Studyledge

Summary Writing: Question 7

Syllabus R1, R2, R5, W2

Multiple choice 1 mark

The Cliffgate Wildlife Trust has asked the district council for permission to stop mowing a two-acre field on the edge of Cliffgate Park, allowing the grass to grow long and wildflowers to seed naturally for the first time in over twenty years.

Ecologists from the trust argue that mown grass supports very little wildlife compared with a meadow left to grow, and point to a similar unmown field in a neighbouring district where butterfly counts more than doubled within three summers. Bird surveys at that site also recorded several species that had not been seen locally in over a decade, drawn in by the insects the longer grass now supports.

Some park users have welcomed the idea, particularly a local beekeeping group, whose members say more wildflowers nearby would mean healthier, better-fed hives and a longer season of nectar for their bees. A nearby primary school has also asked whether classes could visit the field once a year to study the insects and plants that establish themselves there.

Not everyone agrees, however. Several dog walkers who currently cross the field each morning worry that long grass would hide litter, broken glass or dog mess, making the field unsafe for pets to run freely. The football club that uses one corner of the field for informal five-a-side games in summer has also objected, since long grass would make the ground unusable for their matches until it was cut back again.

The trust has offered to keep a mown path around the field's edge so walkers can still cross safely, and hopes to begin the change this autumn if the council agrees.

Which of the following best combines the two objections raised in the fourth paragraph into a single, concise sentence suitable for a summary, using the student's own words?

Choose an answer to check it, then compare with the worked solution below.
Show worked solution Hide worked solution

Worked solution

Step 1: Identify the two points to combine

The fourth paragraph raises two separate objections: dog walkers worry that long grass would hide hazards, and the football club objects because long grass would make the field unusable for matches. A good combined summary sentence must (a) keep both points, (b) stay accurate, and (c) use different wording from the passage.

Step 2: Test each option

  • A: Keeps both objections, stays accurate to what each group actually says, and rephrases the ideas (“rubbish or mess hidden,” “lose their playing area”) rather than copying the passage’s exact phrasing. This is a genuine own-words combination.
  • B: Contains both objections and is accurate, but it lifts phrases almost word-for-word from the passage (“hide litter, broken glass or dog mess,” “unusable for matches”), so it does not demonstrate own-words summarising.
  • C: Wrongly imports the beekeeping group’s support from an earlier paragraph and incorrectly attributes the litter worry to the football club, whose actual objection was about losing the pitch for matches, not litter. This is an inaccurate combination.
  • D: Describes the trust’s mown-path offer, which the passage links only to dog walkers, not the football club. It fails to represent the football club’s real objection about losing use of the pitch.

Step 3: Select the combination

Only option A combines both objections accurately and in the student’s own words.

Final answer

  • Option A is the correct combined summary sentence.