Regents English Language Arts 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In an argumentative essay, which type of evidence is MOST effective for supporting a claim about a scientific topic?
- Personal anecdotes from everyday experience
- Peer-reviewed research and statistical data (Correct answer)
- Opinions from popular social media influencers
- Historical myths and folklore
Correct answer: Peer-reviewed research and statistical data
Peer-reviewed research and statistical data provide credible, verifiable support for scientific claims in argumentative writing.
Question 2: A student reads two texts about climate change—one by a scientist and one by a lobbyist. What skill is MOST important when comparing these sources?
- Identifying the author's purpose and potential bias (Correct answer)
- Counting the total number of paragraphs in each text
- Choosing whichever text has more descriptive language
- Focusing only on the text with more statistics
Correct answer: Identifying the author's purpose and potential bias
Evaluating an author's purpose and potential bias is essential for critically comparing sources with differing perspectives.
Question 3: Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?
- She carefully read the letter before responding.
- Running through the park, the flowers looked beautiful to her. (Correct answer)
- The dog barked loudly at the stranger.
- He finished his homework before dinner.
Correct answer: Running through the park, the flowers looked beautiful to her.
"Running through the park" is a misplaced modifier because it incorrectly implies the flowers were running.
Question 4: In literary analysis, what does the term 'foil' mean?
- A character who narrates the story from the sidelines
- A character who contrasts with another to highlight their traits (Correct answer)
- A character who undergoes no change throughout the plot
- A character who represents an abstract concept or idea
Correct answer: A character who contrasts with another to highlight their traits
A foil is a character whose contrasting traits highlight or emphasize the qualities of another character, often the protagonist.
Question 5: When writing a conclusion paragraph, a student should primarily:
- Introduce new evidence not mentioned in the body paragraphs
- Restate the thesis word-for-word from the introduction
- Synthesize main points and reinforce the central argument (Correct answer)
- Begin with the phrase 'In conclusion' followed by a summary
Correct answer: Synthesize main points and reinforce the central argument
An effective conclusion synthesizes the main arguments and reinforces the central claim rather than simply repeating or adding new material.
Question 6: Which literary device is used in the phrase: 'The wind whispered secrets through the trees'?
- Hyperbole
- Personification (Correct answer)
- Alliteration
- Simile
Correct answer: Personification
Personification attributes human qualities (whispering secrets) to a non-human element (wind).
Question 7: A student wants to revise a sentence to improve conciseness. Which revision of 'Due to the fact that it was raining, we decided to stay inside' is BEST?
- Because it was raining, we stayed inside. (Correct answer)
- In light of the rainy weather conditions that were present, we made the decision to remain indoors.
- We stayed inside on account of the rain falling outside.
- The rain, which was occurring, caused us to stay inside.
Correct answer: Because it was raining, we stayed inside.
Replacing 'due to the fact that' with 'because' eliminates wordiness while preserving the meaning.
Regents English Language Arts 2
In an argumentative essay, which type of evidence is MOST effective for supporting a claim about a scientific topic?