Week 7 — EBSR: Two-Part Evidence Questions

MCAP ELA 10 practice · EBSR two-part evidence questions · Download .docx

Objectives

Answer Part A of an evidence question by making a text-supported inference about a character, theme, or central idea.
Choose Part B evidence that directly supports a Part A answer and reject evidence that is only related, too general, or supports a different claim.
Use the Part B choices to test and confirm a Part A answer, including questions about word meaning and central idea.

Key terms

EBSR: A two-part item: Part A asks about the text, Part B asks for the evidence.
Claim: The answer you give in Part A.
Evidence: The quotation or detail that proves the claim.
Direct support: Evidence that proves the claim itself, not just the topic.
Trap evidence: A true quotation that sounds relevant but does not prove the Part A answer.
Prediction: Your own answer to Part A, formed before reading the choices.
Cross-check: Using Part B choices to confirm or correct Part A.

The concept

How an EBSR item works

An Evidence-Based Selected Response item asks two linked questions. Part A asks something about the text: what a character is like, what a word means, what the central idea is. Part B asks which evidence best supports your Part A answer. On MCAP, a correct Part A with the wrong Part B earns no credit for Part B. That means half the work is proving your answer, not just choosing it.

Step 1: Predict before you look

Read the Part A question, then answer it in your own words before reading the choices. If the question asks what a character feels, look for actions and words that reveal the feeling. If it asks for a word's meaning, reread the sentences around the word.

Step 2: Match your prediction to a Part A choice

Choose the option closest to your prediction. Be careful with answers that are partly right but go too far, such as 'He hates his cousin' when the text only shows quiet envy.

Step 3: Find the proof in Part B

Ask of each quotation: if I showed only this sentence to a friend, would it prove my Part A answer? Strong evidence proves the claim directly. Weak evidence is the most common trap on MCAP. It is usually a real sentence from the passage, so it feels safe, but it only mentions the topic, describes the setting, or supports a different idea.

Step 4: Cross-check both parts

Before moving on, read your Part A and Part B together as one sentence: 'Kwame is quiet but well prepared, because he hands her three pages of notes with every source cited.' If the sentence sounds convincing, you are done. If none of the Part B choices support your Part A answer, that is a signal: your Part A answer is probably wrong. Go back and reconsider.

Kinds of evidence traps

Too general: the sentence is about the topic but does not show the specific claim. Wrong person: the sentence shows another character's feeling. Background detail: the sentence sets the scene but proves nothing. Half proof: the sentence supports only one part of a two-part claim, such as showing Kwame is quiet but not that he is prepared.

Why this matters for your score

Students near the proficiency line often get Part A right and lose points on Part B by choosing the first quotation that sounds familiar. Slowing down on Part B is one of the fastest ways to gain points on test day.

Worked examples

Example 1: Passage: 'Kwame had not said ten words all semester. After class, he slid a folded sheet onto her desk: three pages of notes, every source cited.' Part A: What can the reader infer about Kwame? Prediction: He is quiet but takes the work seriously. Part A choice: He is quiet but deeply prepared. Part B check: 'Kwame had not said ten words all semester' proves he is quiet but not that he is prepared, so it is only half proof. 'Three pages of notes, every source cited' proves preparation, the part of the claim that needs evidence. Answer: He is quiet but deeply prepared, supported by the three pages of notes.

Example 2: Passage: 'The new transit app's first week was marred by glitches: arrival times that jumped by twenty minutes, routes that vanished from the map.' Part A: What does 'marred' mean? Step 1: Look at what follows the colon, a list of problems. Step 2: Predict: damaged or spoiled. Step 3: Part B should point to that list of glitches, because the problems are the context clue. A sentence about what the app was supposed to do is related but does not reveal the meaning. Answer: 'Marred' means damaged, supported by the list of glitches.

Common mistakes

Choosing Part B evidence because it sounds familiar. Fix: ask whether the sentence proves the exact Part A claim; if it only mentions the topic, keep looking.
Picking evidence that supports only half of a two-part claim. Fix: underline each part of the Part A answer, then choose the quotation that proves the part that needs the most support.
Ignoring the warning signal from Part B. Fix: if no Part B choice supports your Part A answer, go back and change Part A instead of forcing a match.

Self-check

Try each one before you look. A miss here costs nothing and tells you exactly what to reread.

1. According to the MCAP item format, what happens when a student answers Part A correctly but chooses the wrong Part B?

2. Which Part B quotation is an example of 'related but weak' evidence for the claim 'The narrator feels envious of her cousin'?

3. You chose a Part A answer, but none of the Part B quotations support it. What should you do?

4. For a Part A question asking what 'marred' means, which kind of Part B evidence is usually best?

5. What is the best first step when you begin an EBSR item?

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