Read the following article from a website.
A university in Saskatoon plans to offer six of its degrees entirely online from next September, after the provincial government promised four million dollars to expand distance learning. Students in those programs would never need to come to campus, even for exams. The university senate will vote on the plan in February, and the debate has drawn in deans, employers, teaching staff and students.
Talia Prentice, the dean of online learning, says the change is about who gets to study at all. “About a third of the people who ask us about these programs are parents, shift workers or people living in the north,” she said. “For them, a degree that requires a move to the city is not really on offer.” Prentice points out that students in a small online pilot last year passed their courses at the same rate as students on campus. “If we do this well, students in small towns will graduate without ever packing a suitcase,” she said.
Desmond Okpara, who hires new graduates for a large engineering firm, is less certain. “When I see a degree earned entirely online, my first question is whether that person has ever worked in a team,” Okpara said. “Some subjects can be taught through a screen. Lab science and nursing cannot.” He supports the plan for programs built on reading and writing, but he wants students in programs with labs to spend at least two weeks on campus.
Miriam Pascoe, who chairs the faculty association, says she worries about class size. “Without teaching assistants, one professor could end up with eight hundred students and no time to read their work,” Pascoe said. “Students would receive a grade, but almost no feedback.” Arjun Pillay, a third-year student who uses a wheelchair, says online study has already changed his life. “Last winter I missed eleven classes because ice covered the ramps,” Pillay said. “Online, I have not missed a lecture since September. But the university has to pay for captions and accessible exams before any program opens, not after the complaints start.”
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
At present, Arjun Pillay is 2..
Miriam Pascoe fears that online courses without teaching assistants would mean 3..
The main point of the article is that 4..
The reporter presents the plan as 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: a plan to teach some degrees fully online
Why this is correct: The senate will vote on putting six degrees entirely online. Each speaker reacts to that plan from a different angle.
Passage Reference: A university in Saskatoon plans to offer six of its degrees entirely online from next September
Tips: Check each option against what Prentice, Okpara, Pascoe and Pillay say. Check that your answer is something the article really discusses, not only a word it uses.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new campus for students in the north: People in the north are mentioned, but nobody plans a new campus for them.
- a plan to raise tuition for online students: Tuition is not discussed in the article.
- a new nursing school in the prairies: Okpara mentions nursing, but no new school is planned.
Correct Answer: attending every one of his lectures
Passage Reference: Online, I have not missed a lecture since September.
Why this is correct: Pillay says that since he started studying online, he has not missed a single lecture.
Tips: Look only at what Pillay says about his own studies. Match each option to his words, and set aside anything said by someone else or by nobody.
Why the other options are wrong:
- living in a residence on the campus: Pillay never says where he lives.
- taking a lab course that meets on campus: Lab courses come up in Okpara’s part. Pillay does not say he takes one.
- working as a teaching assistant: Teaching assistants come up in Pascoe’s part. Pillay is a student.
Correct Answer: students getting marks but little comment on their work
Passage Reference: Students would receive a grade, but almost no feedback.
Why this is correct: Pascoe says one professor could have eight hundred students. Students would receive a grade, but almost no feedback.
Tips: Read Pascoe’s quoted lines slowly. Keep the option that follows from what she actually says, and drop the rest.
Why the other options are wrong:
- professors refusing to teach online courses: Pascoe does not say professors would refuse to teach.
- more students failing their first year: Pascoe talks about feedback, not about students failing.
- higher fees for students in the north: Fees are never discussed, and the north comes up only in Prentice’s part.
Correct Answer: many back the change but want certain things in place first
Passage Reference: But the university has to pay for captions and accessible exams before any program opens, not after the complaints start.
Why this is correct: Most speakers support the change in some way, but they attach needs. Okpara wants campus time for lab programs, Pascoe worries about class size, and Pillay wants captions and accessible exams paid for first.
Tips: Think about what Prentice, Okpara, Pascoe and Pillay each say. An option must fit the article as a whole, not just one person’s part.
Why the other options are wrong:
- employers will not hire anyone who studied from home: Okpara has a question about teamwork, but he supports the plan for some programs. He never says he will not hire.
- the change suits nursing but not courses based on writing: This is the reverse of Okpara’s view. He says nursing cannot be taught through a screen.
- students are against the change, while staff support it: Pillay, a student, supports online study. Pascoe, from the teaching staff, has concerns.
Correct Answer: a question that matters to many different people
Passage Reference: the debate has drawn in deans, employers, teaching staff and students
Why this is correct: Outside the quotes, the reporter writes that the debate has drawn in deans, employers, teaching staff and students. That shows an issue many people care about.
Tips: Set the quotes aside and read only the reporter’s own sentences. Ask which option those sentences show.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a change that is certain to pass: The senate has not voted yet, and the reporter does not predict the result.
- a costly mistake the university should drop: The reporter never gives an opinion on the plan.
- a small matter that only students care about: The reporter says deans, employers and teaching staff are also part of the debate.
Correct Answer: four million dollars
Passage Reference: the provincial government promised four million dollars to expand distance learning
Why this is correct: The province promised four million dollars to expand distance learning.
Tips: This blank needs an amount of money. Find what the province promised, and do not confuse it with other numbers.
Why the other options are wrong:
- three million dollars: The article gives a slightly bigger amount than this.
- six million dollars: Six is the number of degrees going online, not the amount of money.
- ten million dollars: The article gives a smaller amount than this.
Correct Answer: shift workers
Passage Reference: About a third of the people who ask us about these programs are parents, shift workers or people living in the north
Why this is correct: Prentice says many people who ask are parents, shift workers or people living in the north.
Tips: The commenter is repeating the dean’s description of who asks about the programs. Find the three groups she names.
Why the other options are wrong:
- truck drivers: Prentice does not name truck drivers.
- farm families: Farm families are not named in the article.
- military families: Military families are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: two weeks
Passage Reference: he wants students in programs with labs to spend at least two weeks on campus
Why this is correct: Okpara wants students in programs with labs to spend at least two weeks on campus.
Tips: The commenter means the employer. Find how much time on campus he asks for, and for which programs.
Why the other options are wrong:
- one week: Okpara asks for more time than this.
- three weeks: Okpara asks for less time than this.
- one month: Okpara asks for less time than this.
Correct Answer: February
Passage Reference: The university senate will vote on the plan in February
Why this is correct: The university senate will vote on the plan in February.
Tips: The commenter mentions the vote. Find where the article says when the senate decides.
Why the other options are wrong:
- January: This month is not in the article.
- March: This month is not in the article.
- April: This month is not in the article.
Correct Answer: ice
Passage Reference: Last winter I missed eleven classes because ice covered the ramps
Why this is correct: Pillay says he missed eleven classes last winter because ice covered the ramps.
Tips: The commenter means the student who uses a wheelchair. Find why he could not reach his classes last winter.
Why the other options are wrong:
- snow: Pillay does not mention snow.
- gravel: Gravel is not mentioned in the article.
- leaves: Leaves are not mentioned in the article.
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