Narrator: Listen to a conversation between a student and a professor.
Professor: I’m glad you came by, Jordan. Have a seat.
Student: So, Professor Zhang… I got your email… about sending my final project to a conference? I figured I’d just, you know, come in and ask you more about it. Instead of going back and forth.
Professor: Yes, well, as I said in my email, I was very impressed with your project. I actually shared it with a few other people in the department… it’s very interesting work. You really went above and beyond—it would definitely fit in as a conference presentation.
Student: Thanks. Um, I guess I find linguistics really interesting. I didn’t even know it was a thing until this year… I wish I’d taken the intro class earlier.
Professor: Well, you’ve certainly made up for lost time.
Student: Thanks.
Professor: So, what do you think about submitting your project to the linguistics conference?
Student: Well, uh… to be honest… I was hoping you could just give me more details on, like, what it entails. You know… I don’t really know much about how this kind of thing works. I was sort of surprised, when I saw your email… I’ve never been to a conference before.
Professor: So, here’s how it works. You would work with an advisor in the linguistics department. You’d do this over the summer. You might end up deciding on some additional research to do or you might just focus on writing up what you’ve already done. In the end, usually what happens is, you submit your abstract to the conference in September. Then, if it’s accepted, you either create a poster or you prepare a talk about your project… sometimes, both.
Student: Uh, my advisor told me… uh, I didn’t get the best grades my first year. Actually, my GPA is pretty bad because of it. So my advisor suggested retaking some of those classes… anyways, I was thinking about doing that this summer. So I’m not sure.
Professor: This is really a good opportunity, though—if there’s any way you can do it, you should. Your project is really promising… you have a lot of insight into Appalachian English. And going to a conference, you get to meet actual, you know, working linguists. You get to see what research is happening right now. That’s a valuable experience.
Student: So, uh, how does it work… over the summer? Do I just… work on the project? And then email you about it?
Professor: No, you’d need to talk to your academic advisor. You have to sign up for a particular course, to get credit for a research project. It counts for a certain number of hours, and the professor who’s listed is whoever’s advising you in the department—that would most likely be me.
Student: It’s a course… so, I’d get a grade, right?
Professor: Yes—but given the work I’ve seen from you already, you don’t have to worry about it hurting your GPA.
Student: Okay, I just need to ask my advisor… I already told him I was planning to take some summer classes, so I need to see how this all fits in. I want to make sure I can still graduate on time.
Professor: Okay. Look into it, and get back to me if you’re still interested. And let me know if you need me to talk to your advisor. I’d love to have you work on this more over the summer.
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Why does the student go to see his professor? |
Gist-purpose. What question does the student want to talk to the professor about? |
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| ✗ | A He wants his professor’s help with his final project. |
The student has already completed his final project at the time of this conversation. |
| ✓ | B He is seeking more information about an email that his professor sent him. |
Correct. At the beginning of the conversation, the student states that he got an email from the professor (regarding his final project) and came to her office to ask more questions about it. |
| ✗ | C He wants his professor to speak with his academic advisor. |
The professor suggests doing this at the end of the conversation, but this was not the student’s original reason to visit the professor. |
| ✗ | D He has a question about Appalachian English. |
The student’s final project dealt with Appalachian English. However, the student and the professor do not discuss the content of the final project. |
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Why does the student mention that he earned poor grades during his first year of college? |
Detail. Because of poor grades, the student was planning to retake several classes during the summer. This might conflict with the professor’s invitation to do a research project. |
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| ✗ | A He is unhappy with the grade that he earned in this professor’s class. |
The student does not mention the grade he earned. However, based on the content of the conversation, he likely performed well in the class. |
| ✓ | B His advisor has asked him to retake some classes during the summer. |
Correct. The student mentions his first-year grades in order to explain why he originally planned to take summer classes, rather than doing research. |
| ✗ | C He does not think he will earn a good grade in the research class. |
The student asks whether the research class is graded later in the conversation. However, this is not why he mentions his first-year grades. |
| ✗ | D Linguistics classes are especially difficult for the student. |
The student states that he did not take any linguistics classes until this year. So, this answer choice does not relate to his first-year grades. |
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What does the student need to do before deciding whether to spend the summer doing research? |
Detail. The student indicates that he will need to speak with his academic advisor to ensure that he will graduate on time. |
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| ✗ | A Finish his linguistics final project |
At the time of the conversation, the student has already finished his final project. |
| ✗ | B Complete his summer classes |
The student is considering whether to do research as an alternative to taking summer classes, not after finishing his summer classes. |
| ✗ | C Check the grades he earned on his final exams |
The student is concerned about his grades, but he does not mention his final exams. |
| ✓ | D Speak with his academic advisor about his plans |
Correct. Before deciding whether to register for the summer research course, the student will need to speak with his academic advisor about changing his original plan to take summer classes. |
Narrator: Listen again to part of the conversation. Then answer the question.
Professor: No, you’d need to talk to your academic advisor. You have to sign up for a particular course, to get credit for a research project. It counts for a certain number of hours, and the professor who’s listed is whoever’s advising you in the department—that would most likely be me.
Student: It’s a course… so, I’d get a grade, right?
Professor: Yes—but given the work I’ve seen from you already, you won’t have to worry about it hurting your GPA.
Narrator: What does the professor mean when she says this:
Professor: Yes—but given the work I’ve seen from you already, you don’t have to worry about it hurting your GPA.
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What does the professor mean when she says this? |
Function of What Is Said. This segment takes place at the end of the conversation. The student has already expressed concern about his poor grades. The professor is trying to convince him to take a research course, rather than retaking other classes over the summer. |
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| ✓ | A She believes that the student will probably earn a good grade in the summer research course. |
Correct. The student expresses concern about the course being graded, most likely because he is concerned about getting a low grade. The professor responds by reassuring him that his GPA won’t decrease, which implies that he won’t earn a low grade. |
| ✗ | B The student’s grade in the course will not be counted as part of his GPA. |
The professor does not suggest that this is the case. |
| ✗ | C The student already has a high GPA. |
The student mentions earlier in the conversation that his GPA is “pretty bad.” |
| ✗ | D The student’s grade will be based on the work he has already done in his linguistics course. |
The professor’s belief in the student’s ability is based on the work he has done already. However, she does not state that the student’s grade will be based on this. |
Narrator: Listen again to part of the conversation. Then answer the question.
Professor: Yes, well, as I said in my email, I was very impressed with your project. I actually shared it with a few other people in the department… it’s very interesting work. You really went above and beyond—it would definitely fit in as a conference presentation.
Student: Thanks. Um, I guess I find linguistics really interesting. I didn’t even know it was a thing until this year… I wish I’d taken the intro class earlier.
Professor: Well, you’ve certainly made up for lost time.
Narrator: What does the professor mean when she says this:
Professor: Well, you’ve certainly made up for lost time.
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What does the professor mean when she says this? |
Function of What Is Said. This exchange takes place at the beginning of the conversation. The professor is praising the student’s work. The student responds by stating that he didn’t know about linguistics until this year, which makes it somewhat surprising that his work is of such high quality. |
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| ✗ | A The student has missed a good opportunity by not taking linguistics classes earlier. |
The professor’s comment is a positive statement, not a negative one. |
| ✗ | B The student has limited time to do linguistics research before he graduates. |
The professor’s comment refers to the quality of the student’s previous work, not his future work. |
| ✗ | C The student should submit his final project to a linguistics conference. |
This is the professor’s overall opinion; however, this is not what the professor is referring to by making the statement, “Well, you’ve certainly made up for lost time.” |
| ✓ | D The student’s work is better than one might expect. |
Correct. The student has only studied linguistics for a short time. However, according to the professor, his work is of very high quality. Therefore, the student has compensated for the time he didn’t spend studying linguistics. |