December 2021 ENG II STAAR - Benchmark

Four Days Is Enough

(1) Students, are you having a difficult time completing all the activities in your schedule? (2) Teachers, are you exhausted from nonstop work? (3) You are not alone. (4) Every day in schools across the nation, teens have challenging classes, hours of homework, and extracurricular activities such as sports and music.(5) By Friday, students are waking up exhausted, but they must drag themselves through one more school day. (6) Likewise, teachers are spending their weekends grading papers and preparing lessons instead of relaxing with family and friends.(7) In this program students spend a little more time in school four days aweek. (8) Then they have Friday off to catch up on their sleep, enjoy time with family and friends, and complete their many responsibilities. (9) Although some experts fear that reducing the length of the school week will worsen student learning, recent studies contradict this. (10) In 2015 Dr. Mark Anderson of Montana State University and Dr. Mary Beth Walker of Georgia State University reviewed scores forColorado elementary school students who were placed in a four-day system.(11) They found that math scores improved by about 7 percent, and reading scores also improved. (12) “We thought that especially for the younger elementary schoolkids, longer days on a shorter school week would hurt their academic performance because their attention spans are shorter,” Dr. Walker said. (13) Researchers also thought a longer weekend would give students more of an opportunity to forget what they had learned. (14) Clearly this was not the case. (15) The study cited shows this hypothesis is incorrect.(16) Teachers are also noticing other benefits from shorter school weeks.(17) Shana Myers teaches in a four-day program near Phoenix, Arizona. (18) Myerssays that the “Friday slump,” when students would seem tired through the day, is gone. (19) Absences are also down, as parents can schedule appointments for kids on Fridays. (20) They are also paying more attention when in school. (21) They are alert, they answer questions, and they are interested in what they are learning.(22) Myers thinks the changes in students’ behavior are partly due to the improved lessons that she and the other teachers are able to create. (23) Whilesome educators and parents may argue that teachers cannot prepare effective lessons in a shorter school week, many teachers offer an alternative scenario.(24) Before, they had to work on weekends to plan lessons. (25) Now, they are using Friday as their planning day. (26) “We’re still in school mode on Fridays, and we’ve found we’re creating far superior lessons,” Myers says. (27) High school English teacher Candyce Matlosz has found that longer days allow students to spend more time on activities. (28) And as a teacher with over twenty years of experience,Matlosz knows a lot about teaching English. (29) “For example, the science teachers have enough time to run labs, have the students write the lab reports, and clean up the labs in one class period,” she says. (30) “In English class, students can write a rough draft, revise, and write a final draft of essays in one or two days instead of taking a week.”(31) School budgets may benefit from a shortened week as well.(32) Introducing the four-day school week may provide a way for school districts to save money in areas where budgets are strained. (33) School budgets are stretched.(34) Districts reduce spending on fuel, bus drivers’ salaries, and maintenance when they decrease the number of days students are transported to and from school.(35) Expenses to keep facilities open and clean are also lowered, as are food costs.(36) The evidence in favor of switching to four-day school weeks is overwhelming. (37) Clearly it’s time for our school system to implement this innovative program in our area. (38) For teachers, schools, and students, it is  a winning solution.

Nancy has not used the most effective word in sentence 4. Which word should replace have to create a more effective sentence?

Nancy has not used the most effective word in sentence 4. Which word should replace have to create a more effective sentence?

(4) Every day in schools across the nation, teens have challenging classes, hours of homework, and extracurricular activities such as sports and music.

Which of these sentences should Nancy add at the beginning of the second paragraph (sentences 7–15) to serve as the most effective position statement for her essay?

(7) In this program students spend a little more time in school four days aweek. (8) Then they have Friday off to catch up on their sleep, enjoy time with family and friends, and complete their many responsibilities. (9) Although some experts fear that reducing the length of the school week will worsen student learning, recent studies contradict this. (10) In 2015 Dr. Mark Anderson of Montana State University and Dr. Mary Beth Walker of Georgia State University reviewed scores forColorado elementary school students who were placed in a four-day system.(11) They found that math scores improved by about 7 percent, and reading scores also improved. (12) “We thought that especially for the younger elementary schoolkids, longer days on a shorter school week would hurt their academic performance because their attention spans are shorter,” Dr. Walker said. (13) Researchers also thought a longer weekend would give students more of an opportunity to forget what they had learned. (14) Clearly this was not the case. (15) The study cited shows this hypothesis is incorrect.

Which sentence in the fourth paragraph (sentences 22–30) is extraneous and should be deleted?

(22) Myers thinks the changes in students’ behavior are partly due to the improved lessons that she and the other teachers are able to create. (23) Whilesome educators and parents may argue that teachers cannot prepare effective lessons in a shorter school week, many teachers offer an alternative scenario.(24) Before, they had to work on weekends to plan lessons. (25) Now, they are using Friday as their planning day. (26) “We’re still in school mode on Fridays, and we’ve found we’re creating far superior lessons,” Myers says. (27) High school English teacher Candyce Matlosz has found that longer days allow students to spend more time on activities. (28) And as a teacher with over twenty years of experience,Matlosz knows a lot about teaching English. (29) “For example, the science teachers have enough time to run labs, have the students write the lab reports, and clean up the labs in one class period,” she says. (30) “In English class, students can write a rough draft, revise, and write a final draft of essays in one or two days instead of taking a week.”

Nancy is concerned that she has included a redundant sentence in the fifth paragraph(sentences 31–35). Which sentence should be deleted from the paragraph?

(31) School budgets may benefit from a shortened week as well.(32) Introducing the four-day school week may provide a way for school districts to save money in areas where budgets are strained. (33) School budgets are stretched.(34) Districts reduce spending on fuel, bus drivers’ salaries, and maintenance when they decrease the number of days students are transported to and from school.(35) Expenses to keep facilities open and clean are also lowered, as are food costs.

A New Discovery about the Brain

(1) But there is still one part of the human body that confuses scientists: the brain. (2) Although scientists have made extraordinary progress in understanding how the brain functions, there still is much to learn. (3) In fact, scientists are only now beginning to discover and understand the lymphatic system of the brain.(4) The lymphatic system performs an important role in the overall functioning of the body, much like the circulatory system. (5) The lymphatic system also moves things around the body. (6) Instead of bringing the body what it needs through the blood, however, the lymphatic system carries away what the bodydoesn’t need, such as germs and waste products, through a fluid called “lymph.”(7) The lymph then travels to the various lymph nodes throughout the body. (8) Asthe lymph is filtered through the lymph nodes, the nodes respond to any germs by mounting an appropriate defense.(9) Scientists have been stumped by this process. (10) But in 2012 scientists found that the brain has its own type of lymphatic system. (11) Dr. MaikenNedergaard and her team of researchers were surprised and excited to discover the first evidence of a tightly interwoven system that rapidly removes waste from the brain. (12) The brain’s blood vessels have fluid that is running along the side of them, the team determined, and this fluid is what is carrying waste away from the brain. (13) However, unlike the lymphatic system—which operates on a slow,continuous basis—this newly discovered system operates only when a person is asleep, washing away waste by flooding the brain quickly with fluid. (14) Now you have one more reason to get a good night’s sleep.(15) It took three more years for scientists to discover the specific vessels in the brain that are part of this lymphatic system. (16) In 2015, researchers were able to provide proof of a lymphatic system in the brain when they actually managed to see the vessels that are used to flood the brain and carry away the waste. (17) Even though what this relatively new discovery means is still not entirely clear,researchers are already making connections. (18) For example, many brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, involve the accumulation of specific proteins in the brain. (19) Although it is too early to jump to conclusions, it is reasonable to infer that these diseases may be connected in some way to the ability of this newly discovered lymphatic system to remove waste from the brain. (20) In the future,scientists will attempt to prove this connection.(21) The discovery of an entirely new system opens up exciting new areas of research and inquiry. (22) It may offer more opportunities for discoveries as researchers increase their understanding of how this system functions and how it is related to health and disease. (23) Eventually, we may gain a fuller understanding of the mysterious workings of the human brain.

Reese needs to improve the introduction of his essay. Which sentence should be added beforesentence 1 to create a more effective introduction for his essay?

7 Reese needs a better transition between the second paragraph (sentences 4–8) and the third paragraph (sentences 9–14). Which sentence should replace sentence 9 to create a more effective transition?

(4) The lymphatic system performs an important role in the overall functioning of the body, much like the circulatory system. (5) The lymphatic system also moves things around the body. (6) Instead of bringing the body what it needs through the blood, however, the lymphatic system carries away what the bodydoesn’t need, such as germs and waste products, through a fluid called “lymph.”(7) The lymph then travels to the various lymph nodes throughout the body. (8) Asthe lymph is filtered through the lymph nodes, the nodes respond to any germs by mounting an appropriate defense.(9) Scientists have been stumped by this process. (10) But in 2012 scientists found that the brain has its own type of lymphatic system. (11) Dr. MaikenNedergaard and her team of researchers were surprised and excited to discover the first evidence of a tightly interwoven system that rapidly removes waste from the brain. (12) The brain’s blood vessels have fluid that is running along the side of them, the team determined, and this fluid is what is carrying waste away from the brain. (13) However, unlike the lymphatic system—which operates on a slow,continuous basis—this newly discovered system operates only when a person is asleep, washing away waste by flooding the brain quickly with fluid. (14) Now you have one more reason to get a good night’s sleep

Reese wants to improve the clarity of sentence 12. How should sentence 12 be revised?

 (12) The brain’s blood vessels have fluid that is running along the side of them, the team determined, and this fluid is what is carrying waste away from the brain. 

Which sentence should Reese add after sentence 18 to provide additional support for theinference in sentence 19?

Sally Ride — The Woman Who Broke the Space Ceiling

(1) Before Sally Ride joined NASA in the 1970s, the idea of a woman becoming an astronaut seemed incomprehensable. (2) Ride was intrigued by the space program, but she did not necessarily envision becoming an astronaut.(3) Additionally, she had little interest in being famous as a symbol of feminism or as a trailblazer. (4) In 1983, however, she became both a symbol of feminism and a trailblazer as the United States’ first female astronaut in space. (5) Her expertise in science, her dedication, and her hard work allowed Ride to break barriers and create opportunities for future scientists.(6) Ride developed a love for science early. (7) Her parents encouraged this love by giving her a telescope and a chemistry set as a child. (8) After high school she continued studying science in college and earned both a bachelor’s and amaster’s degree in physics and a Ph.D. in astrophysics.(9) While Ride was working on her Ph.D., the trajectory of her career changed. (10) Traditionally NASA had focused on recruiting only male military pilotsfor the astronaut program. (11) However, in 1977 NASA began a campaign to recruit both female scientists and female pilots. (12) Ride saw one of the campaigns advertisements and realized that she met the qualifications, so she applied.(13) Ride was accepted into the astronaut program and began preparing for a space mission. (14) Trained both physically and mentally. (15) She also shifted her focus from physics to engineering so that she could help develop a robotic arm for the space shuttle. (16) The expertise she demonstrated in designing and operating the robotic arm earned Ride a spot on the space shuttle Challenger during its 1983mission. (17) When the shuttle broke free of Earth’s atmosphere Ride broke through the country’s highest glass ceiling by becoming the first American woman to fly in space. (18) She was an instant celebrity. (19) While Ride loved her work at NASA, she did not enjoy all the publicity that resulted from her accomplishments. (20) As a deeply private person, Ride had no desire to be on the covers of magazines or to do product endorsements. (21) In fact, all she wanted to do was fly in space. (22) She explained this after the first of her two space missions by saying, “I am sure it was the most fun that I’ll ever have in my life.” (23) Perhaps only her passion for science could rival her passion for spaceflight.(24) After retiring from NASA, Ride becomes a fierce advocate for science education. (25) Focusing on the middle grades and on female students in particular,she wrote books, gave talks, and started programs to promote her cause. (26) Her new goal became helping others to discover their own love of science and the world of opportunity a strong science background can open.(27) Sally Ride did not set out to be an astronaut or a hero; nevertheless, she became both. (28) While flying was her joy, science education was her mission.(29) Cofounded by Ride and others, Sally Ride Science is a foundation that promotes science and technology education among young people. (30) Its programs provide students with opportunities to make breakthroughs in new fields of science and encourage them to shatter glass ceilings in all fields.

What change is needed in sentence 1?

What change is needed in sentence 12?

12) Ride saw one of the campaigns advertisements and realized that she met the qualifications, so she applied.

What is the correct way to write sentences 13 and 14?

13) Ride was accepted into the astronaut program and began preparing for a space mission. (14) Trained both physically and mentally. 

What change is needed in sentence 17?

17) When the shuttle broke free of Earth’s atmosphere Ride broke through the country’s highest glass ceiling by becoming the first American woman to fly in space. (18) She was an instant celebrity. 

What change, if any, is needed in sentence 24?

(24) After retiring from NASA, Ride becomes a fierce advocate for science education. 

The United States Needs the Metric System

(1) Since the mid-1800s the United States has been struggling with the question of whether or not to adopt the metric system. (2) The country was one of seventeen nations that signed the 1875 Treaty of the Metre, which increased the accuracy of the metric system and established the International Bureau of weights and measures. (3) However, despite this early involvement, the United States has been reluctant to adopt the metric system as its only standard of measurement.(4) The United States is the only industrialized country that does not use metric as its dominant system. (5) As a general rule, people are not comfortable with change; this may be the reason that many cling to the old measurement system of miles, feet, inches, and pounds. (6) Yet changes in trade and technology have made using metric measurements more important than ever. (7) For example, the metric system makes writing very large and small numbers easier. (8) If the country is to thrive in international competition, it must adopt the metric system as its official measurement system.(9) This adoption would not be a dramatic change in some areas. (10) For example, U.S. scientists use the metric system exclusively; because it provides standard that is understood worldwide. (11) Because scientific research is often international in nature, a common measurement system must be used to avoid error and facilitate communication.(12) In medicine, safety experts are urging all medical providers to use only the metric system. (13) Errors occurring because of confusion between the two measurement systems are among the top ten safety concerns for hospitals.(14) Drug dosages are often based on a patient’s weight, so confusing pounds and kilograms can have serious consequences. (15) Imagine trying to convert pounds to kilograms in a hurry! (16) One safety analyst remarked that using pounds in drug calculations is like functioning in the Stone Age.(17) Many U.S. manufacturers have had positive experiences in changing to metric. (18) For instance, Procter & Gamble created a metric diaper manufacturing machine and found that it cost less than previous machines, was able to function25 percent faster, and was easier to repair and maintain. (19) Another example isCaterpillar, Inc., which decided to go metric in the United States in order to avoid problems with measurement conversion for its plants in other countries. (20) The company found that being consistently metric made its products more popular worldwide and reduced production costs.(21) Those hesitant about the switch might complain that instead of the familiar miles, feet, and ounces, the metric system uses different units, a meter measures length, a gram measures mass, and a liter measures volume. (22) The metric system is easy to learn, however, because everything is measured in multiples of ten. (23) For example, a kilo equals 1,000, and thus 1,000 meters is called1 kilometer. (24) If children were taught these simple calculations when they begin to study math, they would learn how easy the metric system is to use.(25) Although change takes time, the conversion to the metric system will be worth it in the long run. (26) While “thinking in metric” won’t happen instantaneously, the simplicity of the metric system will make the transition easier.(27) Once the United States has made the change, its citizens will become accustomed to the metric system, just as they have become familiar with using new technologies, such as computers, cell phones, and the internet. (28) Best of all, they will be using the same system as 95 percent of the world, in turn it will contribute to safety, facilitate trade, and improve international communication.

What change should be made in sentence 2?