How are the overall structures of the two passages different?

Question

     In recent years, children have begun to use computers to learn at earlier ages. In fact, toddlers as young as 2 years old can learn shapes and colors on their own using the Internet. In some middle schools and high schools, computers have completely replaced textbooks. This trend has continued to expand. As a result, online learning has begun to replace classroom instruction for some students. In many states, students in 3rd through 12th grades can attend school online for free. Online educators teach and grade work using the Internet. Their students never have to attend class at a school building. Computers have created a new generation of learners.

Passage 2

Free Tutoring

     Some cities offer free tutoring to youth. One-on-one learning is important for some students. However, tutors can be expensive and hard to find. Free tutoring is the perfect fix. It can be offered at schools, community centers, churches, or libraries. Sometimes, volunteers will tutor for free. Other times, the tutoring program can raise money to pay the tutors. Either way, parents and their children can receive a valuable service at no cost.

Answer 1

The first passage stresses the influence of the internet and points out early access to internet can promote good early childhood development, while, the second passage does not mention internet at al.

Answer 2

It's first important to remember that there are different ways that informational texts can be structured. There's descriptions, cause-effect, compare-contrast, problem-solution, and sequence/chronological. Here's a great graphic that provides tips to help identify the structures: http://mrslorber.weebly.com/uploads/7/5/3/4/7534385/651824_orig.jpg

It's possible to find multiple structures within a single text, but these passages are very straightforward. The first passage simply explains the ways computers can be used as a learning tool, so the structure here is a description. The second passage clues you in where it says, "Free tutoring is the perfect fix." The fix to what? The fix to high tutoring costs. This detail tells you that this passage follows a problem-solution structure.