Reading Comprehension

PT153 · S4 · P2 · Q10 Native American Languages

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This passage is based on an article published in 1996.

Topic

Preserving endangered Native American languages.

Framework

Problem / Solution (or maybe Old / New)

Main Point

There's a Problem - Native American languages are on the brink of extinction

There's a Solution - radio shows in native languages are great!

There's a Problem with the Solution - the internet is coming to more of these communities and it increases the threat of losing the native language (as people learn English in order to use the internet)

There's a Solution to the Problem with the Solution - make better radio shows in the native languages (not lessons, but fun stuff like interviews with old people, songs, and word games).

Putting that all together, you'd get something like this:

In order to continue the success radio shows have had in preserving endangered native languages in the face of the encroaching internet, the shows should focus on engaging formats over lessons.

Passage Map

P1 - Intro to Problem / Solution

The first three sentences have negative words that make us guess this passage is about a Problem: of 300, fewer than 150 survive / one third are near extinction / the decline is due to misguided policies

The Purpose Pivot halfway through (but, yet, however, recently) alerts us to the optimism the author has for the Solution.

P2 - More optimism for Solution

This paragraph fleshes out why radio shows are a great way of helping to preserve these endangered native languages.

P3 - New Problem / New Solution

This starts with another big Purpose Pivot (but, yet, however, recently). The author pours some pessimism on that optimism: the growth of Internet could counter the influence of radio.

Halfway down it switches to Solution by saying "Communities have a means to combat this trend". The final sentence is actually getting into prescriptive language, as the author says we should make radio programming more effective.

P4 - Author Supports their Solution

This paragraph explains what the "right" kind of radio programming would be.

10.

The author's primary purpose in mentioning the native language curricula being developed at many universities is to

cite an example of methods
Out of Support Window
Out of Support Window: less successful / radio This doesn't sound anything like what we're looking for, "to illustrate a way in which there has been a recent resurgence in native language study and preservation efforts". The purpose of the sentence had nothing to do with radio programming and certainly didn't seem to be denigrating university efforts as less successful than something.
1% picked this
indicate one of the effects
Out of Support Window: programming
This is a little closer to what we're seeking: "to illustrate a way in which there has been a recent resurgence in native language study and preservation efforts". We could fix this answer by saying, "indicate one of the attempts to preserve and study native languages". But what does by means of native language programming have to do with it? This isn't a radio show. There's no programming here. It's a course you sign up for at a university.
7% picked this
Correct
provide evidence that interest in
Why this is right
This is the best match for what we wanted: "to illustrate a way in which there has been a recent resurgence in native language study and preservation efforts". The language of "is growing" matches up with "recent resurgence".
Skill tested: Local Purpose · how this choice captures the passage's function is the move to repeat next time.
90% picked this
show that the attitudes of
Out of Support Window: scholars / govt
We were looking for this: "to illustrate a way in which there has been a recent resurgence in native language study and preservation efforts". Nothing in our prediction has anything to do with comparing attitudes of scholars to those of government officials. One might find this tempting because the start of the first paragraph involved a government action that had a deleterious effect on traditional languages, and what universities are doing is intended to have a beneficial effect on traditional language. But it would be a gigantic leap away from the text to infer what this answer is saying from that. And we have an answer choice available that tightly paraphrases the actual sentence that "universities" is connected to.
1% picked this
point out one of the
Out of Support Window: programming
We're looking for this: "to illustrate a way in which there has been a recent resurgence in native language study and preservation efforts". No part of that says anything about radio programming.
1% picked this

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