Chapter 8: Mastery Test 8

A. Read each of the following paragraphs. In the spaces provided, use your own words to state the implied main idea of each.

¹Hail usually forms when a cold front passes during a thunderstorm. ²Some experts believe that hailstones gather size as they fall straight down. ³Others believe that hail is formed and blown about in tall clouds. ⁴As hailstones move about in the clouds, they gather size until they are too heavy to be sustained by the wind and fall to the ground.

1. Implied main idea:

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

¹Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is one of the three most common causes of birth defects. ²These birth defects may include mental retardation, damage to the nervous system, and damage to major organs. ³In addition, these babies are born underweight and grow more slowly than healthy infants. ⁴FAS babies have small heads with flat faces and sunken nose bridges. ⁵FAS can be prevented by avoiding alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

2. Implied main idea:

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

¹Howard Gardner's work with multiple intelligences has influenced many researchers and educators. ²For example, Gardner recognized that a person with linguistic intelligence likes to learn by reading and writing stories. ³Another type of intelligence Gardner identified was spatial; this person learns by drawing, building, and imagining things. ⁴In all, Gardner identified eight types of intelligence.

3. Implied main idea:

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

B. Read the following passage. Then, choose the best statement of the implied central idea. Stereotypes
¹A stereotype is a relatively fixed mental picture of some group that is applied to each individual of the group without regard to his or her unique qualities. ²It's important to note that although stereotypes are usually thought of as negative, they may also be positive. ³You can, for example, consider certain groups lazy or criminal, but you can also consider them honest or hardworking. ⁴Regardless of whether such stereotypes are positive or negative, however, the problems they create are the same. ⁵They provide shortcuts that are usually wrong. ⁶For example, when you see someone through a stereotype, you fail to devote enough attention to his or her unique traits. ⁷There is nothing wrong with classifying. ⁸In fact, it's an extremely useful method of dealing with any complex matter; it puts order into thinking. ⁹The problem arises not from classification itself but from applying a label to a class and using that label as the rule for each and every individual in the group.

—Adapted from DeVito, The Interpersonal Communication Book, 10th ed., pp. 166–67.

4. Which sentence best states the implied central idea?

a. Although classifying is a useful method of thinking, stereotyping limits thinking.

b. A stereotype can be either negative or positive.

c. Stereotyping is one form of classifying, which is a helpful method of thinking.

d. Stereotyping ignores an individual's special or unique qualities.