Odd Semester 23/24 [READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISE]

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Direction: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below.

Concussions are brain injuries that occur when a person receives a blow to the head, face, or
neck. Although most people who suffer a concussion experience initial bouts of dizziness, nausea, and
drowsiness, these symptoms often disappear after a few days. The long-term effects of concussions,
however, are less understood and far more severe. Recent studies suggest that people who suffer
multiple concussions are at significant risk for developing chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a
degenerative brain disorder that causes a variety of dangerous mental and emotional problems to arise
weeks, months, or even years after the initial injury. These psychological problems can include
depression, anxiety, memory loss, inability to concentrate, and aggression. In extreme cases, people
suffering from CTE have even committed suicide or homicide. The majority of people who develop
these issues are athletes who participate in popular high-impact sports, especially football. Although
new sports regulations and improvements in helmet technology can help protect players, amateur
leagues, the sports media, and fans all bear some of the responsibility for reducing the incidence of
these devastating injuries. Improvements in diagnostic technology have provided substantial evidence
to link severe—and often fatal—psychological disorders to the head injuries that players receive while
on the field. Recent autopsies performed on the brains of football players who have committed suicide
have shown advanced cases of CTE in every single victim.
In response to the growing understanding of this danger, the National Football League (NFL)
has revised its safety regulations. Players who have suffered a head injury on the field must undergo a
“concussion sideline assessment”—a series of mental and physical fitness tests—before being allowed
back in the game. In an effort to diminish the amount of head and neck injuries on the field, NFL
officials began enforcing stricter penalty calls for helmet-to-helmet contact, leading with the head, and
hitting a defenseless player. Furthermore, as of 2010, if a player’s helmet is accidentally wrenched
from his head during play, the ball is immediately whistled dead. It is hoped that these new
regulations, coupled with advances in helmet design, will reduce the number of concussions, and thus
curb further cases of CTE
Efforts by the NFL and other professional sports leagues are certainly laudable; we should
commend every attempt to protect the mental and physical health of players. However, new
regulations at the professional level cannot protect amateur players, especially young people. Fatal
cases of CTE have been reported in victims as young as 21. Proper tackling form—using the arms and
shoulders to aim for a player’s midsection—should be taught at an early age. Youth, high school, and
college leagues should also adopt safety rules even more stringent than those of the NFL.
Furthermore, young athletes should be educated about the serious dangers of head injuries at an early
age.
Perhaps the most important factor in reducing the number of traumatic brain injuries,
however, lies not with the players, the coaches, or the administrators, but with the media and fans.
Sports media producers have become accustomed to showcasing the most aggressive tackles and the
most intense plays. NFL broadcasts often replay especially violent collisions while the commentators
marvel at the players’ physical prowess. Some sports highlights television programs even feature
weekly countdowns of the “hardest hits.” When the media exalts such dangerous behavior,
professionals are rewarded for injuring each other on the field and amateurs become more likely to try
to imitate their favorite NFL athletes. Announcers, commentators, television producers, and
sportswriters should engage in a collective effort to cease glorifying brutal plays. In turn, fans should
stop expecting their favorite players to put their lives on the line for the purposes of entertainment.
Players must not be encouraged to trade their careers, their health, their happiness, and even their lives
for the sake of a game.
 Odd Semester 23/24 [READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISE]

Questions

1. Based on information in the passage, it can be inferred that all of the following statements are
true except,
a. tackling is not always dangerous; however, players who use improper tackling form
may injure others.
b. scientists have established a definitive link between players who die untimely deaths
and the onset of CTE.
c. NFL officials have done little to address the problem of CTE.
d. athletes who are praised for exceptionally brutal hits are likely to continue engaging
in such dangerous behavior.
e. the NFL has done more to mitigate future cases of CTE than youth, high school, or
college leagues have done.

2. According to the passage, which of the following factors contribute(s) to the incidence of
CTE in amateur players?
Is it
I : inconsistent application of safety regulations for all levels
II: lack of education about the dangers of head injuries
III: amateur players’ desire to emulate professionals
a. I only
b. II only
c. II and III only
d. I and II only
e. I, II and III

3. As used in paragraph 3, which is the best synonym for laudable?

a. praiseworthy
b. ineffectual
c. memorable
d. audacious
e. satisfactory

4. The author’s tone in the final paragraph can best be described as

a. remorseful
b. hopeless
c. perplexed
d. insistent
e. arrogant

5. As used in the final paragraph, which is the best antonym for exalts?
a. mitigates
b. venerates
c. mollifies
d. expedites
e. castigates

6. In describing the sports media, the author emphasizes its

a. responsibility
b. entertainment value
c. senselessness
d. danger
e. sensationalism
 Odd Semester 23/24 [READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISE]

7. In the final paragraph, the author mentions “sports highlights television programs” as an
example of how....

I. the media glorifies violence

II. amateurs learn to mimic professional athletes
III. professional athletes gain approval

a. I only
b. II only
c. I and II only
d. II and III only
e. I, II, and III

8. In the last sentence of this passage, the author writes, "Players must not be encouraged to
trade their careers, their health, their happiness, and even their lives for the sake of a game."
Which of the following literary devices is used in this quotation?

a. Irony, characterized by the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of
its literal meaning. In irony, the deeper, real layer of significance is revealed by the
situation and the context in which they are placed and not by the words themselves.
b. Climax, characterized by the arrangement of words, phrases, or causes in an order of
ascending power that culminates into the highest or most intense point. This works to
deliver the main action or integral message to the reader in a powerful way.
c. Authorial intrusion, characterized by a point at which the author speaks out directly
to the reader. This establishes a one to one relationship between the writer and the
reader where the latter is no longer a secondary player or an indirect audience to the
progress of the story but is the main subject of the author’s attention.
d. Hyperbole, characterized by the use of specific words and phrases that exaggerate
and overemphasize the core of the statement in order to produce a grander, more
noticeable effect. This usually works to convey an action or sentiment that is
generally not realistically possible or plausible but helps to emphasize an emotion
e. Anastrophe, in which the order of the noun and the adjective in the sentence is
exchanged. In standard parlance and writing the adjective comes before the noun but
when one is employing an anastrophe the noun is followed by the adjective. This
reversed order creates a dramatic impact and lends weight to the description offered
by the adjective.

Question Part 2

1. What is the title of the passage?

2. What is the passage mainly talking about?
3. What is the main idea of each paragraphs?
4. What is the next paragraph going to talk about?
 Odd Semester 23/24 [READING COMPREHENSION EXERCISE]

Vocabulary warming up

Please write down all the words that you don’t know the meaning