Read the following passage carefully and answer the question on it.
The chalkboard is by far the commonest teaching aid used at virtually.all levels of education from the nursery to the university. It is the most enduring teaching aid and perhaps will be the most difficult to replace. In the advanced-countries of the world, it is being threatened by the overhead protector. However, the overhead projector requires constant supply of electricity which is one reason we cannot rely on it yet. The chalkboard used to be black, which why the name "blackboard" stuck for ages; but today, there are boards of various colours: blue, green, even white.
Now, most chalkboards are made of wood nailed to the wall, instead of the concrete board made of cement and f ine sand that was more common. some are also made of metal. The chalkboard has the advantages of low cost, availability and ease of maintenance, usually involving mere cleaning and occasional retouching of the surface with the renovator. However, if the board is metal, the felt marker should be protected against drying by replacing the cap When it is not in use. The major drawback in the use of the chalkboard is that the information on it can only be temporary. if there is only one board for the class, it is usually impossible to leave the information there for more than a few hours, since other teachers would want to use it.
It is not easy to draw complex diagrams showing minute details, such as part's of the body and contours, unless one is a good artist. Where one has succeeded with laborious illustrations, using different colours, it could be painful when the board has to be cleaned by the next teacher. However, there are nowadays various innovations, including foldable boards made of plywood, which allow teachers more room to leave their materials for longer periods.
Finally, it is a great disadvantage that during the course of teaching, more time is spent writing on the board than when one is using the overhead projector. So, in all, more time is needed for any lesson when one uses the board rather than the overhead projector.
(a) Why does the writer use the word chalkboard rather than blackboard most of the time?
(b) Mention two different types of chalkboard that have been in use.
(c) Mention two disadvantages of the chalkboard.
(d) Why should the cap of the felt pen be re placed when the pen is not in use?
(e) The major drawback in the use of the chalkboard (i) What grammatical name is given to the expression as it is used in the passage? (ii) What is its function?
(f) ...it is being threatened by the overhead projector... (i) What figure of speech is used in this expression? (ii) What does it mean? (g) For each of the following words, find another word or phrase which means the same and which can replace it as it used in the passage: (i) virtually (ii) constant (iii) various (iv) temporary (v) laborious (vi) room
(a) The writer uses "chalkboard" rather than "blackboard" most of the time because the boards are no longer only black. As the passage points out, there are now boards of various colours such as blue, green and even white, so "blackboard" is no longer accurate and "chalkboard" is the more correct and general term for all of them.
(b) Two different types of chalkboard that have been in use (any two):
- Wooden boards, that is, wood nailed to the wall.
- Concrete boards, made of cement and fine sand.
- Metal boards.
(c) Two disadvantages of the chalkboard (any two):
- The information written on it is only temporary and cannot be left for more than a few hours, since other teachers also need to use the board.
- It is difficult to draw complex diagrams with minute details unless one is a good artist, and such laborious illustrations are lost once the board is cleaned.
- More time is spent writing on it during a lesson than when the overhead projector is used, so lessons take longer.
(d) The cap of the felt pen should be replaced when the pen is not in use in order to protect the marker against drying up, so that it remains usable.
(e)(i) "The major drawback in the use of the chalkboard" is a noun phrase.
(e)(ii) Its function is to serve as the subject of the verb "is" in the sentence.
(f)(i) The figure of speech is a metaphor.
(f)(ii) It means that the overhead projector is competing strongly with the chalkboard and may gradually replace it or take over its place, the rivalry being compared to an attack or danger without using the words "like" or "as".
(g) Words and their replacements as used in the passage:
- (i) virtually - almost / nearly / practically
- (ii) constant - continuous / steady / uninterrupted / regular
- (iii) various - different / several / diverse / assorted
- (iv) temporary - short-lived / brief / impermanent / passing
- (v) laborious - painstaking / tedious / arduous / toilsome
- (vi) room - space / scope / opportunity
(a) The writer uses "chalkboard" rather than "blackboard" most of the time because the boards are no longer only black. As the passage points out, there are now boards of various colours such as blue, green and even white, so "blackboard" is no longer accurate and "chalkboard" is the more correct and general term for all of them.
(b) Two different types of chalkboard that have been in use (any two):
- Wooden boards, that is, wood nailed to the wall.
- Concrete boards, made of cement and fine sand.
- Metal boards.
(c) Two disadvantages of the chalkboard (any two):
- The information written on it is only temporary and cannot be left for more than a few hours, since other teachers also need to use the board.
- It is difficult to draw complex diagrams with minute details unless one is a good artist, and such laborious illustrations are lost once the board is cleaned.
- More time is spent writing on it during a lesson than when the overhead projector is used, so lessons take longer.
(d) The cap of the felt pen should be replaced when the pen is not in use in order to protect the marker against drying up, so that it remains usable.
(e)(i) "The major drawback in the use of the chalkboard" is a noun phrase.
(e)(ii) Its function is to serve as the subject of the verb "is" in the sentence.
(f)(i) The figure of speech is a metaphor.
(f)(ii) It means that the overhead projector is competing strongly with the chalkboard and may gradually replace it or take over its place, the rivalry being compared to an attack or danger without using the words "like" or "as".
(g) Words and their replacements as used in the passage:
- (i) virtually - almost / nearly / practically
- (ii) constant - continuous / steady / uninterrupted / regular
- (iii) various - different / several / diverse / assorted
- (iv) temporary - short-lived / brief / impermanent / passing
- (v) laborious - painstaking / tedious / arduous / toilsome
- (vi) room - space / scope / opportunity
