Read the following article from a website.
British Columbia has cut childcare fees to ten dollars a day at hundreds of centres, and the waiting list in Nanaimo alone now holds about nine hundred children. Many centres say they could open more rooms if they could hire the staff. The province is now weighing a single pay scale for early childhood educators, and the minister has promised a decision before the next budget.
Solange Pasquier, who leads the educators’ union, says low pay is emptying the rooms. “A cheap fee means nothing if there is nobody in the room to care for the children,” Pasquier said. “We train a young educator, and six months later she leaves for a school board job that pays four dollars more an hour. Love for the job does not pay the rent.” She wants pay to rise with training and years on the job, and she wants the money to come from the provincial government, not from parents.
Venkat Oommen, an analyst with the provincial treasury, warns against moving too fast. “If we set the highest rate now, we may have no money left to open new spaces,” Oommen said. “A full centre with well-paid staff is good. Three new centres would be better.” He would accept extra pay for rural centres, where hiring is hardest. Greta Ohlin, who manages children’s services for the city, says the province is guessing. “Right now nobody can say which regions are short of staff, because nobody collects the numbers,” Ohlin said. “Make every centre report its vacancies every three months, and then we will know where the money should go,” she added.
Reginald Pryce, a father of two who speaks for a parents’ group, says families want certainty above all. “Families need to know their centre will still be open next year,” Pryce said. “Uncertainty is the worst part. Publish a timeline for the raises, and parents will stop panicking every spring.” He supports a basic scale this year, with larger raises later.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
Venkat Oommen would likely say that paying the highest rate right away 2..
The main point of the article is that 3..
This article would most likely appear in 4..
Greta Ohlin’s view would likely be supported by 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: one pay scale for childcare workers
Why this is correct: The province is weighing a single pay scale for early childhood educators. Each speaker gives a view on that idea.
Passage Reference: The province is now weighing a single pay scale for early childhood educators
Tips: Ask what the minister has promised to decide on. The right choice names that question in general words, not a detail from one speaker.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a rise in childcare fees for families: The province has cut fees, and nobody proposes raising them.
- a new tax on large daycare chains: No tax is proposed in the article.
- a shortage of classrooms at city schools: The article is about childcare centres, not school classrooms.
Correct Answer: could slow the opening of new spaces for children
Passage Reference: If we set the highest rate now, we may have no money left to open new spaces ... Three new centres would be better.
Why this is correct: Oommen says that if the highest rate is set now, there may be no money left to open new spaces. He prefers three new centres to one.
Tips: Stay with Oommen’s quoted lines. Pick what follows from what he says, and cross out ideas he never raises.
Why the other options are wrong:
- is the only way to keep young staff: Pasquier argues for higher pay to keep staff. Oommen warns against moving too fast.
- should wait until every centre reports its gaps: Ohlin wants vacancy reports first. Oommen does not mention reports.
- matters less to parents than a clear timeline: Pryce talks about a timeline for parents. Oommen talks about money for spaces.
Correct Answer: most speakers want better pay, but on different terms
Passage Reference: She wants pay to rise with training and years on the job ... Make every centre report its vacancies every three months ... He supports a basic scale this year, with larger raises later.
Why this is correct: Pasquier wants pay to rise with training, and Oommen accepts extra pay in some places. Ohlin wants data first, and Pryce wants a basic scale now.
Tips: Read what Pasquier, Oommen, Ohlin and Pryce each say. Pick the option that is still true after you have checked every one of them.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the city should run every centre itself: Ohlin works for the city, but she only asks centres to report vacancies. Nobody wants the city to run every centre.
- educators care more about hours than pay: Pasquier says love for the job does not pay the rent. Pay is the issue, not hours.
- parents care little about when the raises come: Pryce says families want a timeline for the raises. Timing matters a great deal to parents.
Correct Answer: a news site for people in the province
Passage Reference: Many centres say they could open more rooms if they could hire the staff.
Why this is correct: It reports a decision British Columbia is weighing and what local people think. Readers in the province would want this news.
Tips: Think about the whole article. For each option, ask whether that place would print this text just as it is.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a training guide for new childcare staff: It reports views on pay and gives no advice on how to care for children.
- a national report on school test scores: Test scores are never mentioned. The subject is childcare pay in one province.
- a parenting magazine’s list of toys: Toys are never mentioned. The article reports a debate about wages.
Correct Answer: a count showing some areas need far more workers than others
Passage Reference: Right now nobody can say which regions are short of staff, because nobody collects the numbers
Why this is correct: Ohlin says the province is guessing because nobody collects the numbers. A count showing big differences between areas would prove her point.
Tips: Go through Ohlin’s sentences one by one. Imagine each option were proven, and keep the one that would help her case the most.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a study showing parents value a clear timeline: This fits Pryce, who wants a timeline for the raises.
- figures showing educators leave for better-paid jobs: This fits Pasquier, who says young educators leave for school board jobs.
- a report that new centres help more children than raises: This fits Oommen, who prefers new centres to the highest pay rate.
Correct Answer: nine hundred
Passage Reference: the waiting list in Nanaimo alone now holds about nine hundred children
Why this is correct: The waiting list in Nanaimo alone holds about nine hundred children.
Tips: The commenter needs the number of children waiting. Find the figure for that city.
Why the other options are wrong:
- six hundred: The list in the article is longer than this.
- seven hundred: The list in the article is longer than this.
- twelve hundred: The list in the article is shorter than this.
Correct Answer: the provincial government
Passage Reference: she wants the money to come from the provincial government, not from parents
Why this is correct: Pasquier wants the money for higher pay to come from the provincial government, not from parents.
Tips: The commenter means the union leader. Find where she says the money should come from.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the city government: The city is not mentioned as a source of the money.
- employer fees: Employer fees are not mentioned in the article.
- private donors: Donors are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: rural centres
Passage Reference: He would accept extra pay for rural centres, where hiring is hardest.
Why this is correct: Oommen would accept extra pay for rural centres, where hiring is hardest.
Tips: The commenter means the treasury analyst. Find the one place where he would allow higher pay.
Why the other options are wrong:
- downtown centres: Oommen does not mention downtown centres.
- new centres: Oommen wants money to open new spaces, but he does not offer extra pay there.
- centres for babies: Centres for babies are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: ten dollars
Passage Reference: British Columbia has cut childcare fees to ten dollars a day at hundreds of centres
Why this is correct: The article says British Columbia has cut childcare fees to ten dollars a day at hundreds of centres.
Tips: The commenter is thankful for a price. Find what the article says families now pay for one day of care.
Why the other options are wrong:
- five dollars: The article says fees were cut to ten dollars a day, not five.
- eight dollars: Eight dollars is not a figure in the article.
- twelve dollars: Twelve dollars would be higher than the fee the article gives.
Correct Answer: budget
Passage Reference: the minister has promised a decision before the next budget
Why this is correct: The minister has promised a decision before the next budget.
Tips: The commenter repeats a promise. Find when the article says the minister will decide.
Why the other options are wrong:
- election: No election is mentioned in the article.
- school year: The school year is not mentioned in the article.
- winter: Winter is not mentioned in the article.
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