Questions: Pretest: Unit 3 You may have noticed that the groundhogs of this area are fewer in number than they used to be. I wondered about this myself and began researching what might have caused this decline. It turns out that the water supply the groundhogs had relied upon in the past has been diverted by the new shopping center a mile away. But all is not lost. By petitioning your city council representative, you can help persuade the city to fund a new water project to restore the wetlands in this part of the town. Which statement best explains why the final sentence is effective? A. It establishes the speaker's personal credibility on the issue. B. It lends the paragraph a more positive tone. C. It identifies a problem and makes a connection to the audience. D. It asks the audience to play a role in solving a problem.

The answer is D: It asks the audience to play a role in solving a problem.

Explanation for each option:

A. It establishes the speaker's personal credibility on the issue.

• This option is incorrect because the final sentence does not focus on the speaker's personal credibility. Instead, it focuses on what the audience can do to address the issue.

B. It lends the paragraph a more positive tone.

• While the final sentence does introduce a potential solution, which could be seen as positive, this is not the primary reason it is effective. The main purpose is to engage the audience in action.

C. It identifies a problem and makes a connection to the audience.

• This option is partially correct because the paragraph does identify a problem (the decline in groundhog numbers due to water diversion). However, the final sentence specifically goes beyond identifying the problem by calling the audience to action.

D. It asks the audience to play a role in solving a problem.

• This is the correct answer because the final sentence directly involves the audience by suggesting they petition their city council representative to fund a new water project. This call to action is what makes the sentence effective.