from a book and, in their research paper, rephrases a key argument from that passage entirely in their own words and sentence structure. To avoid plagiarism, what must the student do?

Accepted Answer

Include an in-text citation and a full citation in the works cited list.

Answer

Plagiarism includes using someone else's ideas, not just their exact words, without giving proper credit. Even when a concept is thoroughly paraphrased, the original source of the idea must be fully acknowledged with both an in-text citation and a works cited entry to avoid plagiarism.

(ELAR) English Language Arts and Reading Practice Test

(ELAR) English Language Arts and Reading Practice Test

ELAR - English Language Arts and Reading Inquiry and Research Skills Questions and Answers