English 1, Segment Two Exam Review
General Information about the exam
Logical Evidence
Parallel Structure
Tone and Style
Clauses
Point of View
Inverted Syntax and Diction
Paraphrase and Summary
Formal vs. Informal Tone
Context Clues and Synonyms
Defining and Evaluating an Argument
Specific Lessons to review before taking the
exam
Claim and Counterclaim
Honors Exam
General Information about the exam







The exam will include 16 multiple choice questions and 1 short answer.
If you are an honors student, you will receive an additional 5 short answer questions that relate to your honors
material.
You may use any notes and assignments that you completed in the course
It is suggested that you have a dictionary and the exam review handout when taking the exam.
The test is not timed, but you must complete it all at once. You cannot exit and come back to the test.
You MUST earn at least a 60% average to pass the course.
You may view the 2nd semester PRE-TEST (4.00B Pretest) for additional practice before taking the exam.
To begin your exam you must:




Complete all assignments in the semester
Get the password for the exam from your Instructor
Have a Dictionary
Review this study guide along with any notes and assignments from the course
Parallel Structure



Parallel structure is a sentence that expresses more than one idea in a single sentence.
All ideas in the same have the same importance.
Parallel structure makes your writing and thoughts easier to understand.
Example:
INCORRECT Parallel structure: Mary likes football, to swim, and going hiking.
1
CORRECT Parallel structure: Mary likes football, swimming, and hiking.
Clause



A clause is a simple sentence. A clause includes a subject and predicate.
An independent clause is a simple sentence that is alone.
A semi-colon is most commonly used to join to clauses together.
Example: How can we correctly join these clauses without changing the meaning of the sentence?
“The party was cancelled. We decided to go to the movies instead. “
Answer: The party was cancelled; we decided to go to the movies instead.
Inverted Syntax and Diction





Diction is word choice. Every writer must be aware of his or her diction in order to be effective with the
language. With so many words to choose from that can express similar ideas, essayists and other writers spend
much of their time selecting the perfect words for exactly what they want to say.
An inverted syntax means to reverse the normal order of words in a sentence.
For example, the verb may come before the subject, or other parts of speech may appear in reverse order. Be
sure to observe when this happens in something you read!
An example of inverted syntax is: “Beautiful are the stars that shine in the sky.”
It is inverted because our normal syntax would be to say “The stars that shine in the sky are beautiful”.
Formal vs. Informal Tone




Informal Tone in writing is similar to a conversation. When having a conversation with your friends through
talking, email, or texting you are most likely using an informal tone.
Informal Tone Example: “Hey Mack! What’s up?”
Formal Tone in writing is used in “professional circumstances.” This would include your school work,
conversations with an adult or boss, etc.
Formal Tone Example: “Hello Mr. Johnson. What tasks would you like me to complete today?”
Defining and Evaluating an Argument
A formal argument is a statement of the reasons you are in favor of or are against an issue. An argument gives you the
opportunity to:



ask someone to accept your position
change someone’s point of view
encourage someone to take action
2
Claim and Counterclaim
1. Claim- The claim is the starting point for any argument. It states your position so others know where you
stand on a certain issue.
2. Counterclaim- The counterclaim is the statement of the reasons people might view the issue differently.
Five steps to developing an effective claim:
1. Complete the following sentence: I plan to prove that...
2. Cross out "I plan to prove that." What remains is your clearly stated position.
3. Complete the following sentence: This matters because...
4. Cross out "This matters because." What remains is your purpose for writing.
5. Combine these two thoughts into one sentence; this is your claim.
Example:
Topic- Raising the legal driving age to 18
Claim- Eighteen-year-old drivers are safer and more responsible than younger drivers, many of whom die needlessly in
car accidents.
Counterclaim- However, young drivers should learn the rules of driving while they are still under their parents’
supervision.
Thesis statement (combine both the claim and counterclaim of the argument) - Eighteen-year-old drivers are safer and
more responsible than younger drivers, many of whom die needlessly in car accidents. However, young drivers should
learn the rules of driving while they are still under their parents’ supervision.
Logical Evidence


Evidence is logical support (logos) and is not tied to emotion or right and wrong (ethos and pathos).
When providing evidence to support your argument, make sure you are stating facts
Tone and Style



Tone is the author’s attitude, stated or implied, toward a subject. Some possible attitudes are pessimism,
optimism, earnestness, seriousness, bitterness, humorous, and joyful. An author’s tone can be revealed through
choice of words and details.
An author can also have a Neutral Tone. If an author writes with a neutral tone, they are unbiased towards a
subject. (They do not favor one side over the other).
Style is the way an author writes.
3
Point of View



The point of view of a speech is how the speaker relates to his or her audience. When a speaker wants to get
people to listen, he or she will relate the purpose to things that matter to the audience. In order for this to work
effectively, the speaker must be aware of the topics the audience will find interesting.
To identify an argument's point of view, you must pay close attention to the details provided. These details will
reveal which audience is the target for the speech. Some arguments will try to appeal to several different types
of people. This often happens when a politician is speaking to large groups of people or on television. Because
people usually identify with more than one group at a time, effective arguments must try to reach the audience
on multiple levels.
Just imagine what point of view a speechwriter would have to use to appeal to all of your groups at once!
Speakers must be able to imagine your point of view so that you can relate to their messages.
Paraphrase and Summary


A paraphrase is a rephrasing of the original text or idea using your own words.
A summary is an explanation of the main points or ideas written in your own words.
Example: Read the following excerpt and write a paraphrase.
“For space science, like nuclear science and all technology, has no conscience of its own.”
Sample Paraphrase Answer: Space science is not inherently bad, but it could be bad if used by bad people.
Context Clues and Synonyms


Context clues are hints that an author gives to help define or figure out the unknown meaning of a word.
Synonyms are two different words or phrases that mean the same thing.
Example: Read the following passage.
The young woman pressed and prodded the wasted muscles, resting her body on her knees, her bowed head hidden as in
a cloud by her black wealth of hair.
1. What does the author mean by saying “wealth of hair”?
Example Answer: The author means that the lady he is describing has lots of hair.
2. What words or phrases could you use to substitute for “wealth of hair” in this sentence to mean the same?
Example Answer: You could replace “wealth of hair” with abundance of hair.
3. What is a synonym for “wealth” as it is used in this context?
Example Answer: abundance
Specific Lessons to review before taking the exam
Before taking the exam, you should have mastered all of the material from the course. In
reviewing for the exam, make sure you focus on the following lessons more in-depth:
4
Unit 4
Lesson 3 “Context and Connotation”
Lesson 4 “Compare and Contrast”
Lesson 5 “Compare and Contrast Strategies”
Unit 5
Lesson 3A and B “Analyzing an Argument”
Lesson 7 “Stating Your Claim”
Lesson 8 “Outlining Your Argument”
Unit 6
Lesson 3 “Essay Diction, Tone, and Syntax”
Lesson 6 “Thesis Statement”
Honors Exam
If you are an honors student, for your 2nd semester exam, you will be completing the Segment Two
Honors exam.
Segment Two Honors Exam will be 16 multiple choice questions + 1 short answer from the regular
course material PLUS you will then have 5 short answer questions that pertain to your honors material.
The honors related short answers will cover concepts from your honors assignments, including:









“Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare (Honors Unit)
William Wordsworth's poem, "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" (Unit 6 Lesson 05)
John Muir's poem, "The Calypso Borealis" (Unit 6 Lesson 3)
Internal and External Conflict
Foreshadowing
Time Period of Romeo and Juliet
Language used in a play and poem
Compare/contrast the structure of a play and poem
Theme
5
6