Test Prep SBAC Online Practice Questions and Exam Preparation

Test Prep SBAC Online Questions & Answers

• Question 51:

  Read the text attached.

  Study Suggests Today's US Students Are Less Efficient Readers

  Do today's students perform better than their peers in 1960? Given the advances in education and technology, it would be natural to assume that the answer is a resounding "yes." But, when it comes to reading efficiency, new research

  suggests that that's not the case. The research, published by the International Literacy Association, compares the comprehension-based silent reading efficiency of US students (grades 2?2) in 2011 with data collected in 1960. A key finding

  was that students fall further behind as they advance through the grades, wrote Alexandra Spichtig, Ph.D., Chief Resource Officer of Reading Plus, and first author of the study. The study showed that today's second-grade students are

  comparable to their peers of 50 years ago, but that by the end of high school, students' comprehension-based silent reading rates average 19 percent slower than the rates of their 1960 peers. "What we know ?and the data underscore this ?

  is that for many students, the progression to efficient silent reading does not develop naturally. Many students need structured silent reading instruction," explains Mark Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of Reading Plus, a web-based silent

  reading program for schools. Some of the benefits of implementing silent reading instruction at home or in school are: expanded vocabulary, improved comprehension, increased efficiency, enhanced reading enjoyment, [and] improved writing

  skills. Experts agree that without extensive silent reading practices in the classroom or at home, students will continue to struggle and literacy rates will continue to fall short or fall behind. "Effective reading instruction must integrate fluency,

  vocabulary, and comprehension practice tailored to meet each student's unique needs. This study demonstrates that as long as structured silent reading practice is neglected in this country, the literacy problem is likely to continue," Taylor

  adds. While researchers can't pinpoint reasons for the decline in silent reading efficiency from that of 50 years ago, it stands to reason that those students who engage in structured silent reading practice become more efficient readers and

  take with them a love of books that lasts far past their high school graduation.

  A student plans to use the attached text to write an argument paper about the need for increased reading instruction in school. Which three of the following sources would provide the best and most credible information she might also use?

  Source 1: A chart showing the reading assessment scores of students in grades 2-12 over the past 25 years.

  Source 2: A blog written by a 4th grade teacher about his experiences with student readers over his 15 year teaching career.

  Source 3: A map showing the states with the lowest reading comprehension scores.

  Source 4: A research paper about learning disabilities in early childhood.

  Source 5: A study on the impact of budget cuts on classroom instruction.

  Source 6: A newspaper article about the reading demands required by employers and their disappointment in the reading skills of the next generation of employees.

  A. sources 1, 2, and 6
  B. sources 1, 3, and 6
  C. sources 2, 5 and 6
  D. sources 3, 4, and 5
  A. sources 1, 2, and 6

• Question 52:

  

  A. Option A
  B. Option B
  C. Option C
  D. Option D
  A. Option A

• Question 53:

  Juan asked juniors and seniors in his school whether they will attend the final home football game of the season. He summarized the results in the attached two-way frequency table. In the table, which labeled cell or cells contain joint frequencies?

  

  A. A and B
  B. A and C
  C. B and D
  D. C and D
  B. A and C

• Question 54:

  Sarah took 8 tests in her history class. Her highest score was 94 and her lowest score was 82.

  On the 9th test of the semester, she got a 96.

  Using this information, how did her mean score change when the last test was included?

  A. It was unchanged
  B. It cannot be determined from the given information
  C. It increased.
  D. It decreased.
  C. It increased.

• Question 55:

  Read the text and answer the question.

  Blue Crabs Provide Evidence of Oil Tainting Gulf Food

  Weeks ago, before engineers pumped in mud and cement to plug the gusher, scientists began finding specks of oil in crab larvae plucked from waters across the Gulf coast.

  The government said last week that three-quarters of the spilled oil has been removed or naturally dissipated from the water. But the crab larvae discovery was an ominous sign that crude had already infiltrated the Gulf's vast food web – and

  could affect it for years to come.

  "It would suggest the oil has reached a position where it can start moving up the food chain instead of just hanging in the water," said Bob Thomas, a biologist at Loyola University in New Orleans.

  "Something likely will eat those oiled larvae . . . and then that animal will be eaten by something bigger and so on."

  Tiny creatures might take in such low amounts of oil that they could survive, Thomas said. But those at the top of the chain, such as dolphins and tuna, could get fatal "megadoses."

  Marine biologists routinely gather shellfish for study. Since the spill began, many of the crab larvae collected have had the distinctive orange oil droplets, said Harriet Perry, a biologist with the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast

  Research Laboratory.

  "In my 42 years of studying crabs I've never seen this," Perry said.

  She wouldn't estimate how much of the crab larvae are contaminated overall, but said about 40 percent of the area they are known to inhabit has been affected by oil from the spill.

  While fish can metabolize dispersant and oil, crabs may accumulate the hydrocarbons, which could harm their ability to reproduce, Perry said in an earlier interview with Science magazine.

  She told the magazine there are two encouraging signs for the wild larvae – they are alive when collected and may lose oil droplets when they molt.

  Tulane University researchers are investigating whether the splotches also contain toxic chemical dispersants that were spread to break up the oil but have reached no conclusions, biologist Caz Taylor said.

  If large numbers of blue crab larvae are tainted, their population is virtually certain to take a hit over the next year and perhaps longer, scientists say. The spawning season occurs between April and October, but the peak months are in July

  and August.

  How large the die-off would be is unclear, Perry said. An estimated 207 million gallons of oil have spewed into the Gulf since an April 20 drilling rig explosion triggered the spill, and thousands of gallons of dispersant chemicals have been

  dumped.

  Scientists will be focusing on crabs because they're a "keystone species" that play a crucial role in the food web as both predator and prey, Perry said.

  Richard Condrey, a Louisiana State University oceanographer, said the crabs are "a living repository of information on the health of the environment."

  Named for the light-blue tint of their claws, the crabs have thick shells and 10 legs, allowing them to swim and scuttle across bottomlands. As adults, they live in the Gulf's bays and estuaries amid marshes that offer protection and abundant

  food, including snails, tiny shellfish, plants and even smaller crabs. In turn, they provide sustenance for a variety of wildlife, from redfish to raccoons and whooping cranes.

  Adults could be harmed by direct contact with oil and from eating polluted food. But scientists are particularly worried about the vulnerable larvae.

  That's because females don't lay their eggs in sheltered places, but in areas where estuaries meet the open sea. Condrey discovered several years ago that some even deposit offspring on shoals miles offshore in the Gulf.

  The larvae grow as they drift with the currents back toward the estuaries for a month or longer. Many are eaten by predators and only a handful of the 3 million or so eggs from a single female live to adulthood.

  But their survival could drop even lower if the larvae run into oil and dispersants.

  "Crabs are very abundant. I don't think we're looking at extinction or anything close to it," said Taylor, one of the researchers who discovered the orange spots.

  Still, crabs and other estuary-dependent species such as shrimp and red snapper could feel the effects of remnants of the spill for years, Perry said.

  "There could be some mortality, but how much is impossible to say at this point," said Vince Guillory, biologist manager with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

  Perry, Taylor and Condrey will be among scientists monitoring crabs for negative effects such as population drop-offs and damage to reproductive capabilities and growth rates.

  Crabs are big business in the region. In Louisiana alone, some 33 million pounds are harvested annually, generating nearly $300 million in economic activity, Guillory said.

  Blue crabs are harvested year-round, but summer and early fall are peak months for harvesting, Guillory said.

  Prices for live blue crab generally have gone up, partly because of the Louisiana catch scaling back due to fishing closures, said Steve Hedlund, editor of SeafoodSource.com, a website that covers the global seafood industry.

  Fishers who can make a six-figure income off crabs in a good year now are now idled – and worried about the future.

  "If they'd let us go out and fish today, we'd probably catch crabs," said Glen Despaux, 37, who sets his traps in Louisiana's Barataria Bay. "But what's going to happen next year, if this water is polluted and it's killing the eggs and the larvae? I

  think it's going to be a long-term problem."

  Excerpt from "Blue Crabs Provide Evidence of Oil Tainting Gulf Food Web" by John Flesher. Copyright © 2010 by The Associated Press. Reprinted by permission of The Associated Press.

  How does the last paragraph affect the presentation of information? (Choose three.)

  A. It illustrates the possible economic effects of the Gulf oil spill.
  B. It makes the report more personal by showing its effects on one individual.
  C. It provides a contrasting point of view to those expressed earlier in the text.
  D. It reinforces the idea that the oil contamination in the Gulf will have long-lasting effects.
  E. It summarizes the main types of damage scientists have identified in the Gulf ecosystem.
  F. It provides predictions about the length of time scientists expect the effects of the oil spill to last.
  A. It illustrates the possible economic effects of the Gulf oil spill.
  B. It makes the report more personal by showing its effects on one individual.
  D. It reinforces the idea that the oil contamination in the Gulf will have long-lasting effects.

• Question 56:

  Attached is the graph of a function in the form y = ax2 + c. What must be the values for a and c?

  A. a > 0 and c < 0
  B. a > 0 and c > 0
  C. a < 0 and c > 0
  D. a < 0 and c < 0
  A. a > 0 and c < 0

• Question 57:

  A student is writing a research report about the Iditarod Trail and annual dogsled race in northern Alaska. Read the paragraphs from her report and the directions that follow.

  Alaska's Iditarod National Historic Trail has a long and rich history of travel and trade routes, including during the Gold Rush of the nineteenth century. Located close to the Arctic Circle, the one-thousand-mile trail system is known for its rugged terrain and harsh winters. But it is primarily known for the internationally famous Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, commonly referred to as simply the Iditarod. The Iditarod was founded in the 1970s by a few Alaskans determined to commemorate the state's rich history of dogsledding and to honor a famous event: the halt of a serious diphtheria epidemic in 1925, when a crucial medical serum was delivered by dogsled to the Alaskan citizens in need.

  `The Iditarod is an epic challenge for man and man's best friend: it's a grueling 1150-mile trek from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. Although held in early spring, the conditions are extremely harsh. Each team consists of a human captain (also called a musher) leading a team of more than a dozen sled dogs-mostly Siberian Huskies, Alaskan Malamutes, or Eskimo Dogs. Together, they brave frigid conditions, including frozen tundra and icy forests. "The Last Great Race on Earth," as it is also called, starts during the first week in March with teams generally reaching home in 10-15 days.

  Choose two credible sources that would most likely give the student more information for her paragraphs.

  A. "Snow Huskies" Commercial Film This 1998 PG-13 film is a heartwarming tale about a team of ragtag Alaskan Malamutes who save their owner's ranch by winning the nation's premier dogsled race.
  B. www.northernparks.com This website has information about all of Alaska's state parks for tourists planning a visit to the country's largest state.
  C. www.racetheiditarod.com Our business will provide you with all the information you will need to race in the Iditarod. Let our team of experts help you register your dogs, find local veterinarians, and secure housing and supplies.
  D. Balto: Our Hero by C.R. Benson This book, first published in 1957 by children's literature author C.R. Benson, tells the true dramatic tale of Balto, the lead sled dog in a race against time to deliver serum during the 1925 diphtheria epidemic in Nome, Alaska.
  E. "The Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race" United States Geographical Society www.usgeog.com/iditarod In celebration of its 100-year history of documenting our planet's uniqueness, our staff ventured to the 49th state to cover the Iditarod. This article chronicles the history of one of the most grueling competitions in the world, nicknamed "The Last Great Race."
  F. "MUSH! Alaska's Most Challenging Race" Documentary Film This 2007 six-hour miniseries documentary by award-winning filmmaker, Bernard Kerns, details the history and route of the famous Iditarod.
  E. "The Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race" United States Geographical Society www.usgeog.com/iditarod In celebration of its 100-year history of documenting our planet's uniqueness, our staff ventured to the 49th state to cover the Iditarod. This article chronicles the history of one of the most grueling competitions in the world, nicknamed "The Last Great Race."
  F. "MUSH! Alaska's Most Challenging Race" Documentary Film This 2007 six-hour miniseries documentary by award-winning filmmaker, Bernard Kerns, details the history and route of the famous Iditarod.

• Question 58:

  Read the text and answer the question.

  Blue Crabs Provide Evidence of Oil Tainting Gulf Food

  Weeks ago, before engineers pumped in mud and cement to plug the gusher, scientists began finding specks of oil in crab larvae plucked from waters across the Gulf coast.

  The government said last week that three-quarters of the spilled oil has been removed or naturally dissipated from the water. But the crab larvae discovery was an ominous sign that crude had already infiltrated the Gulf's vast food web – and

  could affect it for years to come.

  "It would suggest the oil has reached a position where it can start moving up the food chain instead of just hanging in the water," said Bob Thomas, a biologist at Loyola University in New Orleans.

  "Something likely will eat those oiled larvae . . . and then that animal will be eaten by something bigger and so on."

  Tiny creatures might take in such low amounts of oil that they could survive, Thomas said. But those at the top of the chain, such as dolphins and tuna, could get fatal "megadoses."

  Marine biologists routinely gather shellfish for study. Since the spill began, many of the crab larvae collected have had the distinctive orange oil droplets, said Harriet Perry, a biologist with the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast

  Research Laboratory.

  "In my 42 years of studying crabs I've never seen this," Perry said.

  She wouldn't estimate how much of the crab larvae are contaminated overall, but said about 40 percent of the area they are known to inhabit has been affected by oil from the spill.

  While fish can metabolize dispersant and oil, crabs may accumulate the hydrocarbons, which could harm their ability to reproduce, Perry said in an earlier interview with Science magazine.

  She told the magazine there are two encouraging signs for the wild larvae – they are alive when collected and may lose oil droplets when they molt.

  Tulane University researchers are investigating whether the splotches also contain toxic chemical dispersants that were spread to break up the oil but have reached no conclusions, biologist Caz Taylor said.

  If large numbers of blue crab larvae are tainted, their population is virtually certain to take a hit over the next year and perhaps longer, scientists say. The spawning season occurs between April and October, but the peak months are in July

  and August.

  How large the die-off would be is unclear, Perry said. An estimated 207 million gallons of oil have spewed into the Gulf since an April 20 drilling rig explosion triggered the spill, and thousands of gallons of dispersant chemicals have been

  dumped.

  Scientists will be focusing on crabs because they're a "keystone species" that play a crucial role in the food web as both predator and prey, Perry said.

  Richard Condrey, a Louisiana State University oceanographer, said the crabs are "a living repository of information on the health of the environment."

  Named for the light-blue tint of their claws, the crabs have thick shells and 10 legs, allowing them to swim and scuttle across bottomlands. As adults, they live in the Gulf's bays and estuaries amid marshes that offer protection and abundant

  food, including snails, tiny shellfish, plants and even smaller crabs. In turn, they provide sustenance for a variety of wildlife, from redfish to raccoons and whooping cranes.

  Adults could be harmed by direct contact with oil and from eating polluted food. But scientists are particularly worried about the vulnerable larvae.

  That's because females don't lay their eggs in sheltered places, but in areas where estuaries meet the open sea. Condrey discovered several years ago that some even deposit offspring on shoals miles offshore in the Gulf.

  The larvae grow as they drift with the currents back toward the estuaries for a month or longer. Many are eaten by predators, and only a handful of the 3 million or so eggs from a single female live to adulthood.

  But their survival could drop even lower if the larvae run into oil and dispersants.

  "Crabs are very abundant. I don't think we're looking at extinction or anything close to it," said Taylor, one of the researchers who discovered the orange spots.

  Still, crabs and other estuary-dependent species such as shrimp and red snapper could feel the effects of remnants of the spill for years, Perry said.

  "There could be some mortality, but how much is impossible to say at this point," said Vince Guillory, biologist manager with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

  Perry, Taylor and Condrey will be among scientists monitoring crabs for negative effects such as population drop-offs and damage to reproductive capabilities and growth rates.

  Crabs are big business in the region. In Louisiana alone, some 33 million pounds are harvested annually, generating nearly $300 million in economic activity, Guillory said.

  Blue crabs are harvested year-round, but summer and early fall are peak months for harvesting, Guillory said.

  Prices for live blue crab generally have gone up, partly because of the Louisiana catch scaling back due to fishing closures, said Steve Hedlund, editor of SeafoodSource.com, a website that covers the global seafood industry.

  Fishers who can make a six-figure income off crabs in a good year now are now idled – and worried about the future.

  "If they'd let us go out and fish today, we'd probably catch crabs," said Glen Despaux, 37, who sets his traps in Louisiana's Barataria Bay. "But what's going to happen next year, if this water is polluted and it's killing the eggs and the larvae? I

  think it's going to be a long-term problem."

  Excerpt from "Blue Crabs Provide Evidence of Oil Tainting Gulf Food Web" by John Flesher. Copyright © 2010 by The Associated Press. Reprinted by permission of The Associated Press.

  Read the sentence from the text.

  Scientists will be focusing on crabs because they’re a “keystone species” that play a crucial role in the food web as both predator and prey, Perry said.

  Which statement best describes what the phrase keystone species adds to the meaning of the text?

  A. It emphasizes the strength and durability of the blue crabs' outer shells.
  B. It emphasizes the mystery and uncertainty of blue crabs' future in the Gulf.
  C. It emphasizes the importance of the blue crabs' role in the Gulf's ecosystem.
  D. It emphasizes the blue crabs' ability to survive the threats to their environment.
  C. It emphasizes the importance of the blue crabs' role in the Gulf's ecosystem.

• Question 59:

  

  FILL BLANK

  Consider this solution to a problem.

  Problem: -4(6 - y) + 4 = -4 Step 1: -24 - 4y + 4 = -4 Step 2: -20 - 4y = -4 Step 3: -4y = 16 Step 4: y = -4

  Part 1: enter the number of the step where the mistake is made.

  Part 2: enter the correct solution to the problem.

  A. See explanation below
  A. See explanation below

  ---

  Part 1: Step 1 Part 2: y = 4 (or 4)

• Question 60:

  Read the text attached.

  "Declaration of Conscience" by Margaret Chase Smith June 1, 1950

  Mr. President, I would like to speak briefly and simply about a serious national condition. It is a national feeling of fear and frustration that could result in national suicide and the end of everything that we Americans hold dear. It is a condition

  that comes from the lack of effective leadership either in the legislative branch or the executive branch of our government...

  ...I speak as a Republican. I speak as a woman. I speak as a United States senator. I speak as an American...

  ...I think that it is high time for the United States Senate and its members to do some real soul searching and to weigh our consciences as to the manner in which we are performing our duty to the people of America and the manner in which

  we are using or abusing our individual powers and privileges.

  I think that it is high time that we remembered that we have sworn to uphold and defend the Constitution. I think that it is high time that we remembered that the Constitution, as amended, speaks not only of the freedom of speech, but also of

  trial by jury instead of trial by accusation.

  Whether it is a criminal prosecution in court or a character prosecution in the Senate, there is little practical distinction when the life of a person has been ruined.

  "The Basic Principles of Americanism"

  Those of use who shout the loudest about Americanism in making character assassinations are all too frequently those who, by our own words and acts, ignore some of the basic principles of Americanism ?

  The right to criticize.

  The right to hold unpopular beliefs.

  The right to protest.

  The right of independent thought.

  The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his reputation or his right to a livelihood nor should he be in danger of losing his reputation or livelihood merely because he happens to know someone who holds

  unpopular beliefs. Who of us does not? Otherwise none of us could call our souls our own. Otherwise thought control would have set in.

  The American people are sick and tired of being afraid to speak their minds lest they be politically smeared as "Communists" or "Fascists" by their opponents. Freedom of speech is not what it used to be in America. It has been so abused by

  some that it is not exercised by others.

  The American people are sick and tired of seeing innocent people smeared and guilty people whitewashed. But there have been enough proved cases...to cause nationwide distrust and strong suspicion that there may be something to the

  unproved, sensational accusations.

  A Challenge to the Republican Party

  As a Republican, I say to my colleagues on this side of the aisle that the Republican party faces a challenge today that is not unlike the challenge that it faced back in Lincoln's day. The Republican Party so successfully met that challenge that

  it emerged from the Civil War as the champion of a united nation - in addition to being a party that unrelentingly fought loose spending and loose programs....

  The Democratic administration has greatly lost the confidence of the American people by its complacency to the threat of communism here at home and the leak of vital secrets to Russia through key officials of the Democratic administration.

  There are enough proved cases to make this point without diluting our criticism with unproved charges.

  Surely these are sufficient reasons to make it clear to the American people that it is time for a change and that a Republican victory is necessary to the security of this country.... Yet to displace it with a Republican regime embracing a

  philosophy that lacks political integrity or intellectual honesty would prove equally disastrous to this Nation. The nation sorely needs a Republican victory. But I do not want to see the Republican party ride to political victory... [using] fear,

  ignorance, bigotry, and smear... I do not want to see the Republican party win that way. While it might be a fleeting victory for the Republican party, it would be a more lasting defeat for the American people. Surely it would ultimately be suicide

  for the Republican party and the two-party system that has protected our American liberties from the dictatorship of a one-party system.

  As members of the minority party, we do not have the primary authority to formulate the policy of our government. But we do have the responsibility of rendering constructive criticism, of clarifying issues, of allaying fears by acting as

  responsible citizens.

  As a woman, I wonder how the mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters feel about the way in which members of their families have been politically mangled in Senate debate - and I use the word "debate" advisedly...

  I do not like the way the Senate has been made a rendezvous for vilification, for selfish political gain at the sacrifice of individual reputations and national unity. I am not proud of the way we smear outsiders from the floor of the Senate and

  hide behind the cloak of congressional immunity and still place ourselves beyond criticism on the floor of the Senate.

  As an American, I am shocked at the way Republicans and Democrates alike are playing directly into the Communist design of "confuse, divide, and conquer." As an American, I don't want a Democratic administration "whitewash" or "coverup" any more than I want a Republican smear or witch hunt.

  As an American, I condemn a Republican Fascist just as much as I condemn a Democrat Communist. I condemn a Democrat Fascist just as much as I condemn a Republican Communist. They are equally dangerous to you and me and to

  our country. As an American, I want to see our nation recapture the strength and unity it once had when we fought the enemy instead of ourselves.

  It is with these thoughts that I have drafted what I call a Declaration of Conscience. I am gratified that the senator from New Hampshire, the senator from Vermont, the senator from Oregon, the senator from New York, the senator from

  Minnesota and the senator from New Jersey have concurred in that declaration and have authorized me to announce their concurrence. The purpose of repeating the phrase "as an American" throughout the attached speech is most likely to

  do all of the following except ____.

  A. show a sense of unity with the audience ?she is one of them
  B. arouse a sense of patriotism in the audience
  C. remind the audience of the principals and foundations of America
  D. inspire the audience to want to become American citizens if they are not already
  D. inspire the audience to want to become American citizens if they are not already