Question 76·Easy·Text Structure and Purpose
Librarian Maya Chen noticed that many teens visiting her branch left without checking out books, saying they didn’t know where to start. Instead of expanding the collection, Chen reorganized the floor into small “genre islands” and trained teen volunteers to recommend titles to peers. Within a few months, teen checkouts increased significantly, and Chen wrote a short guide so other branches could try the approach.
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
For main-purpose questions, first read the entire short passage and then, in one simple sentence, say what the author is doing (for example, “describing a change and its result”). Next, scan each answer and quickly cross out any option that introduces topics, data, comparisons, or arguments that are not actually in the text. Choose the answer that best matches your one-sentence summary and the overall role of the passage (describe, argue, explain, or report), not just a detail you remember.
Hints
Use the beginning and end of the passage
Look at the first sentence (the problem Chen sees) and the last sentence (what she does afterward). Ask yourself: taken together, what is the author mainly doing by telling you this?
Think about the author’s goal, not your opinion
Is the author trying to persuade you of a policy, explain a general trend, give data, or simply describe a specific change someone made and what happened?
Check for ideas that never appear
Scan each answer choice and ask: does the passage actually mention this topic (like comparisons to adults, nationwide numbers, or a strong claim about what libraries should do), or is that idea missing from the text?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the question type
The question asks for the main purpose of the text. That means you need to decide why the author wrote this short paragraph overall, not focus on one small detail or your own opinion about libraries.
Summarize what the passage actually says
In your own words, briefly restate the passage: Chen notices a problem (teens not checking out books), makes a specific change to the library setup (genre islands and trained teen volunteers), sees a positive result (more checkouts), and then shares her method in a guide for others.
Match your summary to the type of purpose
Your summary should tell you that the text is mainly describing what Chen did and the outcome, not giving data from a study, not explaining a broad social trend, and not strongly arguing a controversial opinion. Look at each answer and check whether it fits this kind of descriptive focus.
Eliminate choices that add ideas not in the passage
Choice B talks about arguing that libraries should stock only popular titles, but the passage never mentions that idea. Choice C mentions explaining why teens read less than adults, but the passage does not compare teens to adults or explain reading habits generally. Choice D claims the text presents nationwide statistics, but no numbers or national data appear. The only option that accurately matches what the passage does—describe Chen’s changes to the library to help teen patrons—is A) To describe how Chen redesigned a library to better serve teens.