V11-24

Official Solution:


A virtual classroom offers more than just lecture videos and interactive environments; it also facilitates active learning by providing educational materials and enabling contextual discussions. According to surveys in schools and colleges, teachers believe that, much like in traditional classrooms, they can use visual cues effectively to emphasize points and confirm students' understanding. Additionally, students appreciate the ability to control their learning pace using various digital tools and chat rooms. Consequently, companies that operate in the virtual classroom sector have a promising future unless ______________.

Which of the following answer choices completes the passage most appropriately?


A. the teachers mentioned in the passage do not realize that in a video lecture, students cannot perceive their gestures as clearly as they can in a traditional classroom.
B. local governments do not prohibit the substitution of traditional classrooms with virtual ones in schools and colleges.
C. there is no lack of synchronization between the course material and the virtual platform.
D. developers fail to create practical means for obtaining instant contextual reactions from students.
E. the streaming technology used to render lecture videos continues to advance, allowing for even clearer displays of teachers' cues to students.


First of all, this is a brilliant question that mixes several double-negative traps in a single instance. Official questions usually use this trap sparingly. Figuring it out and analyzing this question, will hopefully ensure you never get tripped up by a double-negative again. This question epitomizes this intermediary CR trap and turns into a deadly combination of split-statement and double-negative straps that only the best can recognize. We hope you can appreciate this question and the effort it took to craft it.

Here is why you likely made a mistake: The key phrase in the question is "unless," which sets up a condition that would prevent the "promising future" for virtual classroom companies. When filling in the blank, you’re looking for something that would negatively impact these companies. Therefore, the correct answer should introduce a negative scenario or limitation. Hopefully this is pretty straightforward to this point.

Introducing the Double-Negative Trap: Let's consider Choice B: B) local governments do not prohibit the substitution of traditional classrooms with virtual ones in schools and colleges. At first reading, it sounds great - if the government forbids substituting classrooms, the e-learning/virtual classroom companies are done for. However, that's not what the statement is saying if you read it carefully. It says if the government does not forbid substituting. Compare "unless governments prohibit " and "unless government does not prohibit" The word prohibit is a negative word, and adding "not" in front creates a double-negative. This combination of "does not" and "prohibit" should always raise suspicion. Trying to unravel a double-negative can be difficult, so drop the "not" to check it. What the statement actually says is that governments won't prohibit classroom substitutions, thus strengthening the argument, ensuring a prosperous future for virtual classrooms. B would be correct if it said "prohibit" without negation

A) teachers do not realize that in a video lecture, students cannot perceive their gestures as clearly as they can in a traditional classroom. Same issue as with "B". Answer choice "A" uses another negative tactic - "not" + "longer negative statement". "A" would be quite correct if it did not have "not" and simply said, "Unless teachers realize that the students cannot perceive their gestures". We could argue about how important that is in a virtual classroom but that's irrelevant as the choice is completely opposite as written and actually benefits the companies - if the teachers do not realize this product deficiency, the companies will do well.

C) there is no lack of synchronization between the course material and the virtual platform. Similar to A and B, C is also a double-negative. "no" and "lack" is a double negative. You only need one of these statements to make it detrimental. If you have 2 negatives, it turns into a benefit - awkwardly phrased benefit, not double, but a benefit nevertheless. We can eliminate this answer choice using the same technique of stripping one negative to see if that changes the expected meaning.

D) developers fail to create practical means for obtaining instant contextual reactions from students. CORRECT as this is the only single-negative option. If the developers are unable to solve the issue, then the business may get hampered since the teachers take advantage of relative cues to make points and to verify that the points have been understood – NOT good for the companies – correct answer.

E) the 'streaming' technology used to render lecture videos continues to advance, allowing for even clearer displays of teachers' cues to students.
E) Is incorrect because it is a positive improvement to the system (there is no negative to pair with unless). If the system improves and gets an even clearer streaming of the image, this will only benefit the virtual classroom companies and thus does not fit into the "unless" category.

Let us know if you have any questions or comments about this explanation


Answer: D