Read the following article from a website.
Carrow University in Sudbury may soon stop renting its lecture halls and its main auditorium to outside groups. The university’s board of governors will vote in December on a policy that would end most rentals from next September. Last year, more than two hundred community events took place on campus, from choir concerts to trade conferences, and the rentals brought in about six hundred thousand dollars. Students, staff and members of the public can send comments to the board until the end of November.
Hollis Yardley, the university’s vice-president of operations, says the rentals cost more than they earn. “Once you add cleaning, heating and security, we lose money on almost every evening booking,” he said. “Last spring one conference needed eight extra guards. The university paid for every one of them.” Yardley also points to students. “During exam weeks, our own students are studying in hallways while strangers use the rooms,” Yardley added.
Odalys Zubiri, who directs a seniors’ choir that has rehearsed in the music building for twelve years, says her singers have nowhere else to go. “The only other room big enough for us is a hockey arena lobby with no heat,” Zubiri explained. “If the university closes its doors, half of our members will simply stay home. For many of them, choir night is the only evening they leave the house all week.”
Fenwick Usher, president of the student union, wants a middle path. “Students should come first during exams. But a total ban punishes the whole town for a problem that lasts a few weeks,” Usher said. He suggests closing the halls to outsiders only during the six weeks of exams each year. Saskia Westergaard, a professor who studies how universities work with their cities, says she worries that the policy could cost more than money. “Many young people first set foot on a campus for a concert or a science fair,” Westergaard said. “Shut those doors, and you lose the families who might have sent their children here one day.”
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
This article would most likely appear in 2..
The author presents the decision as 3..
According to Zubiri, half of her choir 4..
Most likely, Fenwick Usher feels that 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 stop letting outsiders rent campus space
Why this is correct: The university may stop renting its halls and auditorium to outside groups. Every speaker reacts to that plan.
Passage Reference: Carrow University in Sudbury may soon stop renting its lecture halls and its main auditorium to outside groups.
Tips: The topic of an article is what all the quotes are about. Test each option by asking whether every speaker has something to say about it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a vote on raising student fees at a university: The board will vote, but on rentals, not on fees.
- a choir’s search for a new music director: Zubiri already directs her choir. Nobody is looking for a new director.
- a conference that hired too many security guards: The conference with extra guards is only one example that Yardley gives.
Correct Answer: a newspaper for people in the area
Passage Reference: Carrow University in Sudbury may soon stop renting its lecture halls and its main auditorium to outside groups.
Why this is correct: This report covers a vote at a Sudbury university and how it affects people in the town. A local paper would print it.
Tips: Ask who would want to read this report as written. Keep the place that would publish it, and drop the ones that print other kinds of text.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a guide for students choosing a university: Students are mentioned, but the article gives no advice on choosing a university.
- a choir’s newsletter of concert dates: Zubiri directs a choir, but the article reports a debate, not concert dates.
- a travel guide to northern Ontario: It is about renting campus rooms, not about visiting the region.
Correct Answer: one the public can still help shape
Passage Reference: Students, staff and members of the public can send comments to the board until the end of November.
Why this is correct: The reporter writes that students, staff and the public can send comments until the end of November. The board votes after that, so people can still have a say.
Tips: Put the quotes to one side. Judge each option using only the reporter’s own sentences.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a choice the board has already made: The board will vote in December. Nothing has been decided yet.
- a mistake that will hurt the town: Zubiri and Westergaard worry about the plan, but the reporter gives no opinion.
- a matter only students care about: The reporter lists choir concerts and trade conferences, so groups from the town care too.
Correct Answer: would stop coming to rehearsals
Passage Reference: If the university closes its doors, half of our members will simply stay home.
Why this is correct: Zubiri says that if the university closes its doors, half of her members will simply stay home. So they would stop coming to rehearsals.
Tips: Look closely at what Zubiri says. Choose the option that matches one of her statements, and drop any she does not make.
Why the other options are wrong:
- would gladly pay a higher fee: Zubiri never offers to pay more. Yardley says the rentals lose money.
- would meet in members’ homes: Zubiri says her singers have nowhere else to go. She does not mention meeting at home.
- would join a student choir: Zubiri leads a seniors’ choir. Nobody suggests they join a student group.
Correct Answer: local clubs should keep most of their bookings
Passage Reference: But a total ban punishes the whole town for a problem that lasts a few weeks
Why this is correct: Usher says a total ban punishes the whole town. He would close the halls to outsiders only during exams, so local clubs could book them otherwise.
Tips: Read Usher’s quote and the reporter’s line that follows it. Choose what those words suggest about his view, and drop views other speakers hold.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the rentals lose money on most evenings: Yardley says the university loses money on evening bookings. Usher does not talk about money.
- outside groups should be banned all year: Usher says a total ban punishes the whole town.
- students should share the halls during exams: Usher says students should come first during exams.
Correct Answer: more than two hundred
Passage Reference: more than two hundred community events took place on campus
Why this is correct: The article says more than two hundred community events took place on campus last year.
Tips: The commenter is talking about how many events there were. Find where the article describes campus activity last year.
Why the other options are wrong:
- about one hundred: There were more events than this.
- nearly three hundred: This number is not in the article.
- about five hundred: There were fewer events than this.
Correct Answer: six hundred thousand dollars
Passage Reference: the rentals brought in about six hundred thousand dollars
Why this is correct: The article says the rentals brought in about six hundred thousand dollars.
Tips: The article gives a count of events and a sum of money. Make sure you choose what the rentals earned.
Why the other options are wrong:
- two hundred thousand dollars: Two hundred is the number of events, not the money.
- four hundred thousand dollars: This amount is not in the article.
- eight hundred thousand dollars: This amount is not in the article.
Correct Answer: eight
Passage Reference: Last spring one conference needed eight extra guards.
Why this is correct: Yardley says one conference last spring needed eight extra guards.
Tips: The commenter means the vice-president, so find the number he gives about security at one event.
Why the other options are wrong:
- three: This number is not in the article.
- five: This number is not in the article.
- twelve: Twelve is how many years the choir has rehearsed there.
Correct Answer: a hockey arena lobby
Passage Reference: The only other room big enough for us is a hockey arena lobby with no heat
Why this is correct: Zubiri says the only other room big enough for her choir is a hockey arena lobby with no heat.
Tips: The commenter means the woman who leads the choir, so find the place she describes as her only other choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a school gym: Zubiri does not mention a school gym.
- a community centre: Zubiri does not mention a community centre.
- a library basement: Zubiri does not mention a library.
Correct Answer: science fair
Passage Reference: Many young people first set foot on a campus for a concert or a science fair
Why this is correct: Westergaard says many young people first set foot on a campus for a concert or a science fair.
Tips: The commenter is repeating the professor’s example. Find the two events she says bring young people onto a campus.
Why the other options are wrong:
- school play: Westergaard does not mention plays.
- sports match: Westergaard does not mention sports.
- career day: Westergaard does not mention career days.
The rest of this explanation is for members. Sign in free to read why the other options are wrong, key words and tips.
Sign in to read the full explanation