Question 233·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- During sleep, the brain replays and strengthens neural connections formed while awake.
- Slow-wave (deep) sleep is the stage most strongly linked to the consolidation of newly learned facts and skills.
- Experiments show that people who are deprived of sleep remember markedly less information the next day.
- Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep appears to integrate emotional memories with existing knowledge.
- Both slow-wave and REM sleep occur in repeating cycles throughout the night.
The student wants to explain why adequate sleep is essential for learning. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions based on notes, first restate the task in your own words (for example, “Explain why sleep is crucial for learning”). Then scan the notes and mark the few that directly address that task (here, the ones about consolidating newly learned facts and remembering less after lost sleep). Next, go through the answer choices and eliminate any that (1) focus on side details (like emotions or timing), (2) introduce information not in the notes, or (3) do not clearly fulfill the stated purpose. Choose the option that most directly and accurately combines the key note ideas to accomplish the goal in one clear sentence.
Hints
Focus on the goal of the sentence
The student wants to explain why adequate sleep is essential for learning. Ask yourself: which notes talk most directly about learning, memory, or new information?
Identify the key sleep stage for learning
Look for the note that names the sleep stage most strongly linked to the consolidation of newly learned facts and skills. How might a good sentence use that idea?
Eliminate choices that shift the focus
Cross out any answer choice that mainly talks about emotions, general tiredness, or downplays the importance of a sleep stage, instead of clearly explaining how sleep helps turn new information into something you remember.
Step-by-step Explanation
Clarify the task
The question asks for a sentence that explains why adequate sleep is essential for learning and that uses relevant information from the notes. So the right answer must (1) mention learning or memory of new information, and (2) be clearly supported by what the notes say about sleep.
Find the most relevant notes
Scan the notes and ask: Which bullets talk directly about learning or remembering new information?
- Note 1: During sleep, the brain replays and strengthens neural connections formed while awake.
- Note 2: Slow-wave (deep) sleep is most strongly linked to consolidation of newly learned facts and skills.
- Note 3: Sleep-deprived people remember much less the next day.
Notes 4 and 5 focus on REM sleep and sleep cycles, especially emotional memories and timing. The core learning explanation comes from notes 1 and 2 (and is supported by note 3).
Match each choice to the purpose and notes
Now compare the answer choices to the goal and the key notes:
- Choice A talks about REM sleep and emotions, not about learning facts and skills, and does not explain why adequate sleep overall is essential.
- Choice B talks about feeling tired and classroom performance, which is not mentioned anywhere in the notes.
- Choice C partly uses the idea that slow-wave sleep helps memories, but then adds an unsupported claim that skipping REM sleep has little effect and does not explain why adequate sleep is essential.
- Choice D uses the idea that in deep, slow-wave sleep the brain strengthens new memories, which is exactly how sleep helps turn newly learned information into lasting knowledge.
The only choice that clearly explains why getting enough sleep helps learning, using the main points from the notes, is D) Adequate sleep supports learning because during deep, slow-wave sleep the brain strengthens new memories, turning fresh information into lasting knowledge.