English Final

Exam Review
2017
Academic Vocabulary
Analyze: closely examine to gain a deep understanding
Author’s purpose: author’s reason for writing on topic. The purpose may be to

entertain, inform, persuade, or a combination.

Main idea: important or central thought of a text.
Claim: an arguable point to support a position on a topic.
Counterargument: a argument that is opposed to your position or reasoning.
Ethical appeal: support in an argument that is based on fairness or author’s

reputation.
Emotional appeal (appeal to pity): support in an argument that is based on

audience’s emotions.
Testimonial: a written or spoken statement of support for a product or a position.
Bandwagon appeal: an appeal that targets the audience’s need to do what is

popular.
Tone: writer’s attitude
Irony: a situation that is contrary or opposite to expectations
Text structure: the way a text is organized. Text structures included chronological or

sequential, descriptive, compare/contrast, cause/effect, and problem solution.

 Author’s Purpose
Our criminal justice system today is a disgrace. Modern day criminals
have more rights than an honest citizen ever imagined were written
into our U.S. Constitution. Murderers and rapists are typically set free
on legal technicalities and seldom face any jail time. While that scum
is back to work finding new victims, the pleas of those they have
killed, maimed, or violated go unheard. Until we begin giving some
real consideration to people who obey the law, instead of those who
break it, things are going to continue getting worse.

The author’s purpose is to

a. describe the actions of the criminals.
b. compare criminals with honest citizens.
c. inform the reader about the extent of crime in America.
d. criticize our criminal justice system.

D
 Main Idea
There is a common belief that while the dog is man’s best friend, the coyote
is his worst enemy. The bad reputation of the coyote traces back to his
fondness for small animals; he hunts at night and is particularly destructive
to sheep, young pigs, and poultry. Yet it is sometimes wise to encourage
coyotes. Provided valuable farm animals are protected, the coyote will often
free the property of other animals, like rabbits, which are ruinous to crops
and certain trees. He is especially beneficial in keeping down the rodent
population. Where coyotes have been allowed to do their work without
molestation, ranchers and fruit growers have found them so valuable that
they would no more shoot them than they would shoot their dogs.
a. Under certain conditions the coyote is helpful to man.
b. The coyote is feared because of his fondness for small animals
c. Modern ranchers would no sooner shoot coyotes than they would shoot
dogs.
d. The coyote usually prefers rabbits and other rodents to sheep and
poultry.
A
 Claim and Counterargument
Claim: Cell phones can help the learning process. Many phones
have Internet access. This can be useful if a classroom has
limited Internet access and students need to research something
quickly. Many phones also have cameras, and students may
remember notes on the board or class projects better if they can
review a picture of them.

Counterargument: Some people might say that teachers won’t be

able to regulate how students are using their phones. However, if
students understand that using their cell phones in class is a
privilege and not a right, they will not take advantage of it.
 Ethical Appeal
Which one of the following appeals is not ethical?

a. “Some students have money to purchase designer clothes while

others do not, so uniforms are a great equalizer.“
b. "You know me – I’ve taught Sunday School at your church for years,
babysat your children, and served as a playground director for many
summers.“
c. “I am a single parent with three mouths to feed and one paycheck
away from homelessness.”
d. "Our expertise in roofing contracting is evidenced not only by our
100 years in the business and our staff of qualified technicians, but in
the decades of satisfied customers who have come to expect nothing
but the best.“

C
 Emotional Appeal
Which one of the following emotional appeals taps into fear?

a. I am a single parent, solely responsible for the financial support of

my children.
b. If you give me this traffic ticket, I will lose my license and be
unable to drive to work.
c. My dad is the chief of police, so you should really reconsider
handing out a ticket to his first-born son.
d. If I cannot work, my children and I will become homeless and
may starve to death.

C
 Tone
Which tone is represented in the following passage? 

Ugh! Do I really have to sit through another boring lecture on

data entry again.

a. Calm
b. Annoyed
c. Scary 
d. Excited

B
Irony
The opposite of what is
expected. Why is this
ironic?
Irony
The opposite of what is
expected. Why is this
ironic?
Text Structure Jane Goodall’s work with chimpanzees
has changed the world’s attitudes towards
a. chronological or our closest cousins. In 1957, she first went
sequential to Africa to observe chimpanzees in the
wild and discovered their ability to make
b. Descriptive tools. Several years later, Goodall learned
c. compare/contrast more about chimp society, documenting
its complexity and even its brutality. After
d. cause/effect many years of research, Goodall
e. problem solution. presented her observations in a the book,
Shadow of Man. Her work showed the
world the intelligence of chimpanzees.
A
Text Structure Chimpanzees are closely related but
there are important distinctions
a. chronological or between the two species. Both humans
sequential and chimps have large brains and
b. Descriptive opposable thumbs. Similar to humans,
chimps can use their intelligence and
c. compare/contrast dexterity to create and use tools. But
d. cause/effect there are key differences between
chimpanzees and humans. Chimpanzees
e. problem solution. are much stronger and lift more weight.
Also, humans have a spoken language
C unlike chimps which do not have a vocal
tract to produce speech.
Text Structure While the chimpanzee’s future is uncertain,
conservation agencies are stepping in to fight
a. chronological or the many threats. One challenge is to find and
stop poachers. Agencies such as the Jane
sequential
Goodall Institute are addressing this problem
b. Descriptive by pushing for stronger anti-poaching laws.
Another way to address the poaching concern
c. compare/contrast is to help local governments train and equip
law enforcement officers to catch poachers.
d. cause/effect
Also, promoting eco-tourism may offer
e. problem solution. promise. If tourists pay a great deal to see
chimpanzees in their natural habitats, locals
can be convinced that chimps are worth more
E alive than on their plates. These are just a few
of the ways that conservation agencies are
offering hope for the chimpanzees of Africa.
Grammar Portion
 Subject/verb agreement
 Pronoun usage
 Punctuation: commas, semi-colon, colon, dashes,
quotation marks
1. Which one of the lines, if any, has an error?

a. China, a country with many people,

b. grow lots of rice,
c. and many countries import it.
d. No error

b. “grow” should be “grows”

2. Which one of the lines, if any, has an error?

a. This box of
b. old, fragile Christmas ornaments
c. belong in the attic,
d. but my dad is too busy to move it.
e. No error

C. “belong” should be “belongs”

3. Which one of the lines, if any, has an error?

a. The earliest computers were quite

b. expensive, and people paid
c. a great deal of money for machines
d. that do very little.
e. No error

D. “do” should be “did”

4. Which one of the lines, if any, has an error?

a. Although him and her fight a lot,

b. my mother and father
c. agree on the things that matter.
d. No error

A. “him and her” should be “he and she”

5. Which one of the lines, if any, has an error?

a. Last Friday at the football game,

b. my friends and me
c. ate too many snacks.
d. No error

B. “me” should be “I”

6. Which sentence should include a colon?

a. I have taken many art courses including sculpting, painting, and

woodcutting.

b. I applied to grad schools in New York, Massachusetts, and

Hawaii.

c. My bucket list include these top destinations Rome, Paris, Prague,

and Barcelona.

C
7. Which sentence should include a semi-colon?

a. He knocked several times but no one came to the door.

b. He knocked several times no one came to the door.

c. Since no one answered he knocked several more times.

B
8. Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
a. At the restaurant; we could choose from salad, soup, or fruit cup
for a starter; beef, chicken, or salmon for the main course; and
chocolate mousse, strawberry shortcake, or ice cream for dessert.

b. At the restaurant, we could choose from salad, soup, or fruit cup

for a starter; beef, chicken, or salmon for the main course; and
chocolate mousse, strawberry shortcake, or ice cream for dessert.

c. At the restaurant, we could choose from salad, soup, or fruit cup

for a starter, beef, chicken, or salmon for the main course, and
chocolate mousse, strawberry shortcake, or ice cream for dessert.

B
 9. Which sentence uses commas correctly?
a. Successful students know that keys to success are, doing their
homework, listening to instruction, and never giving up.

b. Many students forget to write down assignments, are very busy at

home with sports, or they get discouraged easily.

c. These students would do well to, establish a routine of doing

homework right after school, ask teachers for extra help when
needed, and stay positive.

B
10. Which sentence should have dashes?

a. Mr. Timmons my neighbor of seven years was just diagnosed with

cancer recently.

b. Butch my eleven-year-old beagle chews holes in the living room

carpeting as if he were still a puppy.

c. Barry if you could believe him told us that he would help set up for
the party.