Mixed practice test 2, Grades 9–10 — question 8 of 25
Listen to the conversation between Devin and Amara. Then answer the questions.
Overdue Fines
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Devin: Amara, I saw your name on the petition to end overdue fines at the city library. If nobody pays anything for keeping a book late, why would anyone bring books back?
Amara: That was my first reaction too. But the fine is not what gets most books back. What gets them back is that you cannot borrow anything else until you return what you have.
Devin: The fines still bring in money, though.
Amara: Less than you would think. The library’s own budget report says the fines bring in about what it costs to collect them, once you count the staff time, the notices and the payment system.
Devin: Then who is it hurting?
Amara: Kids, mostly. When a card owes more than ten dollars, it gets blocked, and hundreds of the blocked cards in our city belong to students. A kid who lost a book in fourth grade can still be locked out in ninth. The fine is not teaching anyone to be responsible. It is just keeping them out.
Choose the best answer.
What does Amara mean when she says, “The fine is not teaching anyone to be responsible. It is just keeping them out”?
You can move on without answering. Unanswered questions are counted as wrong.