Title: Critical Reading
Course: Question Banks

Q: Casual reading can be characterized by the following:
- It includes annotating or writing. (Incorrect. Casual writing should be done easily and doesn’t require note-taking.)
- It requires looking up unfamiliar words. (Incorrect. Casual reading doesn’t usually involve complex jargon, and context clues can be used for understanding most terms.)
- It usually features an involved and identifiable argument. (Incorrect. Casual reading doesn’t usually involve intensive arguments.)
- It is enjoyable, and the reader can sometimes read casually for an extended time. (Correct. Reading casually is not strenuous and can be done for hours if the reader is enjoying the content.)
A: It is enjoyable, and the reader can sometimes read casually for an extended time.

Q: One step to begin active reading is:
- Mark your text with notes. (Incorrect. Marking your text with notes is a great step during the active reading process, but it is not part of beginning the process.)
- Discuss the reading with your classmates. (Incorrect. Discussing the reading with your classmates is useful after you’ve read the material, since at that point you’ll all be informed about its content.)
- Seek answers to the questions you’ve generated. (Incorrect. You seek answers to questions about the reading during the reading process itself.)
- Preview headings to get an outline of the reading. (Correct. Preview the reading headings to get a “big picture” of the outline of the reading. Look at the pictures and figures. Check out the bold and italicized words.)
A: Preview headings to get an outline of the reading.

Q: In trying to identify a scholarly article’s main idea by paying attention to its organizational pattern, what kinds of things should you focus on?
- Pay attention to visuals, such as pictures, diagrams, or tables. (Incorrect. While visuals can be useful in identifying the main idea, they are different from a text’s organizational pattern.)
- Notice any words in bold or italics. (Incorrect. While bold and italicized words can be useful guides to a text’s key concepts, the organizational pattern is broader, encompassing the text’s overall conceptual arrangement.)
- Focus on identifying the main characters, and ask yourself why the author included them. (Incorrect. This strategy applies only to narrative texts, not all texts. It can indeed help to identify the main idea of a narrative text, but this is a different strategy from focusing on a scholarly article’s overall organizational pattern.)
- Focus on the way the text arranges ideas overall. For example, notice whether it compares and contrasts things, or deals with causes and their effects, or describes a problem and its solution. (Correct. An organizational pattern is a text’s overall way of arranging ideas and showing their interrelationships.)
A: Focus on the way the text arranges ideas overall. For example, notice whether it compares and contrasts things, or deals with causes and their effects, or describes a problem and its solution.

Q: If you’ve done some research and come up with a bunch of potential scholarly articles to serve as sources for your research paper, what are some helpful strategies for narrowing down the list by identifying the specific articles that will be of use to you?
- Read each article’s bibliography/references section. (Incorrect. Reading an article’s references section is a great way to get ideas for expanding your research, but it won’t necessarily help you evaluate an article’s usefulness for your present writing needs.)
- Annotate each article. (Incorrect. Annotation is a strategy for use while reading an article, after you’ve already committed to using it. This is subsequent to your act of assessing the article to determine its usefulness to you.)
- For each article, generate a series of questions to which you need the answers. (Incorrect. Generating questions is a strategy for when you’ve already committed to using an article. This is subsequent to your act of assessing the article to determine its relevance to your needs.)
- Skim the text of each article, and read each article’s abstract. (Correct. Skimming provides you with a high-level overview of an article, and the abstract provides a condensed summary of the article’s entire argument. Both of these enable you to evaluate an article’s usefulness before you commit to reading it in full.)
A: Skim the text of each article, and read each article’s abstract.

Q: Which of the following is true of academic/scholarly article abstracts?
- You should always read the abstract first. (Incorrect. You may sometimes find an abstract difficult to understand, in which case it’s a good idea to begin by skipping it and reading the article’s introduction instead.)
- The best approach to reading an abstract is to skim it. (Incorrect. Since abstracts are very short, representing highly compressed summaries, you should read them in their entirety.)
- You should always make a point of annotating the abstract. (Incorrect. While it’s not technically “wrong” to annotate the abstract, annotation is a strategy more logically applied to the actual text of an article, where the author presents the paper’s argument in full.)
- They’re sometimes densely written and difficult to understand. (Correct. An abstract is a highly condensed summation of the entire article’s argument and conceptual organization.)
A: They’re sometimes densely written and difficult to understand.

Q: To avoid having your opinion of a scientific paper "contaminated" by any potential bias from the author’s interpretation of his or her research results, which of the following is a useful reading strategy?
- Find out what other researchers have to say about the paper before reading the article yourself. (Incorrect. This approach is likely to bias your personal take on the paper. You need to read the paper for yourself first.)
- Summarize the background to the research in your own words, drawing on the author’s description of it. (Incorrect. While this is definitely a useful strategy for reading scientific papers, it’s not one that’s aimed at or useful for preventing bias from entering into your opinion.)
- Pay attention to graphs, the study’s sample size, and the use of the words “significant” and “non-significant” in the findings. (Incorrect. These are not strategies for preventing or reducing your own bias but strategies for helping you understand the researcher’s findings.)
- Skip the abstract at first. Read the rest of the paper instead. Then go back and read the abstract last. (Correct. Since the abstract represents a condensed summation of the entire article, including the author’s interpretation, skipping it at first will enable you to form your own opinion of the article’s approach and findings before encountering the author’s views.)
A: Skip the abstract at first. Read the rest of the paper instead. Then go back and read the abstract last.

Q: When you examine the layout of technical documents, what pattern will you often find?
- Technical reports, unlike scientific papers, don’t contain an abstract. (Incorrect. Technical documents generally contain an abstract.)
- Unlike scientific papers, technical documents contain section headings. (Incorrect. Scientific papers contain section headings, too.)
- Technical documents don’t present an interpretation of findings. (Incorrect. These documents do contain an interpretation/discussion section..)
- Like scientific papers, technical documents follow the IMRaD format: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. (Correct. Technical writing generally has a consistent writing pattern that allows scientific reports and other writings to be compliant with a journal’s layout, and although there are variations, these are usually based in some way on the IMRaD format.)
A: Like scientific papers, technical documents follow the IMRaD format: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion.

Q: Which of the following is true when it comes to reading both scientific papers and technical documents?
- For both of them, you should apply the same techniques and strategies that you use for reading any other kind of text in an intelligent way. (Incorrect. Scientific and technical papers require a strategic approach that’s tailored to the specific type of scholarly research literature they represent.)
- You will understand both types of documents better if you read them all the way through one time before you ask questions, survey the section headings, take notes, and so on. (Incorrect. The necessarily strategic approach to reading these types of documents means you have to make certain preparations and do certain kinds of preliminary reading before you read them through all the way.)
- An understanding of context is relatively unimportant, as these types of writing are more objective than others, owing to their formal research structure. (Incorrect. It’s always important to understand the context of what you read. In the case of scientific papers and technical documents, this context includes such things as a knowledge of the big questions the particular scientific field is trying to answer and the reasons why the research was conducted.)
- For gaining maximum understanding, both types of documents require you to adopt a highly strategic approach, as opposed to a casual one. (Correct. Whether you’re reading a technical document or a scientific paper/primary research article, you need to approach it actively and formally, with a strategic plan for “attacking” it and extracting its meaning.)
A: For gaining maximum understanding, both types of documents require you to adopt a highly strategic approach, as opposed to a casual one.

Q: Which of the following is important to remember about visual aids as you evaluate data and data sources?
- Though there are many different kinds of visual aids, they all generally serve the same purpose. (Incorrect. Line charts, scatter plots, and bar charts, for instance, are all used for different purposes.)
- Visual aids should be read and considered independently of their accompanying textual content. (Incorrect. It’s important to read visual aids and textual content in tandem.)
- Usually, all informational content in any visual aids is also presented/replicated in the accompanying textual content. (Incorrect. Charts, graphs, and other kinds of visual aids may contain crucial information that is presented nowhere else.)
- Specific kinds of visual aids accomplish different things. (Correct. Different types of visual aids -- charts, graphs, videos, pictures, slide presentations -- serve different functions and achieve different ends.)
A: Specific kinds of visual aids accomplish different things.

Q: Which of the following is one effective strategy for better understanding a graph or chart?
- Ignore or “screen out” any colors or color-coding, as these usually serve a decorative purpose instead of conveying actual informational content. (Incorrect. Color-coding is often used to add additional information to a graph or chart without taking up extra space.)
- Resist the temptation to try and summarize visual data in words. Try to understand visual data visually, not verbally. (Incorrect. Summarizing visual information in your own words can be hugely helpful to your comprehension.)
- Study the title of the visual aid as it is given, without trying to reword it mentally. Let the author of the visual aid tell you its topic instead of imposing your own meaning on it. (Incorrect. Rewording the title in your own words can help you gain a clearer/better understanding of the topic.)
- Look for a trend or a piece of information that you find interesting, and mentally form a sentence about it. (Correct. Making the effort to articulate or summarize visual data in your own words can help you to process and remember it.)
A: Look for a trend or a piece of information that you find interesting, and mentally form a sentence about it.

Q: Which of the following is a useful strategy for understanding a chart, graph, or other presentation of visual data?
- Read it just one time with great care and attention, and then focus exclusively on the accompanying textual presentation of information. (Incorrect. Visual data repays multiple readings with increased understanding.)
- Approach it with a skeptical and cautious/suspicious attitude, looking for mistakes or omissions in the presented information. (Incorrect. Information in visual aids is carefully presented for deliberate purposes, and your job as a reader is to “unpack” that information through careful reading.)
- Mentally separate your understanding of such data from your understanding of accompanying textual data. (Incorrect. Visual data and textual data complement each other and should be read together to build up a complete understanding of what’s being presented.)
- Return to it more than once, reading and studying it multiple times. (Correct. Each time you investigate visual data, you further build up your knowledge and understanding of the information.)
A: Return to it more than once, reading and studying it multiple times.

Q: What can happen if you're not sure what genre a text belongs to?
- You can't read the text at all if you don't know the genre it's written in. (Incorrect. This would be true of language, but not of genre.)
- You won't know whether the text was written by a man or a woman. (Incorrect. Are you thinking of gender?)
- You'll have a much better experience with the text, because you won't bring your biases to it. (Incorrect. Having some genre knowledge of a text can help us read and understand it.)
- It can be difficult to know how to read and interpret the text. (Correct. Genre gives us clues about how to interpret texts.)
A: It can be difficult to know how to read and interpret the text.

Q: Why might a reader want to know what genre a text belongs to, especially in an academic context?
- You can't read a text at all if you don't know the genre it's written in.
- The genre lets us know if the text is trustworthy or not.
- If you know the genre of the text, you know exactly what it will say.
- Genre helps us know how to read and interpret the text.
A: Genre helps us know how to read and interpret the text.

Q: The title, “Tips are not optional, they are how waiters get paid in America,” belongs to a piece that expresses an editorial view on why waiters need adequate tips to pay their bills. Choose the genre and reasoning that connects to this text.
- This text comes from a scholarly article, because it presents content in a formal tone from an academic field. (Incorrect. This text is not from a scholarly article. It has a persuasive, yet informal tone.)
- This text comes from a work of literature, because it is primarily a creative and artistic use of language. (Incorrect. This text is not from a work of literature. Look at the topic again; notice how it is about a potential current event or idea?)
- This text comes from a reference work, because it includes terminology that needs defining. (Incorrect. A reference text for international visitors might explain how tips are common for waiters in America, but its title would not be persuasive like this title. Instead, the title might be something general like “Tipping.”)
- This text comes from a newspaper column, considering its real-life nature and central editorial focus on a current event or idea. (Correct. This piece, by Chelsea Walsh, was published in The Guardian in 2013. It is an opinion piece by a waiter.)
A: This text comes from a newspaper column, considering its real-life nature and central editorial focus on a current event or idea.

Q: Wren was looking at using the following passage while researching a presentation for English class. To which academic genre might it belong?

Irony: linguistic and literary device, in spoken or written form, in which real meaning is concealed or contradicted. That may be the result of the literal, ostensible meaning of words contradicting their actual meaning (verbal irony) or of a structural incongruity between what is expected and what occurs (dramatic irony). (source)
- journalism webpage (Incorrect. Web pages within the realm of journalism showcase current events, stories, or other real-time topics.)
- literature (Incorrect. While irony occurs in literature, this example is not the same as irony within a literary text. Such an example might have stemmed from “The Gift of the Magi,” where the characters sell their possessions in order to afford one another’s Christmas gifts. Yet, the gifts that they bought each other were ironically to be used in conjunction with those most prized possessions.)
- scholarly journal (Incorrect. A scholarly journal includes articles on academic topics, but is unlikely to include this kind of definition.)
- reference entry (Correct. The definition-based language here stems from a reference entry. Wren might use this definition to inform audience members about what irony is before presenting on a specific instance of irony from a literary text.)
A: reference entry

Q: Justin wrote an essay in his rhetoric class. His teacher assigned a project where he should take the essay and turn it into another medium. Which of the following ideas would work for Justin?
- Trying to rewrite the essay without using the letter "e." (Incorrect. This would be in the same medium as the first version. (Remember, a "medium" in this case is a format for communicating or presenting information.))
- Translating the essay into French (Incorrect. The medium of a piece is not dependent upon it being in a certain language. (Remember, a "medium" in this case is a format for communicating or presenting information.))
- Pairing the essay with another essay that he had written in a previous course (Incorrect. Two essays would fall into the same medium. (Remember, a "medium" in this case is a format for communicating or presenting information.))
- Creating a video based on the essay (Correct. If Justin were to create a video based on the essay, he would have two media to submit for his project.)
A: Creating a video based on the essay

Q: Why is it important to be able to differentiate between the ways media communicate?
- We need to be able to determine the difference between real and fake news. (Incorrect. You might be thinking of “the media” here. However, the word <em>media</em> refers to a mode of communication here.)
- Communication only happens in certain media. (Incorrect. Some kind of communication occurs in all media.)
- There's no need to differentiate; media type doesn't matter. What matters is the quality of the information. (Incorrect. Media type does matter; media connects to interpretation.)
- Different media provide different possibilities for communication. (Correct. A student taking an online class may interpret something differently from an audio lecture than from a written lecture. Being able to recognize that different media provide different ways to communicate will help with comprehension.)
A: Different media provide different possibilities for communication.

Q: Why might Hans change media when completing a persuasive project in his communications course?
- Hans lost his original essay draft when he dropped his laptop, so he had to switch to typing it on his desktop computer. (Incorrect. An essay written on a computer and an essay written on a laptop are both still essays; they are the same medium.)
- Hans was originally completing a small project, but he had to switch to a medium project. (Incorrect. We're using a different definition of "medium" here.)
- Hans wanted to garner more attention, so he changed the background color of his presentation to a neon color. (Incorrect. A change to the color or type of background does not change the medium.)
- Han recognizes that different media can leave different impressions; he could change media because he feels that his previous choice of media was not convincing enough. (Correct. Since different media can leave different impressions, a change from one media to another (e.g. from an essay to a presentation) could be more convincing.)
A: Han recognizes that different media can leave different impressions; he could change media because he feels that his previous choice of media was not convincing enough.

Q: Joseph has been assigned to write a one-paragraph summary about Michael Xu’s text, “Crocodile Hunting.” Which of the following sets of words would not be a good signal phrase for Joseph’s summary?
- Xu’s text explains that.... (Incorrect. Using an author’s name and a verb like “explains” is acceptable to show summary content.)
- The author continues by saying... (Incorrect. It is perfectly acceptable and common to use a sentence starter like this one in a signal, reminding readers that the ideas in the paragraph stem from an author’s ideas (and not your own ideas).)
- The main idea of “Crocodile Hunting” is... (Incorrect. It’s permissible and common to see a writer use the article’s title in the signal phrase, showing readers that the main idea of the text comes from a certain article.)
- After reading the text, I feel... (Correct. Summaries do not include reaction content, such as opinion. There are often summary and reaction assignments, but the reaction is left separate from the summary itself and should not be confused as being part of the summary.])
A: After reading the text, I feel...

Q: To write a summary, you must be able to...
- formulate an opinion on the writer’s material. (Incorrect. Summaries do not include opinions, but rather these opinions (if assigned) would be separated from the summary itself.)
- have prior knowledge on the subject. (Incorrect. A writer does not need to have any prior knowledge on a topic in order to write a summary on an author’s text.)
- use quotes often. (Incorrect. Summaries typically do not include quotes. If they do, they include shorter quotes, sparingly.)
- understand its purpose and main idea. (Correct. Summary writing requires a writer to have understood the material so that they can provide an accurate display of the writing in a summary format.)
A: understand its purpose and main idea.

Q: To allow for strong organization and engagement, a writer should avoid ...
- using any quotes in the written summary. (Incorrect. While a writer should not rely on quotes, it is acceptable to use shorter quotes to provide support for the summary. Such quoting also often helps readers to see the summary writer’s (your) understanding of the original material.)
- Using signal verbs like "explains," "tells," or "argues." (Incorrect. Words like explains, tells, or argues, are common summary reporting verbs that follow an author’s name (e.g. Simons explains…) to show how the original author displays information in their original text.)
- starting with the article’s title. (Incorrect. It is acceptable and common for a summary paragraph to begin with the title of the article being summarized.)
- using transitions like "first," "second," and "third" to create a point-by-point summary. (Correct. As writers, we should avoid point-by-point summaries as they tend to fail to focus on the question or topic you are writing about and risk confusing your reader.)
A: using transitions like "first," "second," and "third" to create a point-by-point summary.

Q: What type of tone does a summary use?
- subjective (Incorrect. Analyses, not summaries, are subjective.)
- a mix of subjective and objective (Incorrect. While it is true that summaries and analyses often go hand-in-hand in writing assignments, such as a summary-and-reaction paper, the summary content itself will still carry an objective tone.)
- opinionated (Incorrect. Summaries are not based on the summary writer’s opinion. If a writer is asked to)
- objective (Correct. Summaries employ an objective, neutral tone. They remain accurate to the original writing rather than critiquing, evaluating, or otherwise judging it.)
A: objective

Q: Analyses come in several forms. What traits do all the forms have in common?
- All analyses make a judgment on the writer’s authority to write the piece. (Incorrect. While some analyses critique the writer’s authority, this is not a common trait between all analyses.)
- All analyses compare and contrast between two works. (Incorrect. While it is possible to analyze through comparison, this trait is not a commonality between all analyses.)
- All analyses only present the main points of a text without interpreting it. (Incorrect. All summaries, not analyses, only present the main points of a text without interpreting it.)
- All analyses make an argument or claim about the text. (Correct. Analytical writing makes an argument or claim about the text in order to explain how it works.)
A: All analyses make an argument or claim about the text.

Q: Sariah and Jillian have been assigned to write a summary and analysis project on The Wizard of Oz. They’ve decided to break it into parts; Sariah will write the summary, and Jillian will focus on the analysis. Which of the following list items correctly describes one approach that Sariah and Jill might take when preparing for the assignment?
- Sariah would start researching what another source says about the film, while Jillian would consider comparing The Wizard of Oz to other films of the time. (Incorrect. Both Sariah and Jillian’s approaches here yield analytical content. Only Jillian needs to create analyses in this scenario.)
- Both Sariah and Jillian would start by writing their opinions on the film. (Incorrect. Sariah’s portion of summarizing would not include any opinion; summaries do not interpret, discuss, nor judge works.)
- Sariah would interpret the characters in the film, and Jillian would focus on relaying the main scenes from the film. (Incorrect. The opposite would be true. Jillian would need to focus on interpreting, and Sariah on relaying.)
- Sariah could work on highlighting major events from The Wizard of Oz, whereas Jillian would work on interpreting the film’s use of technicolor. (Correct. Sariah’s role here connects to summarizing; looking at major details, such as events is summary. However, Jillian, by looking at the use of technicolor is interpretive, thereby analysis.)
A: Sariah could work on highlighting major events from The Wizard of Oz, whereas Jillian would work on interpreting the film’s use of technicolor.

Q: Wilhelma has been asked to write a set of questions that she could use in her rhetorical analysis essay preparation. Which would be the best question to ensure that she engages in rhetorical analysis? C
- How many pages are in the text? (Incorrect. However, this would be a good question for preparing to read a text when skimming or scanning.)
- What is this text about? (Incorrect. This question is, of course, unavoidable, but it's not the basis of rhetorical analysis.)
- Do I agree or disagree with the author? (Incorrect. A rhetorical analysis is not an opinion-based writing assignment.)
- Who is the intended audience of the text? (Correct. Considering an intended audience or even a secondary audience would be preparing for a rhetorical analysis. Rhetorical analyses are inquires about texts.)
A: Who is the intended audience of the text?

Q: Which of the following is NOT a common consideration in a rhetorical analysis?
- Who is writing? (Incorrect. Remember, we're looking for the answer that is NOT a common consideration in a rhetorical analysis.)
- Who is the audience? (Incorrect. Remember, we're looking for the answer that is NOT a common consideration in a rhetorical analysis.)
- What historical occasion gives rise to this particular text? (Incorrect. Remember, we're looking for the answer that is NOT a common consideration in a rhetorical analysis.)
- What are the major plot points in the text? (Correct. Of course it always makes sense to consider plot when analyzing a text, but rhetorical analysis is more often concerned with the way a text communicates with its audience.)
A: What are the major plot points in the text?

Q: Why is annotating a text a critical analysis strategy?
- Annotating is a new technological experience. It's now possible to take notes on a PDF reader, for example. (Incorrect. While new technology allows for taking notes on PDF readers and more, this is not the reason why annotating is a critical analysis strategy.)
- It's not. Annotating is the opposite of critical analysis because it distances you from the text's true intent. (Incorrect. Sometimes note-taking might feel arduous, but it is a valuable critical analysis strategy.)
- Annotating is making a public declaration about a text. (Incorrect. Annotating is taking notes; announcing is one way of making a public declaration about a text.)
- Taking notes helps you to read closely, focusing on and writing down relevant ideas. (Correct. Since a close reading is a significant reading strategy within a critical analysis, annotating, or note-taking, allows you to slow down and focus on writing down important parts of a text.)
A: Taking notes helps you to read closely, focusing on and writing down relevant ideas.

Q: Which of the following is not a critical analysis strategy?
- annotating (Incorrect. Annotating, or note-taking, is a key part of critical analysis.)
- taking notice (Incorrect. Taking notice occurs in the close reading process, which is part of critical analysis.)
- being granular (that is, paying attention to details) (Incorrect. Being granular is required to read critically.)
- skimming (Correct. Skimming, or reading quickly, is the antithesis of a critical analysis.)
A: skimming