ESL 4, Unit 1 Bi-Monthly Exam Model

ESL 4, Unit 1 Bi-Monthly Exam Model

Draft, For Discussion Only

10/20/31 CEA Self Study Committee Meeting

Section 1: Grammar (optional, 10 points maximum) [Note how this model uses sentences and situations from the unit in ways that test reading and writing as well as grammar and structure]

	Rewrite each sentence using the imperative form of the verb.
1. Do you listen to the radio?	1.
2. Why buy diet pills?	2.
3. You should color your hair with Younger You.	3.
4. Do you buy flea treatment for your dog?	4.
5. It takes 10 minutes to get results from Younger You	5.

Section 2: Vocabulary (20 points maximum) [This test section reverses the “Vocabulary for Comprehension” activity in a way that helps test reading as well as vocabulary meaning from context. However, it is at a higher level of critical thinking because students must choose from the more sophisticated rather than the simpler vocabulary. It also helps to provide students with a review of language and concepts that they should incorporate into their answers to the longer writing questions below.]

*Match the italicized* word or words with a definition or synonym from the list below. Write the correct letter in the blank.**
a. luxury b. emotions c. persuade		d. appeals e. fit f. specialize	g. manipulate h. techniques i. egos j. ways to make us laugh
1.	*Advertisers use our feelings* to encourage us to buy products.**
2.	*Advertisers try to make us decide to do something* so that we will buy things.**
3.	*Advertisers try to control our feelings* by using things that have the power to make us interested in their products.**
4.	Advertisers often use funny stories in their ads
5.	*If you make a funny ad about a serious product, it wouldn’t match* the product**
6.	*Some advertising companies do one thing very well.*
7.	I’ll *show him this ad. It will make him decide to do something.*
8.	*Hilton hotels have high and expensive* standards.**
9.	*Ads often use special ways of doing things* like sound effects, music, and songs to make us remember them.**
10.	*Our opinions about ourselves* make us want to look good.**

Section 3: Reading and Integrated Writing (20 points maximum) [The reading passage is from “Background," Preparing to Listen.]

Read the following passage. Then answer the questions that follow. Use one or more complete sentences, as directed.

“Approximately 97% of Americans listen to the radio. Most people listen every day for at least three hours and to only two or three stations. Then also usually listen while doing something else. In 2000, advertisers spent $60 million on radio ads. Advertisers like radio because they can advertise to different markets. For example, if a clothing company wants to advertise to teenagers, it will do best on a radio station that plays pop music. “

1. Explain the meaning of the word “approximately.” Then explain how you could figure out the meaning from the context, even if you did not know it. (10 points)

[Grading rubrics—deduct 5 points if only one part of the question is answered. Deduct 5 points for a weak answer. Deduct 2 points each for major errors such as incomplete sentences. Deduct 1 point each for minor errors such as punctuation, spelling, etc.]

2. Explain why clothing companies that want to advertise to teenagers like to advertise on a radio station that plays pop music. (10 points)

[Grading rubrics-- Deduct 5 points for a weak answer. Deduct 2-3 points each for major errors such as incomplete sentences. Deduct 1 point each for minor errors such as punctuation, spelling, etc.]

Section 4: Guided Writing (20 points) [Note how this activity responds to the following critical thinking objectives of the unit—to critique an ad, to identify salient features of the ad, to support answers, and to correlate concrete examples with more abstract principles. It also asks students to organize their writing into more than one paragraph.]

Think about an ad you have seen on TV, on a billboard, or in a magazine. In at least two well-developed paragraphs identify and describe the ad (for example, what it looks like). Then explain:

what emotional appeal(s) the advertiser is using,
why the advertiser chose this or these emotional appeals,
who is the target market, and
whether or not you think the ad is effective. Explain why or why not.

[Grading Rubrics—This question has 6 components. It asks for the writer to identify and describe an ad and then asks 4 questions about it. Deduct 5 points for any part that is missing. Deduct 5-10 points for poor organization, such as not using an introductory paragraph for the ad’s identification and descriptio. Deduct Deduct 2-3 points for an incomplete answer to any part of the question (such as 3 points for stating that the ad is effective in question 4 but not explaining why). Deduct 2 points from each question that uses weak word choices instead of the more sophisticated vocabulary of the unit provided in test Section 2, above. Deduct 2 points for any major writing error such as an incomplete sentence and 1 point for any minor error such as spelling and punctuation.]

Section 5: Integrated Reading and Independent Writing (30 points)

[Note how this question also uses familiar material from the unit while fufilling the Scope and Sequence’s highest critical thinking objectives such as hypothesizing reasons and comparing and contrasting advertising strategies.]

“Advertisers often use animals to advertise products. Remember the picture on p. 1 that introduces the unit, Advertising on the Air? It compared a turtle with a snail on its back and a printer. The ad was for a company called Print Tech that marketed printers for home and business. The ad’s text asked the question, “Is your printer really slow?” and then stated that you could “Work faster with Print Tech.” However, the ad was not very successful because it did not sell many printers.

In more than one paragraph, suggest why you believe the original ad was not very effective, then propose a different ad for Print Tech that also compares an animal and a printer. Make sure to describe the details of the ad’s graphics and text and to explain why you think that comparing your animal to a printer would encourage people to buy the product.”

[Grading Rubrics—Use TOEFL-type writing rubrics that give more credit for well thought out answers using more complex structures and word choices than merely “correct” writing.

The question asks the student to connect 3 components—

reasons why the original ad was not effective,
what the new ad proposes to do and how it proposes to do it, and
reasons why the new ad would be more effective.

Give no credit if the student has not understood the reading and question. Deduct 10 points for any one of these 3 ideas that may be missing. Deduct 10 points for poor organization and/or development, such as if the writing explains but does not make connections between the 3 ideas using connection words, transitions, etc. Deduct 10-20 points for weak writing that does not incorporate more complex structures, stronger word choices, sentence variety, etc. Deduct 5 points per serious grammatical error such as an incomplete sentence and 1-2 points for minor errors such as spelling or punctuation. ]