Praxis I Reading Practice Test - Question List

The Galician Language and Its Revitalization

Ever since the implementation of Galician as the primary language in the public school of Galicia in the early 1980’s, there has been an increase in number of speakers of this language. Observers have seen (1) “new speakers” use Galician, their (2) heritage language, during protests, theatrical skits, and other public events. However, more anthropological research needs to be done on how else the Galician language is being used by these so-called “new speakers”.

Galician-or galego(gah-lay-goh)-is the autochthonous, or native, language of the northwestern region of Spain known as Galicia. It is a language closely related to both Spanish and Portuguese-although it has closer linguistic ties to Portuguese when it is observed under the microscope of some linguists-and is spoken mainly by people who live in rural areas of the region. Although Galician is the co-official language of Galicia, Spanish is spoken by a higher number of (3) inhabitants since it is the language of the Spanish nation and the majority language in the (4) urban areas of Galicia, such as Vigo, Ourense, and A Coruña.

Although Spanish is the most commonly spoken language in Galicia (due to a larger urban rather than rural population), there is a new movement for urban youth toward adopting the language, and in some cases employing it in their every-day conversations (5) instead of Spanish. Because these urban youth typically have spoken mainly Spanish but have come to rely more and more on the use of Galician, they have been termed “new speakers”. It is thanks to these “new speakers” that Galician has recently enjoyed a growth in the number of people who choose to employ it in their daily lives rather than Spanish.

According to paragraphs 2 and 3, all of the following statements are true of Galician EXCEPT:

The Galician Language and Its Revitalization

Ever since the implementation of Galician as the primary language in the public school of Galicia in the early 1980’s, there has been an increase in number of speakers of this language. Observers have seen (1) “new speakers” use Galician, their (2) heritage language, during protests, theatrical skits, and other public events. However, more anthropological research needs to be done on how else the Galician language is being used by these so-called “new speakers”.

Galician-or galego(gah-lay-goh)-is the autochthonous, or native, language of the northwestern region of Spain known as Galicia. It is a language closely related to both Spanish and Portuguese-although it has closer linguistic ties to Portuguese when it is observed under the microscope of some linguists-and is spoken mainly by people who live in rural areas of the region. Although Galician is the co-official language of Galicia, Spanish is spoken by a higher number of (3) inhabitants since it is the language of the Spanish nation and the majority language in the (4) urban areas of Galicia, such as Vigo, Ourense, and A Coruña.

Although Spanish is the most commonly spoken language in Galicia (due to a larger urban rather than rural population), there is a new movement for urban youth toward adopting the language, and in some cases employing it in their every-day conversations (5) instead of Spanish. Because these urban youth typically have spoken mainly Spanish but have come to rely more and more on the use of Galician, they have been termed “new speakers”. It is thanks to these “new speakers” that Galician has recently enjoyed a growth in the number of people who choose to employ it in their daily lives rather than Spanish.

Based on the information in the passage, how would you best describe the generic term “new speakers”, in bold after the (1) in the first paragraph?

The Electoral College of the U.S.

Did you know that the President and the Vice President aren’t elected by (1) popular vote in the U.S.? Essentially, every four years, it isn’t the American people who elect the rulers of our nation. Instead, when a registered voter casts his or her vote for President and Vice President, he or she also votes for an unknown “elector”, or voting member, who will cast a ballot in a separate election that ultimately will choose the president. Thus, by voting for a Democrat presidential candidate, for example, a voter is really voting for a member of the Electoral College who is expected--but not required--to vote along (2) party lines, too.

You might be thinking, “Then, why do we vote?” Historically, before the (3) advent of television and radio, the Electoral College was established to avoid unfairness. People who lived in bigger cities, where there tends to be a more concentrated, greater population, had more of an advantage of knowing about the candidates compared to those who lived in more rural, secluded areas.

The electors, which are chosen by popular vote, are divided up among each state and the District of Columbia. The amount of voting members in each state is equal to the number of members of Congress. In total, there are 538 electors: 435 representatives and 100 senators, plus the three (4) constituents from the District of Columbia.

In almost every state electors are selected on a "winner-take-all" basis. To be more precise, the candidate for elector that wins the most votes in a state becomes elector for that state. During an election, each elector is required to cast one vote for President and another vote for Vice President. The presidential candidate that receives the majority of electoral votes (270 out of 538) for the offices of President or Vice President is elected to that (5) office.

According to the passage, all of the following statements are false EXCEPT:

DOMA and Its Demise

Many same-sex couples, as well their allies, celebrated when “The Defense of Marriage Act”, known as DOMA, was overturned by the Supreme Court in the summer of 2013. Homosexual couples, who were legally recognized as a (1) union in their state of residence, were finally able to enjoy the same benefits at the national level that their heterosexual counterparts have always enjoyed. Nevertheless, the United States has a long way to go before marriage equality is universal.

DOMA was a (2) federal law that was first enacted in 1996 by the Clinton Administration. It sought to block same-sex couples that were legally married (in states that recognized same-sex marriages), from receiving federal marriage benefits. Under DOMA, the government determined that the word “spouse” was to refer to a heterosexual married couple, thus effectively excluding same-sex spouses from the laws applicable to opposite-sex spouses. Therefore, heterosexual married couples were protected under federal law and homosexual married couples were left unprotected.

Countless same-sex couples felt (3) discriminated against under DOMA and believed that the law was (4) unconstitutional. The Obama Administration, years later, decided it would no longer justify DOMA in court. During the first year of Obama’s second term in office, the law was struck down, and now same-sex couples, who reside in states like Hawaii and Iowa, share the same federal benefits as opposite-sex couples. However, until all of the states in the Union make same-sex marriage legal, the US will not get first place in the (5) race toward equality for everyone.

Which of the following is true?

The Galician Language and Its Revitalization

Ever since the implementation of Galician as the primary language in the public school of Galicia in the early 1980’s, there has been an increase in number of speakers of this language. Observers have seen (1) “new speakers” use Galician, their (2) heritage language, during protests, theatrical skits, and other public events. However, more anthropological research needs to be done on how else the Galician language is being used by these so-called “new speakers”.

Galician-or galego(gah-lay-goh)-is the autochthonous, or native, language of the northwestern region of Spain known as Galicia. It is a language closely related to both Spanish and Portuguese-although it has closer linguistic ties to Portuguese when it is observed under the microscope of some linguists-and is spoken mainly by people who live in rural areas of the region. Although Galician is the co-official language of Galicia, Spanish is spoken by a higher number of (3) inhabitants since it is the language of the Spanish nation and the majority language in the (4) urban areas of Galicia, such as Vigo, Ourense, and A Coruña.

Although Spanish is the most commonly spoken language in Galicia (due to a larger urban rather than rural population), there is a new movement for urban youth toward adopting the language, and in some cases employing it in their every-day conversations (5) instead of Spanish. Because these urban youth typically have spoken mainly Spanish but have come to rely more and more on the use of Galician, they have been termed “new speakers”. It is thanks to these “new speakers” that Galician has recently enjoyed a growth in the number of people who choose to employ it in their daily lives rather than Spanish.

The word “heritage”, in bold after the (2) in the first paragraph, is closest in meaning to