What topic do Diego and Elena decide on?
Basic Understanding of Spoken English · TELPAS Grades 10–12 listening. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
Reporting category 2: understand the main points and important details of spoken stories and informational passages, about everyday life and school subjects.
Listen to the conversation. Then answer the questions.
Choosing a Topic
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Diego: For the history fair, I think we should do World War Two. There's so much information about it online.
Elena: That's kind of the problem, though. Everybody does World War Two, and the judges have seen it a hundred times. What if we did something local, like the history of the old Mill Street School? It's the oldest school building in town, and it closed before we were born.
Diego: But where would we even find information about that?
Elena: That's the best part. My grandmother went there, and so did a lot of the people at the senior center. We could interview them. Our teacher said the judges love projects that use primary sources, and you can't get more primary than people who were actually there.
Diego: Okay, that's a good point. I'll call the senior center tomorrow and ask if we can visit. Can you talk to your grandmother this weekend?
Elena: Definitely. She's going to be so excited.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What topic do Diego and Elena decide on?
- The events of World War Two
- The history of an old school in their townCorrect answer
- The history of the senior center in their town
- The life story of Elena's grandmother
Why “The history of an old school in their town” is correct
This asks for the main outcome of the conversation. Diego's first idea is World War Two, but after Elena explains her idea he says, "Okay, that's a good point," and starts planning for it. The student has to notice that the first topic mentioned is not the final one.
Why the other answers are wrong
- The events of World War Two — Diego suggests it first, but he agrees to Elena's idea.
- The history of the senior center in their town — The senior center is where they will find people to interview, not the topic.
- The life story of Elena's grandmother — Her grandmother will be interviewed, but the topic is the school.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 10–12, or see the TELPAS practice test for 10th–12th grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Texas Education Agency or the official TELPAS program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published test design.