Question 77·Medium·Text Structure and Purpose
The following text is adapted from a contemporary magazine article about pollinators.
In the popular imagination, modern farmland is an expansive quilt of crops, each square buzzing with industrious honeybees. Yet when ecologist Lina Perez walked the perimeter of a 500-acre cornfield last summer, she heard almost nothing but wind. The low hum we associate with agriculture, she explains, is often recorded near hedgerows and wildflower margins, not in the monoculture itself. Scientific surveys back up her experience: fields planted with a single crop support far fewer pollinators than do smaller, more varied plots. The disparity is no mystery. Corn, wheat, and soy offer bees little nectar, and pesticides further discourage visitors. Still, Perez is optimistic. “If we stitch native plants back into the edges of these fields,” she says, “we can restore both the music and the health of our farms.”
Which choice best describes how the author organizes the paragraph?
For paragraph organization questions, briefly summarize each sentence or group of sentences in 3–5 words (for example: “common view of farms,” “quiet field observation,” “surveys confirm,” “reasons: nectar, pesticides,” “optimistic suggestion”) and then match that mini-outline to the patterns described in the answer choices. Quickly eliminate choices that require elements the paragraph clearly lacks (like a detailed timeline, a direct comparison of two methods, or a multi-step plan), and choose the option that best captures the overall flow from beginning to end, not just one detail you recognize.
Hints
Focus on the first sentence
Look closely at what the first sentence is doing: is it describing what actually happens on farms, or is it describing how people tend to picture farms?
Notice the contrast signal
Pay attention to the word “Yet” that starts the second sentence—this usually signals a shift from one idea to a contrasting or opposing idea. What is being contrasted?
Think about the purpose of the middle and later sentences
Ask yourself: Are the sentences about Perez and the scientific surveys giving a timeline, comparing two methods, listing problems, or doing something else? And what are the sentences about nectar and pesticides explaining?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the main parts of the paragraph
Break the paragraph into chunks and briefly label what each one is doing:
- Sentence 1: “In the popular imagination…buzzing with industrious honeybees.” → Describes what people commonly picture or assume about modern farmland.
- Sentences 2–4: Perez’s quiet field walk and the “Scientific surveys” → Real-world observations and data that do not match that picture.
- Sentences 5–6: “The disparity is no mystery. Corn, wheat, and soy offer bees little nectar, and pesticides further discourage visitors.” → Explains why the reality is different from the earlier image.
- Final sentence: Suggests a hopeful change (adding native plants) to improve the situation.
Keep this simple outline in mind: common picture → different reality supported by evidence → reasons for that difference → brief suggestion.
Match that outline against the common patterns in the choices
Look at the structure you just found and compare it to the types of structures in the answer choices.
- Does the paragraph tell a step-by-step story of a single trip, with multiple turning points?
- Does it set up two clearly defined methods or techniques and weigh them against each other?
- Does it present a list of separate problems followed by a detailed, ordered plan to fix them?
- Or does it move from what people think, to what actually happens (with evidence), to why there’s a gap between the two, plus a brief suggestion?
Keep in mind that how the information is organized is more important here than the topic itself (bees, farms, etc.).
Eliminate choices that don’t match the paragraph’s structure
Now test each wrong option directly against the text:
- Choice A (sequence of events in an expedition): The paragraph only briefly mentions Perez walking the field; it does not narrate multiple stages or turning points of an expedition.
- Choice B (comparison of two farming techniques): There is no clear description of “method 1 vs. method 2” or a direct recommendation of one technique over another; instead, the focus is on imagined farms vs. actual pollinator levels.
- Choice C (list of problems with step-by-step solution): The paragraph gives one main issue (few pollinators in monoculture fields) and a single broad suggestion, not a numbered or detailed step-by-step plan.
After rejecting these, the remaining choice should reflect the actual flow you outlined in Step 1.
Confirm the remaining choice fits each part of the paragraph
Check the last choice against the paragraph:
- First sentence = a common assumption about buzzing, bee-filled farmland.
- Middle sentences = evidence that challenges that assumption (quiet fields, scientific surveys showing fewer pollinators in monocultures).
- Later sentences = an explanation for the difference between what people imagine and what’s really happening (low nectar crops and pesticides) plus a hopeful suggestion.
This pattern exactly matches choice D) It introduces a common assumption, provides evidence that challenges that assumption, and then offers an explanation for the mismatch between belief and reality.