Please read the following excerpt from an essay, and answer the question that follows. Biologically, adolescence is marked by hormonal changes that produce secondary sexual characteristics. These include breast development in females and beard growth in males. (Psychologically however, adolescence is a concept that applies only to modern industrial societies. In fact, in most preliterate or tribal societies, the modern American idea of adolescence simply does not exist. In such societies, the social roles of adulthood are to be learned during childhood. (Then, around the time of biological puberty, a child becomes an adult through a ritual anthropologists call a rite of passage. By contrast, in American society, adolescence amounts to a sort of social and cultural limbo. Informally, the end of childhood is often marked by one's thirteenth birthday. The child is now a "teenager." More formally, the end of adolescence is marked by legal strictures that vary irrationally. In a given state the age of sexual consent may be 16 for girls and 18 for boys. An 18-year-old may vote or enlist to die for his country, but, until he reaches age 21, he may not legally purchase alcoholic beverages. If the topic of this paragraph is adolescence, which of the following statements best captures or reiterates the thesis? A. Adolescence is an aspect of modern society. B. Adolescence is defined differently in different societies. C. Western society has no single concept of adolescence. D. Adolescence is an irrational concept. 2. An active reader who is assigned an essay to read will begin by A. researching the subject of the essay. B. skimming the entire essay. C. previewing specific parts of the essay. D. reading the entire essay. 3. In searching out the key elements as you read an essay, you're most likely to discover the author's support for his or her claims or ideas in the A. conclusion. B. introductory paragraph. C. title. D. body of the essay. 4. Please read the following excerpt from an essay, and answer the question that follows. In the passage, the sentences are numbered to help you respond to the question. (1) Biologically, adolescence is marked by hormonal changes that produce secondary sexual characteristics.  (2) These include breast development in females and beard growth in males. (3) Psychologically however, adolescence is a concept that applies only to modern industrial societies. (4) In fact, in most preliterate or tribal societies, the modern American idea of adolescence simply does not exist. (5) In such societies, the social roles of adulthood are to be learned during childhood. (6) Then, around the time of biological puberty, a child becomes an adult through a ritual anthropologists call a rite of passage. (7) By contrast, in American society, adolescence amounts to a sort of social and cultural limbo. (8) Informally, the end of childhood is often marked by one's thirteenth birthday. The child is now a "teenager." (9) More formally, the end of adolescence is marked by legal strictures that vary irrationally. (10) In a given state the age of sexual consent may be 16 for girls and 18 for boys. (11) An 18-year-old may vote or enlist to die for his country, but, until he reaches age 21, he may not legally purchase alcoholic beverages. In which sentence of the paragraph do you find a transitional word or phrase that shows a time connection? A. Sentence 4 B. Sentence 7 C. Sentence 3 D. Sentence 6 5. The usual point of view when writing a formal academic essay is A. personal. B. second person. C. subjective. D. third person. 6. One of the nine ways, or patterns, of developing an essay is A. process. B. editing. C. elaboration. D. disputation. 7. Your topic is courtesy, and you're writing from the point of view of a caring mentor. Which of the following sentences is most persuasive for an audience of high school graduates from a working-class neighborhood? A. Courtesy to others shows self-respect as much as it does respect for others. B. Courtesy is the oil that lubricates the machinery of discourse. C. Remember that you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. D. Courtesy yields profits to the impecunious as well as to the wealthy. 8. As a general rule, where in your essay is it best to place your thesis statement? A. At the end of the essay, as part of the conclusion B. Anywhere at all, because the best thesis statement is implied, not specified C. In the first, introductory paragraph of the essay D. In the second or third paragraph of the body of the essay 9. You're reading an essay on the relationship between education and income. The most effective graphic visual in such an essay is likely to be a A. photograph. B. sketch of an educated person. C. summary of opposing points of view. D. comparative graph. 10. Leila says that a thesis statement is like a promise to a reader. Lucas says a thesis statement expresses the writer's point of view. Who is correct? A. Only Leila is correct. B. Both Leila and Lucas are correct. C. Only Lucas is correct. D. Neither Leila nor Lucas is correct. 11. Which of the following titles is made more effective by alliteration? A. Ruby, the Rose of Roslyn B. Now You See It; Now You Don't C. What's in a Name? D. Guns: Our Lethal Heritage 12. In my journal, I've divided several pages into two columns. In the first column, I write down selected quotations from an essay I've just read. My purpose in these procedures is most likely to be _______ the essay. A. creating B. revising C. analyzing D. summarizing 13. Which of the following is a common error in composing a thesis statement? A. You focus your thesis statement after you begin writing. B. You offer an original perspective on a familiar theme. C. Your thesis statement contains two or more central points. D. Your thesis statement is specific as opposed to general. 14. What is the dominant pattern of development in this passage? Having been raised on a dairy farm in rural Minnesota, Lorie Ann Kline was having trouble adjusting to life in the city and to Central High School. In a conference with her parents, the school guidance counselor explained that Lorie Ann avoided talking to her fellow students and sat by herself in the lunchroom. Perhaps most disturbing, her grades were not what one would expect given her high scholastic aptitude scores. Mrs. Kline agreed that Lorie Ann was often shy around strangers. A solemn Mr. Kline explained that his daughter had been severely bullied by two older children who had lived at the farm for a short time. The guidance counselor nodded in understanding. A. Comparison and contrast B. Description C. Process D. Narration 15. Please read the following excerpt from an essay, and answer the question that follows. I've never actually met a real live humorist. Well, not in person at any rate. However, one summer, having a lot of time on my hands, I discovered unexpected treasures lurking in the local public library. Among the nuggets I unearthed in those musty stacks was a book by humorist Robert Benchley. To this day I remember one of his quips. He wrote, "There are two kinds of people in this world; those who divide the world into two kinds of people and those who don't." After laughing out loud, I became pensive. I wondered why the quip was so funny. A year or so later, I formed a theory. Humor is based on the unexpected.(br)In the passage above, the topic sentence and the thesis are one and the same. What makes the last sentence effective as a thesis statement? A. Assertion B. Humor C. Simplicity D. Specific detail 16. Which of the following statements best identifies a learning style that's creative, verbal, and independent? A. Karen loves sorting out facts, especially when she can help her classmates visualize them in novel and interesting ways. B. Cameron loves to diagram the different aspects or meanings of an idea. C. Bart enjoys sitting in public places with his brother analyzing people, especially when he is trying to come up with a plot for a short story. D. Loren writes poetry because she enjoys experimenting with words to evoke emotions. 17. Carmen asserts that a strong conclusion to an essay should look ahead and present a call for action. Carl agrees, except he insists that a strong conclusion should restate the thesis verbatim. Who is correct? A. Only Carl is correct. B. Neither Carmen nor Carl is correct. C. Only Carmen is correct. D. Both Carmen and Carl are correct. 18. Please read the following excerpt from an essay. The sentences are numbered to help you respond to the question that follows. (1) After Sean was arrested for breaking into a pawnshop, I began to wonder. (2) Why did some kids from my neighborhood end up in trouble while most of us didn't? (3) I started out with a question: What causes young people to make bad choices? (4) Now, after two years of research, I've arrived at the conclusion that there is no simple answer. (5) There is no one reason why good kids go bad, but there are typical reasons. (6) According to my research, teenagers are most likely to get into trouble if they hang out with a bad crowd. (7) That's because people learn their values from the people they associate with. (8) So a very big reason for bad behavior is imitating one's peers. (9) But there are other important factors as well. (10) Kids who get in trouble are often school dropouts. (11) Also, kids being raised by a single mother are more likely to get in trouble than kids raised in an intact family. (12) Substance abuse also plays a role, especially when it comes to alcohol and legal or illegal drugs. In which sentence or sentences do you find the thesis statement in this excerpt? A. 2 B. 4 and 5 C. 3 D. 5 19. To narrow a general topic you've selected, which pair of techniques is most likely to be effective? A. Questioning and choosing an issue that interests you B. Using a branching diagram and consulting your journal C. Branching diagram and questioning D. Freewriting and questioning 20. Lillian is looking for ideas to write about, and she decides to make a list of everything she can think of that relates to the topic of teenage romance. Which concept best describes Lillian's strategy? A. Mapping B. Free association C. Brainstorming D. Outlining End of exam