What does Mr. Adeyemi mean when he says, "Two years old and relevant beats current and unrelated"?
Listen to a Classroom Conversation · ELPAC Grades 11–12 listening. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
A multiple-turn conversation between two speakers, followed by three questions.
Listen to the conversation between Mr. Adeyemi and Camila about her draft. Then answer the questions.
The Draft and the Evidence
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Show transcript
Mr. Adeyemi: Camila, your draft argues that the city should extend the bus line to the industrial park. The argument itself is clear. What I have marked is where the evidence sits.
Camila: I put all of the numbers in the third paragraph.
Mr. Adeyemi: You did, and they are good numbers. The trouble is that paragraph four goes back to opinion, and paragraph five introduces a new claim with nothing under it.
Camila: The claim about people leaving jobs because of the commute?
Mr. Adeyemi: That one. It is the strongest thing you say and the only thing you do not support. A reader who already agrees with you will still notice.
Camila: The transit survey has turnover data. I left it out because it is two years old.
Mr. Adeyemi: Two years old and relevant beats current and unrelated. Use it, name the year, and let the reader judge. Bring me a revised paragraph five on Thursday.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What does Mr. Adeyemi mean when he says, "Two years old and relevant beats current and unrelated"?
- Camila should look for a newer survey before Thursday.
- Older sources are generally more reliable than recent ones.
- Evidence that bears on the claim is worth more than evidence that is merely recent.Correct answer
- The transit survey is the only source she is allowed to use.
Why “Evidence that bears on the claim is worth more than evidence that is merely recent.” is correct
This tests a compressed comparison a speaker uses to make a point about evidence. He is answering the reason Camila gave for leaving the survey out, that it is two years old, and his reply ranks relevance above recency. A student has to hold both halves of the phrase and work out which quality he is willing to trade away, which is the skill the item is really checking.
Why the other answers are wrong
- Camila should look for a newer survey before Thursday. — He tells her to use the survey she already has rather than to go looking for a newer one.
- Older sources are generally more reliable than recent ones. — He is not making a general claim about old sources; he is weighing relevance against recency in this one case.
- The transit survey is the only source she is allowed to use. — Permission is never at issue, and he asks her to name the year so the reader can judge for themselves.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 11–12, or see the ELPAC practice test for grades 11–12. For other grades, see free ELPAC practice tests by grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the California Department of Education or the official ELPAC program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published task formats.