Unit 5: ISU — Practice Quiz (AS Learning)

Question 1

A novel of "literary merit" suitable for ENG4U ISU is one that:

Has the most copies sold
Has been recognised by critical and scholarly conversation, has formal complexity, and offers ample material for a sustained 1500–2000 word analysis
Was written this year
Has the shortest length

Solution: Literary merit is judged by formal sophistication, depth of theme, place in critical conversation, and yield-for-analysis — not popularity, recency, or brevity. Approved ISU novels: 1984, The Handmaid's Tale, Heart of Darkness, Things Fall Apart, Beloved, Life of Pi.

Question 2

When reading a long novel for ISU purposes, the most efficient strategy is to:

Read once, fast, and never re-open
Read with a tracking system: annotate, mark recurring images/themes, take chapter notes — and re-read the most important passages closely
Watch the film instead
Skim only the first and last chapters

Solution: Active reading + tracked annotation + close re-reading is the only durable foundation for sustained analysis. Many strong ISU students keep a "patterns journal" recording each occurrence of a motif as they go.

Question 3

A "thesis" for an ISU essay must be:

Long enough to fill the essay
Specific to the chosen novel, debatable, supportable across multiple chapters, and capable of organising 5–6 body sections
A summary of the plot
Written last

Solution: ISU theses are bigger than five-paragraph theses — they need to organise sustained argument across many pages without becoming so broad they lose specificity.

Question 4

Which is a peer-reviewed scholarly source acceptable for the ISU?

A SparkNotes plot summary
An article in PMLA, Studies in the Novel, or another peer-reviewed journal accessed via JSTOR or Project MUSE
A random Reddit comment
A pop-music video

Solution: Peer-reviewed = vetted by other scholars in the field. JSTOR and Project MUSE host thousands of peer-reviewed humanities journals. Cliffs Notes, SparkNotes, and most blog posts do not qualify.

Question 5

An "annotated bibliography" entry includes:

Just the title
The Works Cited entry plus a short paragraph (3–5 sentences) summarising the source's argument and noting its usefulness for your essay
The full text of the source
A film clip

Solution: Annotated bibliography = MLA citation + brief annotation describing the source and its relevance. Strong annotations show that you actually read and evaluated the source.

Question 6

Plagiarism includes:

Quoting with citation
Using another's words or ideas (paraphrased or quoted) without citation; "patchwriting" that minimally alters source language; and submitting AI-generated text as your own
Using your own words and citations
Reading a Wikipedia article

Solution: Plagiarism is uncited use of others' words OR ideas. "Patchwriting" (minor word swaps over copied syntax) counts. Most Ontario boards now treat undeclared AI-generated text as plagiarism.

Question 7

A 1500–2000 word literary-analysis essay typically has:

1 paragraph
An introduction with thesis, 4–6 body sections each with their own sub-claim, and a conclusion that synthesises rather than repeats
30 paragraphs of one sentence each
No body paragraphs

Solution: Long essays need internal structure: each body section advances ONE sub-claim with multiple pieces of evidence. The conclusion should do work — pushing the argument forward — not just repeat the introduction.

Question 8

"Reverse outlining" is the technique of:

Writing the essay backwards
Writing one sentence per paragraph of an existing draft to expose its actual structure and detect gaps or repetition
Reading the conclusion first
Avoiding outlines

Solution: Reverse outlining = after a draft, summarise each paragraph in one sentence. The resulting list reveals whether your argument actually progresses or whether it repeats. It is one of the most powerful revision techniques.

Question 9

A "counter-reading" in a literary essay is:

A bad reading of the book
A plausible alternative interpretation that you acknowledge before refining or refining your own
Reading the book in reverse
A negative review

Solution: The strongest essays acknowledge that other readings are possible, then explain why their reading is preferable or how the alternative still illuminates a complementary aspect.

Question 10

A 5-minute oral defence should:

Read the entire essay aloud
Summarise the thesis, walk listeners through 2–3 strongest evidence sections, and conclude with the essay's significance — leaving time for questions
Avoid the topic entirely
Recite poems

Solution: Effective defences distil the essay rather than reading it. Aim for 5 minutes of substance and at least 5 minutes of Q&A demonstrating depth of knowledge beyond the written page.

Question 11

When asked a hard question during an oral defence, the best response is to:

Pretend you understood and bluff
Acknowledge the difficulty, restate it to confirm, then answer thoughtfully — even if your answer is "I'm not sure, but here's how I'd approach it"
Refuse to answer
Change the topic

Solution: Reflective honesty is rewarded. Restating the question buys thinking time, and a thoughtful "I don't know but here's the angle I'd take" demonstrates more intellectual maturity than a confident wrong answer.

Question 12

In Ontario evaluation, the ISU typically counts toward:

0% of the final mark
The 30% Final Evaluation (often as a major culminating task; in many ENG4U classrooms the ISU is 15% with the final exam another 15%)
100% of the final mark
Bonus marks only

Solution: Per Growing Success, 30% of the final mark must come from an end-of-course Final Evaluation; in ENG4U, the ISU and the Final Examination together constitute that 30%.