Question

booker t. washington was a prominent african - american educator, leader, and orator in the period after the civil war. in 1881, he founded the tuskegee institute (now known as tuskegee university), which focused on training african - americans in agricultural pursuits. this autobiographical excerpt is from his account of the creation, development, and promotion of the tuskegee institute.

1. i shall long remember the time when the folly and uselessness of much of the old - time method of teaching first fairly dawned upon me. i was teaching in a country school near my home in west virginia. this school was located near a piece of woods, and the day was hot and marshy, but nevertheless beautiful in appearance. it was june - and the students were noisy, when the usual recess or playtime came, i was as anxious as the children were to get outside of the close and stuffy school - room into the open air. that day prolonged the playtime to more than twice the usual period.
2. the hour previous to recess was usually employed by me in trying to get a class of children interested in what proved to be a rather stupid geography lesson. i had been asking my pupils a lot of dull and tiresome questions, getting them to define and name lakes, capes, peninsulas, islands, and so forth.

how does paragraph 2 function in the overall structure of the text?
a. it provides support for the argument that exploration in the real world can lead to improved learning.
b. it establishes the effect of traditional teaching to use as a contrast later in the text.
c. it develops the theme that children are naturally curious and willing to learn about the world.
d. it establishes the setting, which helps readers understand where the action takes place.

Explanation:

In paragraph 2, the author describes an attempt to teach a geography lesson to children. It contrasts with traditional teaching methods mentioned earlier. This contrast is likely to be used later in the text to make a point about different teaching - learning approaches.

Answer:

B. It establishes the effect of traditional teaching to use as a contrast later in the text.