Library Reading Break: Success or Failure?
Seiko Junior High's library started a 'Ten-Minute Reading Break' in May. Instead of the old 20-minute morning reading period, students now read for ten minutes after lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The librarian reports that 78% of students finished at least one book in June, up from 54% in April. However, the number of books borrowed during lunch fell from 120 in April to 85 in June because the library is closed during the reading break. In a school newsletter, the librarian wrote: 'The break is not mainly about borrowing more books. It is about helping students return to reading after a busy morning. The shorter time makes it easier for reluctant readers to begin.' Some teachers say the loss of morning reading has reduced quiet reading before first period. The student council must decide whether to recommend keeping, changing, or ending the program.
1. What is the librarian's main purpose in the newsletter sentence? Explain why a simple 'more books borrowed' claim would be inaccurate.
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The librarian is defending the program's reading-habit goal, not claiming that borrowing increased. The quoted sentence says the break is 'not mainly about borrowing more books' and explains that a shorter after-lunch time helps reluctant readers begin. That matches the 78% completion figure, up from 54%. A simple 'more books borrowed' claim would be false because lunch borrowing fell from 120 to 85. The fall is explained by the library being closed during the break. So the purpose is to persuade readers that success should be judged by re-engagement with reading, while acknowledging that the borrowing number alone would look negative.
2. The council is choosing between (A) ending the program because borrowing fell, or (B) keeping it but opening the library during the break. Which choice follows the passage's evidence more logically? Use at least two details.
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Choice B is more logical. Ending the program would ignore the main reading-habit evidence: book completion rose from 54% to 78%, and the librarian says the short break helps reluctant readers start. But the borrowing drop from 120 to 85 has a practical cause - the library is closed during the break - so opening it during the break addresses that cause without losing the short reading time. Choice A reacts only to the borrowing number and would remove a measured benefit. The council should keep the after-lunch break but open the library for borrowing during it, then check next term whether borrowing recovers.