School Improvement in Maryland

Public Release Item: Public Release items have appeared on HSA forms and then are released for public viewing and use. Releasing items is one step to ensuring that schools, districts, and other stakeholders understand how the core learning goals are assessed on the HSA.

Goal 1 Reading, Reviewing and Responding to Texts

Expectation 1.1 The student will use effective strategies before, during, and after reading, viewing, and listening to self-selected and assigned materials.

Indicator 1.1.3 The student will use after-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by summarizing, comparing, contrasting, synthesizing, drawing conclusions, and validating the purpose for reading.

Assessment Limits:

  • Summarizing, comparing, contrasting, and synthesizing significant ideas in a text
  • Summarizing or synthesizing significant ideas across texts and drawing conclusions based on the information in more than one text
  • Drawing conclusions based upon information from the text
  • Confirming the usefulness or purpose for reading the text
  • Predicting the development, topics, or ideas that might logically be included if the text were extended

Selected Response Item - Released in 2005

Read the essay "Silencing the Sound of Music." Then answer the following.

Which conclusion about the author is most supported by information in the essay?

  1. He uses music as a way of solving problems.
  2. He has a great deal of knowledge about music history.
  3. He enjoys music even though he has little musical talent.
  4. He likes classical music more than he likes popular music.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2005_113_eng28.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item - Released in 2005

Use the poem "Mussels in April" and the story "Mama's Pie" to answer the following.

Which statement best expresses a main idea of both the poem "Mussels in April" and the story "Mama's Pie"?

  1. As children grow older, they view their parents differently.
  2. Parents are the best people to teach basic skills to children.
  3. Simple experiences provide opportunities for developing family relationships.
  4. Families rely on special traditions to give them strength during difficult times.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2005_113_eng18.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item - Released in 2005

Which of these best states the main idea of both "My People" and "I, Too"?

  1. People should learn to be patient.
  2. People should be proud of who they are.
  3. People learn to appreciate beauty in nature.
  4. People who are unhappy will grow stronger.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2005_113_eng24.xml

Correct Answer:
B

Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Read the poem “Unfolding Bud.” Then answer Numbers 21 through 23.

Read the poem “Unfolding Bud.” Then answer the following:

The main idea of “Unfolding Bud” is that poems are

  1. less amazing than water lilies
  2. filled with clear and obvious images
  3. appreciated more fully after many readings
  4. understood better by those who appreciate nature
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2007_113_eng21.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Read the essay “Down with the Forests.” Then answer the following:

Which of these statements best expresses the main idea of the concluding sentence?

  1. Paper is an acceptable substitute for plastic.
  2. Paper products create environmental problems.
  3. National forests are essential for paper products.
  4. The widespread use of paper products threatens forests.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2007_113_eng30.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Read the essay “A Sea Worry.” Then answer the following:

There is enough information in the essay to conclude that Joseph will most likely

  1. continue to body-surf
  2. go to a mainland college
  3. work for a surfing magazine
  4. become a professional writer
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2007_113_eng39.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

Read “Breakfast,” the first chapter from the novel Jim the Boy. Then answer the following:

Jim is most likely part of his mother’s sadness because he

  1. refuses to help her
  2. reminds her of his father
  3. is difficult to take care of
  4. is growing up too quickly
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2006_113_eng09.xml

Correct Answer:
B

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

Read the screenplay Anna and the King. Then, read “A Historical Look at Anna” about the real Anna Leonowens. Then answer the following:

The details in these paragraphs mostly show that the screen and stage versions of Anna Leonowens' experiences

  1. are representative of cultural differences
  2. have been altered from those of her real life
  3. are an interesting part of Thailand's history
  4. have motivated young women to become teachers
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2006_113_eng19.xml

Correct Answer:
B

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

Read the essay “Yes, I Can!” Then answer Numbers 27 through 31.

Read the essay “Yes, I Can!” Then answer the following.

What is the author's main point in paragraphs 1 through 10?

  1. Children learn to overcome their limitations.
  2. A college education makes people more realistic.
  3. As students grow older, they lose their desire to learn.
  4. As people age, they are less willing to risk embarrassment.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2006_113_eng27.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

Read the essay “Yes, I Can!” Then answer the following.

The author gave his son the “possibles bag” to

  1. encourage his son to pursue his dreams
  2. prepare his son for survival in the woods
  3. reward his son for his good work in school
  4. remind his son to enjoy his homemade possessions
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2006_113_eng28.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2006

Read the essay “High Tide in Tucson.” Then answer numbers 34 through 38.

Read the essay “High Tide in Tucson.” Then answer the following.

Which word best describes Buster in “High Tide in Tucson”?

  1. adaptable
  2. curious
  3. peaceful
  4. protective
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2006_113_eng34.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2007

Read the poem “Fireflies in the Garden.” Then answer the following:

According to the poem, which of these statements best explains a difference between fireflies and stars?

  1. Stars are older than fireflies.
  2. Fireflies are not as real as stars.
  3. The light in fireflies is temporary.
  4. The positions of the stars appear fixed.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2007_113_eng09.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

Numbers 7 through 14 should be answered upon reading the excerpt “Wanderlust” from the autobiography A Life on the Road by Charles Kuralt, which can be found at most local or school libraries.

The following item should be answered upon reading the excerpt “Wanderlust” from the autobiography A Life on the Road by Charles Kuralt, which can be found at most local or school libraries.

“Wanderlust” is a memoir of Kuralt’s early life on the road with his father, his childhood experiences on the farm, and the memory of winning a journalistic contest at age twelve.

Based on the information in this excerpt, a reader can predict that the rest of the book will most likely be about Kuralt’s

  1. lifetime travels
  2. childhood heroes
  3. parental influence
  4. favorite baseball teams
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2008_113_eng07.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

Read the essay “The Architecture of a Soul.” Then answer Numbers 15 through 20.

Read the essay “The Architecture of a Soul.” Then answer the following item.

Here is a diagram showing the steps the author and her grandmother use to catalogue seashells.

seashell catalogue diagram

What should be written in the empty box?

  1. Look for the best pictures of shells.
  2. Choose the shells that have Latin names.
  3. Identify each shell by comparing it to pictures.
  4. Search for each shell shown in the field guides.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2008_113_eng15.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Brief Constructed Response (BCR) Item - Released in 2008

Read the essay “The Architecture of a Soul.” Then answer the following item.

Write a response that explains what the narrator learns from her grandmother. In your response, include details and examples from the essay to support your conclusion.

Use the space on page __ in your Answer Book for planning your response. Then write your response on the lines on page __.

/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2008_113_eng20.xml

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Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

Numbers 25 through 29 should be answered upon reading the poem “Good Hotdogs” from My Wicked Wicked Ways by Sandra Cisneros, which can be found at most local or school libraries.

The following item should be answered upon reading the poem “Good Hotdogs” from My Wicked Wicked Ways by Sandra Cisneros, which can be found at most local or school libraries.

“Good Hotdogs” is a poem about the memory of rushing to the store with a close friend to buy hotdogs after school. The speaker provides many sensory details to describe the experience.

Which of these phrases best identifies the main focus of the poem?

  1. a fond memory
  2. favorite foods
  3. a forgotten friend
  4. childhood beliefs
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2008_113_eng25.xml

Correct Answer:
A

Selected Response Item - Released in 2008

Read the story “Winter Hibiscus.” Then answer the following item.

Which of these conclusions about Saeng is best supported by information in the story?

  1. She has difficulty making new friends.
  2. She prefers gardening to school work.
  3. She values the uniqueness of tropical plants.
  4. She is comforted by memories of her homeland.
/share/clg/xml/public_release/english/2008_113_eng41.xml

Correct Answer:
D