In order to learn to speak a foreign language, a person must practice effectively. The only effective way to practice is by uttering original sentences in that language, rather than reciting memorized ones. A person can utter such sentences only by first making mistakes in that language that would appear foolish to fluent speakers of the language.

Which of the following conclusions can be properly drawn from the statements above?

(1) People who have learned to speak a foreign language will have appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(2) People who only recite memorized sentences in a foreign language will never learn to speak that language.
(3) People who have not learned to speak a foreign language have not appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(4) People who do not make misates when uttering original sentences in a foreign language do not appear foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(5) When combined with other exercises, reciting memorized sentences in a foreign language can be an effective means of practicing to speak that language.


Please help and explain your answer!!

Guest79, this question seems much more similar to an LSAT argument than a GMAT argument, but I will address your concern anyway (that's just the type of fellow I am!).

A correct answer to a Draw a Conclusion or Inference question must be DIRECTLY SUPPORTED BY EVIDENCE FROM THE TEXT. Often, it can be helpful to place the phrase "it is true that..." prior to assessing each answer choice so you can truly evaluate whether the text supports a particular response. Let's take a look at each of our answer choices individually.

(1) People who have learned to speak a foreign language will have appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
-Not necessarily. The passage says these sentences "would" appear foolish to fluent speakers of the language; however, nothing indicates that the language learners actually recite these sentences in front of fluent speakers.

(2) People who only recite memorized sentences in a foreign language will never learn to speak that language.
-CORRECT. The passage says that one "must" practice effectively in order to learn to speak a foreign language. Furthermore, the passage states The only effective way to practice is by uttering original sentences in that language, rather than reciting memorized ones. Since the only way to learn a foreign language is by uttering original sentences, this choice is supported.

(3) People who have not learned to speak a foreign language have not appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
-I have appeared VERY foolish to speakers of many foreign languages that I do not speak!!!

(4) People who do not make mistakes when uttering original sentences in a foreign language do not appear foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
-There are many ways one could appear foolish other than by making mistakes when uttering original sentences.

(5) When combined with other exercises, reciting memorized sentences in a foreign language can be an effective means of practicing to speak that language.
-This might be true, but it is not supported by the text.

Hope that helps!
-dan

[quote]In order to learn to speak a foreign language, a person must practice effectively. The only effective way to practice is by uttering original sentences in that language, rather than reciting memorized ones. A person can utter such sentences only by first making mistakes in that language that would appear foolish to fluent speakers of the language.

Which of the following conclusions can be properly drawn from the statements above?

(1) People who have learned to speak a foreign language will have appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(2) People who only recite memorized sentences in a foreign language will never learn to speak that language.
(3) People who have not learned to speak a foreign language have not appeared foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(4) People who do not make misates when uttering original sentences in a foreign language do not appear foolish to fluent speakers of that language.
(5) When combined with other exercises, reciting memorized sentences in a foreign language can be an effective means of practicing to speak that language.

Thanks a lot Dan! Your reasoning helped. I didn't pick (B) because I saw 'never' in that answer choice. I felt it a little too extreme. But I believe, I missed the 'only' word in the premise 'the only effective way...'. Which makes (B) appropriate.

Thanks again

No problem. You also bring up a good point: extreme language is usually an indicator of an incorrect answer choice; however, when the passage text itself expresses a point in extreme terms, an extreme answer choice is often acceptable.

-dan