The Economics of Academic Tenure

1. Paragraph 1 answers which of the following Paragraph 1

questions about tenure?
A. How long must a teacher work before being In some countries, many universities use an
considered for tenure? employment system for teachers known as tenure.
B. What performance standards do senior faculty After a lengthy trial period, a faculty member
and administrators use to decide whether to award whose performance meets with the approval of the
tenure? senior members of the department and the
C. In what situations may a tenured teacher lose his administration of the institution may be awarded
or her job? tenure. A tenured faculty member enjoys
D. How frequently are tenured teachers fired? considerable job security for the rest of his or her
working life and can only be fired for reasons of
“moral turpitude” (bad or evil behavior) or “gross
incompetence” or if the financial stability of the
institution requires the elimination of an entire
department or program.
2. It can be inferred from paragraph 1 and 2 that Paragraph 2
some critics of the tenure system believe that tenure
can The high degree of job security enjoyed by tenured
A. reduce faculty members' motivation to do their faculty members has been the source of complaints
jobs well about the tenure system. One issue that has been
B. cause faculty members to prefer employment in raised by many, including legislators evaluating the
state universities over employment in other finances and managerial practices of state
universities universities in the United States, is that tenure
C. remove moral turpitude as a criterion for shelters faculty from accountability for poor
evaluating a faculty member’s performance performance. Another argument is that tenure
D. encourage faculty members to switch from one makes the university inefficient in responding to
department or program to another within a changing instructional demands. It is difficult to
university substitute computer engineering faculty for civil
engineering faculty if most of the latter have tenure.
3. In paragraph 2, why does the author state that it In 1988, the Education Reform Act significantly
may be difficult for some universities to substitute “softened” the tenure system in the United
computer-engineering faculty for tenured Kingdom, making it easier to fire individual faculty
civil-engineering faculty? members for financial reasons. More recently, some
A. To help explain why teachers in some fields lack universities in the United States have taken steps to
as much job security as teachers in other fields do give university administrators more control over
B. To suggest a reason for the shortage of qualified tenured professors. And, in general, American
professors in some fields but not in others institutions of higher learning have tended to
C. To identify a possible reason for poor increase the use of part-time and nontenured
performance by some academic departments instructors over time. In 1992, just 48 percent of all
D. To help make clear the argument that tenure can instructors had tenure or were in a position that was
decrease universities’ ability to respond to changes expected to lead to tenure.
in teaching needs

4. According to paragraph 2, all of the following

steps have been taken in response to complaints
about tenure EXCEPT
A. passing a law that allows universities to fire
professors in order to save money
B. providing administrators with more control of
professors who have tenure
C. allowing each department to have the same
percentage of tenured faculty
D. hiring more part-time teachers
5. Which of the following can be inferred from Paragraph 3
paragraph 3 about the 1901 decision by Stanford
University to fire economics teacher Edward Ross? The traditional argument in favor of tenure is based
A. It led to greater awareness of possible conflicts on academic freedom, the freedom to investigate
of interest between university administrators and and teach any area of knowledge without restriction
university founders. or interference. In this view, tenure protects
B. It stimulated efforts to protect the jobs of faculty members from retaliation for voicing
professors against threats to their academic unpopular views. For example, a labor economist
freedom. might not present a complete examination of the
C. It revealed how interested American university costs and benefits of worker unions if he or she
administrators were in the views of their economics feared that a rabidly anti-union university leader
teachers. might seek to have the economist fired for speaking
D. It encouraged many American universities to of the positive aspects of unions. In fact, the
begin hiring instructors who opposed the AAUP American Association of University Professors
(AAUP), a group dedicated to protecting academic
freedom, got its start in the wake of a 1901 decision
by Stanford University to fire economics instructor
Edward Ross at the insistence of the university’s
co-founder, Jane Stanford, who objected to his
views on economics and other matters.

Paragraph 4

6. According to paragraph 4, Lorne Carmichael’s Going beyond academic freedom, the economics
model makes which of the following claims? literature has recently turned to an emphasis on
A. The tenure system benefits universities by tenure as a labor-market institution that may have a
making it more likely that the best professors will positive payoff to universities through the
stay for many years. incentives (motivation) it provides. For example,
B. Tenure tends to lead to better relations between economist Lorne Carmichael’s model of an
the faculty and the university administration. academic department treats tenure as the means of
C. Universities can attract better faculty by providing incentives for incumbent (current) faculty
preventing low-performing incumbents from to participate in identifying the best candidates for
obtaining tenure. new positions. If incumbent faculty had to worry
D. Tenure allows professors to choose the best new that more-able new additions to the department
faculty without fear of being replaced by them in might replace them one day, they would be less
the future. inclined to make hiring decisions that were in the
best interests of the university. Incumbents are
much better positioned to judge the talents of
potential new hires than is the university
administration. Moreover, the long-term job
security they gain through tenure gives incumbents
an incentive to hire new faculty who might be
more productive than the existing faculty in a
department.
7. The word “notion” in the passage is closest in Paragraph 5
meaning to
A. expectation The economists Michael McPherson and Morton
B. fact Shapiro have also emphasized the notion that tenure
C. possibility has a positive payoff for the university by aligning
D. idea the self-interest of individual faculty members with
the long-run interests of the institution. They see
8. According to paragraph 5, a university may two valuable economic benefits from the tenure
receive which TWO of the following benefits from system beyond the incentive to hire and mentor
the tenure system? To receive credit, you must more productive new faculty. First, job security
select TWO answers. allows tenured faculty the independence to perform
A. Greater trust in the university’s grading system credibly objective evaluations of students and other
and in faculty reviews of papers and proposals faculty. People outside the university who rely on
B. Improved ability of the university’s students to the information provided by student grades or
evaluate their professors accurately faculty reviews of papers or proposals can have
C. Protection of the university’s long-term interests greater confidence that these evaluations have not
from the actions of self-interested administrators been colored by the faculty member’s concern
D. Encouragement for faculty to focus more on about job security. Second, tenure allows faculty to
research than on administrative policy make long-run strategic decisions about educational
policy and research even if these are in conflict with
the short-run, career interests of administrators. The
fact that tenured faculty often are viewed as
obstacles to change by ambitious administrators
looking to enhance their records for their next
career move might well be a good thing for the
long-run interests of the university.
9. Look at the four squares █ that indicate where Passage 3
the following sentence could be added to the
passage. The traditional argument in favor of tenure is based
on academic freedom, the freedom to investigate
Without this security, supporters argue, and teach any area of knowledge without restriction
researchers may avoid publishing results or interference. █ In this view, tenure protects
disliked by people in positions of power. faculty members from retaliation for voicing
unpopular views. █ For example, a labor economist
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a might not present a complete examination of the
square █ to add the sentence to the passage. costs and benefits of worker unions it he or she
feared that a rabidly anti-union university leader
might seek to have the economist fired for speaking
of the positive aspects of unions. █ In fact, the
American Association of University Professors
(AAUP), a group dedicated to protecting academic
freedom, got its start in the wake of a 1901 decision
by Stanford University to fire economics instructor
Edward Ross at the insistence of the university’s
co-founder, Jane Stanford, who objected to his
views on economics and other matters. █
10. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below.
Complete the summary by selecting the 3 answer choices that express the most important ideas in the
passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not
presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

Universities in some countries reward their faculty members with tenure.

Answer Choices

A. Because tenure makes it difficult to fire faculty members, it has been criticized as being against the
interests of a well-functioning university.

B. The tenure system was at first a response to the opposition of some university administrators to attempts
by professors to form an association in the early 1900s.

C. One benefit of tenure is that it makes sure that faculty members can express unpopular opinions without
risking their jobs.

D. Some institutions in the United States and the United Kingdom have eliminated tenure for newly hired
faculty members because of financial reasons.

E. Tenured faculty are losing some of the protections that earlier tenure faculty enjoyed as universities
increase the number of nontenured and part-time instructors hired.

F. It has been claimed that tenure provides faculty with the freedom needed to make honest evaluations of
students, job candidates, and proposed university policies.
 Martian Volcanoes

Paragraph 1

Earth is not the only planet to have volcanoes; in

fact Mars—though all of its volcanoes have long
been inactive—has the two largest ones in the solar
system: Olympus Mons and Alba Patera. Mars has
spectacular lava fields, large craters formed by a
volcanic explosion, and shields (broad, low
volcanoes shaped like shallow domes).

Paragraph 2

1. The word “longevity ” in the passage is closest in The most striking characteristic of Martian
meaning to volcanoes is in fact their great size and longevity.
A length of life The giant shields of Tharsis and to a lesser extent
B level of activity the volcanoes of Elysium and Hellas pack in many
C composition times more lava than the largest volcanoes on
D distribution Earth, and yet Mars is a smaller planet. The reason
lies in the planets’ internal makeup. Because it is
2. In paragraph 2, why does the author provide the larger and hotter, Earth has a nearly molten (hot
information that Mars is smaller than Earth? liquid) mantle that is overlain by a very thin rock
A To clarify a common misconception about Mars crust—less than10 kilometers thick under the ocean
B To help explain the size of Earth's volcanoes basins. The hot mantle churns over in great loops,
C To emphasize the surprising size of Martian and rips the overlying rigid crust into great slabs,
volcanoes called tectonic plates, that shuffle around the globe.
D To indicate essential differences between the two In those places where deep-seated “hot spots” send
planets plumes of molten material to the surface, the
magma (the trapped lava) starts piling up on the
crust to build a volcano, but because the crust is
drifting, the volcano eventually breaks away from
its source and goes extinct. In its place, a new
volcano starts to grow, so that a hot spot under a
mobile plate creates a string of medium-sized
volcanoes rather than one giant shield.
3. Which of the sentences below best expresses the Paragraph 3
essential information in the highlighted sentence in
the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning On the smaller, faster-cooling Mars, the crust has
in important ways or leave out essential solidified and thickened to the extent that it remains
information. stationary with respect to the underlying hot spots.
A. A comparison of the Hawaiian Emperor chain, When a plume of magma erupts at the surface, it
Olympus Mons, and Alba Patera shows they are all will build a single volcano in one place for as long
about 100 million years old. as the supply lasts—typically hundreds of millions
B. The volume, then, of one Martian shield is of years. Not surprisingly, then, the volume of
comparable to the entire number of volcanoes on one Martian shield like Olympus Mons or Alba
Earth, spanning nearly 100 million years. Patera is comparable to that of an entire chain of
C. Logically, then, the volume of a single Martian volcanoes on Earth, such as the Hawaiian Emperor
shield is about the same as a chain of volcanoes on chain that stretches across the Pacific and spans
Earth. nearly 100 million years of hot-spot activity.
D. A chain of volcanoes like Earth’s Hawaiian
Emperor chain would take nearly 100 million years
to form on Mars.

4. According to paragraph 3, why do volcanoes

grow larger on Mars than they do on Earth?
A. The underlying hot spots erupt from much
greater depths on Mars than on Earth.
B. The magma on Mars is not as thick as on Earth,
allowing for faster expansion.
C. The interior of Mars has a larger supply of
magma than does the interior of Earth.
D. The thicker crust on Mars allows volcanoes to
grow in the same place for much longer periods.

Paragraph 4

5. According to paragraph 4, the low gravitational Another characteristic of Martian volcanoes is the
field of Mars causes large size of their craters and the long run-out
A fissures in the rocks to be quite large distances of their lava flows. This is principally due
B magma to flow more slowly to the surface to the lower gravity on Mars: 38 percent, or about
C the planet’s crust to break more often one third, of Earth’s gravity. Gravity controls to
D magma chambers to last longer some extent how solid rock behaves under stress.
When the crust stretches and breaks in a low gravity
field, as it does on Mars, the fissures that open up
are wider than on Earth and can funnel larger
amounts of magma toward the surface. Magma
chambers grow correspondingly larger and when
they empty out and collapse, they yield larger
craters.
6. The word “retention” in the passage is closest in Paragraph 5
meaning to
A intensity Eruption rates also tend to be higher on Mars, since
B dispersal greater quantities of lava can flow out of the wider
C production fissures. These larger volumes guarantee a better
D conservation retention of heat. Because it stays hot and molten
for a longer period of time, lava on Mars travels
7. According to paragraph 5, why does molten lava greater distances than it does on Earth before
stay hotter on Mars’s surface than on Earth’s? cooling and slowing to a halt.
A It comes from hotter sources.
B It has been under the crust longer.
C It travels shorter distances.
D It flows in larger amounts.

Paragraph 6

8. Assuming that terrestrial and Martian magma Explosive eruptions are also affected by the unique
have similar levels of gas, which of the following set of conditions that exist on Mars. The
can be inferred from paragraph 6 about Martian atmospheric pressure is so low that any gas bubbles
volcanic eruptions? trapped in the magma will undergo tremendous
A They are less affected by atmospheric pressure expansion upon reaching the surface. As a result, it
levels than by other atmospheric conditions. will take lesser amounts of dissolved gases in
B They produce ash clouds more frequently than Martian (versus terrestrial) magma for the mixture
terrestrial eruptions do. to foam and shoot out explosively from the vent.
C They include lava sprays 3 percent to 4 percent of On Earth, the confining pressure of the atmosphere
the time requires that magma contains close to 1 percent (by
D They produce lava fountains less often than they weight) of light gases for it to spray upward as a
produce ash clouds. lava fountain. About 3 to 4 percent is needed for the
bubbles to grow large enough to blow the magma to
shreds and create an ash cloud. On Mars, thresholds
for such disruptive behavior are much lower:
respectively 0.03 and 0.2 percent gases by weight.
Twenty to thirty times less gas is needed on Mars to
achieve similar results.
9. Look at the four squares █ that indicate where Paragraph 2
the following sentence could be added to the
passage. The most striking characteristic of Martian
volcanoes is in fact their great size and longevity.
These series of volcanoes will continue to be The giant shields of Tharsis and to a lesser extent
created until the source of lava dries the volcanoes of Elysium and Hellas pack in many
times more lava than the largest volcanoes on Earth,
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a and yet Mars is a smaller planet. The reason lies in
square █ to add the sentence to the passage. the planets’ internal makeup.Because it is larger
and hotter, Earth has a nearly molten (hot liquid)
mantle that is overlain by a very thin rock
crust—less than10 kilometers thick under the ocean
basins. █ The hot mantle churns over in great loops,
and rips the overlying rigid crust into great slabs,
called tectonic plates, that shuffle around the globe.
█ In those places where deep-seated “hot spots”
send plumes of molten material to the surface, the
magma (the trapped lava) starts piling up on the
crust to build a volcano, but because the crust is
drifting, the volcano eventually breaks away from
its source and goes extinct. █ In its place, a new
volcano starts to grow, so that a hot spot under a
mobile plate creates a string of medium-sized
volcanoes rather than one giant shield. █
10. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below.
Complete the summary by selecting the 3 answer choices that express the most important ideas in the
passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not
presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. (This question is worth 2 points.)

The unique characteristics of Mars have created the largest volcanoes in the solar system.

Answer Choices

A. Although it is smaller than Earth, Mars is hotter, and its mantle, the layer of molten rock beneath the crust,
is larger.

B. Volcanoes on Earth are much smaller than those on Mars because Earth’s moving crust causes the
volcanoes to go extinct quickly.

C. Mars’s solid crust and low gravity and atmospheric pressure create large volcanoes that release large
amounts of lava for a long time.

D. Mars’s volcanoes, like those on Earth, begin when hot spots deep in the molten mantle release streams of
magma up through the surface crust

E. The many extremely large volcanoes on Mars have caused the planet’s crust to thicken and remain
stationary.

F. The release of gases from magma on Mars causes the magma to cool down much more quickly than it
does on Earth.
 A Mutualistic Fungus of Tall Fescue Grass

1. According to paragraph 1, how does the Epichloe Paragraph 1

coenophiala fungus benefit from its relationship
with tall fescue grass? Mutualism is an interaction between two species in
A. It is shaded from potentially damaging sunlight. which both benefit. A classic example of this
B. It grows above the ground, out of reach of relationship is between tall fescue grass and a
harmful chemicals in the soil. fungus named Epichloe coenophiala. That fungus is
C. It obtains sufficient nutrition completely internal and grows intercellularly
D. It is protected from disease-causing fungi. (between the cells) in the above-ground portion of
the grass. The grass supplies all the nutritional
needs of the fungus. Infected plants exhibit no
external symptoms of the fungus and no disease
symptoms. In contrast, pathogenic (disease-causing)
fungi result in symptoms that include wilt, leaf
spots, deformed plant structures, or death of plant
tissue. Pathogenic fungi often invade plant host
cells and absorb the cells' contents (thereby
eventually killing the cells) or produce chemicals
that kill them outright.
2. In paragraph 2, which of the following is NOT Paragraph 2
mentioned as one of the adverse effects on livestock
that led to examination of plant tissue? Tall fescue is extensively used as both a pasture
A. Increased frequency of infectious disease grass and a turf or lawn grass. It is a hardy,
B. Lower body weights vigorously growing grass but has been associated
C. Unsuccessful pregnancies with various health problems in cattle and horses.
D. Decreased milk production Beef cattle often show reduced weight gains when
grazing on tall fescue pastures, and dairy cattle
3. According to paragraph 2, all of the following experience lower milk yields. Female horses may
statements about loline alkaloids are true EXCEPT: be more likely to lose their offspring during
A. They help tall fescue grass avoid being eaten by pregnancy and may not produce milk following a
insects. live birth. Reports of such adverse effects resulted
B. They are more harmful to grazing animals than in microscopic investigation of leaf and stem tissue
are ergot alkaloids that revealed the presence of the Epichloe
C. They are beneficial for fescue grass. coenophiala fungus. Surveys of infected pastures
D. They are not produced when Epichloe found a positive correlation between the percentage
coenophiala is grown in the laboratory separately of infected plants and the severity of animal
from the plant symptoms. The fungus in the grass was found to
produce various alkaloids(toxic nitrogen-containing
organic molecules). One type of alkaloid (ergot
alkaloids) contributes to the livestock’s symptoms
and reduced grazing, whereas another type (loline
alkaloids) makes the grass more resistant to insects.
Interestingly, the insect-deterring alkaloids are not
produced when the fungus is grown in the
laboratory apart from the plant. Because these
chemicals defend the grass as well as the fungus
from consumption by both livestock and insects, the
mutualistic relationship has been termed defensive
mutualism.
4. The word “penetrates” in the passage is closest in Paragraph 3
meaning to
A. falls on Because the Epichloe coenophiala fungus is not
B. enters external on the plant, the usual mechanism of
C. rubs against spread by fungi does not take place. Typical fungi
D. surrounds form spores (reproductive units consisting of one or
more cells that are similar to the seeds of plants).
5. Paragraph 3 suggests that it may be possible to Fungal spores spread through the air to susceptible
prevent Epichloe coenophiala infection of tall plants and usually require an extended period of
fescue grass by moist conditions for their survival and germination
A. storing fescue seeds for a long time before (the beginning of growth of a spore or seed), and
planting for the subsequent infection of the host plant. The
B. growing fescue plants under particularly dry tall fescue fungus, in contrast, penetrates the flower
conditions head and infects the plant embryos in the
C. speeding up the growth rate of fescue plants developing seeds. Therefore, seeds collected from
D. removing infected stems and leaves from fescue infected plants result in infected seedlings
plants following germination. As the plant grows, the
fungus grows along with it by division and
stretching of the hyphae (threadlike structures that
make up the body of a fungus) at the base of the
grass, where plant cell division also occurs. Thus,
growth of the fungus is concurrent with growth of
the plant, which ensures that new stems and leaves
of the grass are infected with the fungus.
Fungus-free tall fescue plants can result if infected
seed is stored for several months before planting.
The fungus usually dies out during most long-term
storage conditions.
6. The word “immediate” in the passage is closest Paragraph 4
in meaning to
A. usual The alkaloids produced by the fungus also affect
B. nearest microorganisms in the immediate environment of
C. general the plant. Non-disease-causing bacteria, recovered
D. changing from the surfaces of fungus-infected tall fescue
plants, can use loline alkaloids, released on the
7. Why does the author provide the information that leaves, as a source of nutrients. The population size
the population size of certain bacteria“is about of these bacteria is about eightfold greater on
eightfold greater on infected plants than on infected plants than on fungus-free tall fescue plants
fungus-free tall fescue plants or on plants colonized or on plants colonized by related fungi incapable of
by related fungi incapable of producing loline”? producing loline. Thus, many components of the
A. To demonstrate that loline production occurs in fungus-infected tall fescue community are impacted
fescue grass and not in other plants by the fungus: the grass itself, animals, insects, and
B. To provide evidence that microorganisms in microbes.
fescue’s environment use the alkaloids produced by
Epichloe coenophiala
C. To contrast bacteria that live on fescue grass
with those that live on other plants
D. To explain why Epichloe coenophiala is more
harmful than fungi found on other plants
Paragraph 5

8. According to paragraph 5, it is possible to reduce Although the fungus of tall fescue is detrimental to
the number of insects on house lawns and sports livestock, it is considered beneficial when grass is
fields by grown for other purposes. Insect pests are numerous
A. removing livestock from fields of fescue grass in turf (short, thick grass and the soil it grows in),
B. changing fescue grass’s genes and tall fescue’s increased resistance to them is
C. growing fescue grass in a special kind of soil advantageous when grass is grown for house lawns
D. using fescue grass infected with a specific or sports fields. It may be possible to develop
fungus pasture varieties of tall fescue that are infected with
this fungus for the purpose of insect resistance, but
with the deletion of the fungal genes for the toxins
that harm livestock.
9. Look at the four squares █ that indicate where Paragraph 2
the following sentence could be added to the
passage. Tall fescue is extensively used as both a pasture
grass and a turf or lawn grass. It is a hardy,
The discovery that Epichloe coenophiala vigorously growing grass but has been associated
produces poisonous substances for with various health problems in cattle and horses.
self-protection explained these findings. Beef cattle often show reduced weight gains when
grazing on tall fescue pastures, and dairy cattle
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a experience lower milk yields. █ Female horses may
square █ to add the sentence to the passage be more likely to lose their offspring during
pregnancy and may not produce milk following a
live birth. █ Reports of such adverse effects
resulted in microscopic investigation of leaf and
stem tissue that revealed the presence of the
Epichloe coenophiala fungus. █ Surveys of infected
pastures found a positive correlation between the
percentage of infected plants and the severity of
animal symptoms. █ The fungus in the grass was
found to produce various alkaloids (toxic
nitrogen-containing organic molecules). One type
of alkaloid (ergot alkaloids) contributes to the
livestock’s symptoms and reduced grazing, whereas
another type (loline alkaloids) makes the grass more
resistant to insects. Interestingly, the
insect-deterring alkaloids are not produced when
the fungus is grown in the laboratory apart from the
plant. Because these chemicals defend the grass as
well as the fungus from consumption by both
livestock and insects, the mutualistic relationship
has been termed defensive mutualism.
10. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete
the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage.
Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the
passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

The fungus Epichloe coenophiala interacts in a mutualistic relationship with tall fescue grass.

Answer Choices

A. Epichloe coenophiala protects infected tall fescue grass from animals and insects.

B. Alkaloids produced by the fungus of tall fescue grass can end up affecting many organisms beyond the
grass itself.

C. Bacteria that thrive on fungus-infected tall fescue grass contribute to the negative effects that infected
grass can have on its environment

D. Mutualistic relationships between grass and several kinds of fungi are of the type referred to as defensive
mutualism.

E. The fungal spores that infect tall fescue grass require extended periods of moist conditions in order to
survive and germinate

F. The tall fescue fungus, though harmful to some animals, is well suited for other uses, and new varieties of
the grass might be developed that are safe for all uses.