Prices, money and jobs: why everything costs more

Tests: 3 of 12 right · Exam: 2 of 4 right · Kind: ★★ · Understood: 9 of 16 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 18 of the politics course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: the lesson in the corpora.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Aisha: "Who stole my 15p? Sweets were 50p, now 65p!" What is the best answer?

1. The sweets got bigger, so they cost more now — ← Mova's choice · score 11
2. The shop owner secretly kept 15p of her change for himself — no support
3. Nobody; prices rose, so the same coin buys less — ✓ the right answer · score 11
4. Coins slowly lose their metal and their value — score 5

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 1 with score 11, tied with another option at 11 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 18, line 1: «Last year your sweets cost 50p; now they cost 65p. Nobody stole your 15p: when the prices of most things rise over time, it is called inflation, and the same c…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+6); the same action «cost» (+4); the same doer «sweets» (+4). Against it: a different thing acted on (counts against) (-3). The right option, 3, scored 11. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★ · right ✓

«gas bill's mental, we're all in jumpers now, heating on at 8» What is the link to the news, as reported?

1. The family's heater broke and they could not fix it — no support
2. Energy prices shot up in 2022 after the war cut gas supplies to Europe — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 8
3. Gas got cheaper, so families chose to use less and save — no support
4. A new law said everyone must wear jumpers indoors — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 18, line 8: «It was reported that energy prices shot up in 2022, especially in Europe; some governments helped with bills, and in Britain a price cap limits how much energy…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «shoot up» (+3); the same thing acted on «energy prices» (+3); the same place «2022» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★ · right ✓

"The bank put rates up again, mortgage is gonna kill us" groans Noah's dad. Why would a bank do that?

1. To slow inflation by making borrowing dearer — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 14
2. To make prices in the shops rise even faster — score -1
3. To punish families who own houses with loans — score -1
4. To make savers poorer and borrowers richer — score -1

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 14, against -1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 18, line 9: «Central banks, like the Bank of England or the Federal Reserve, can raise interest rates, the extra you pay for borrowing money, to slow inflation: borrowing g…», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «slow» (+6); the same doer «central banks» (+4); the same thing acted on «inflation» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★ · wrong ✗

A dad who works at a car parts factory says tariffs will bring jobs back; the neighbour says they will make everything cost more. Which is best?

1. Only the dad can be right, because he works in a factory and knows best — no support
2. Only the neighbour can be right, because tariffs never save a single job — score 2
3. Both can be partly true: a tax at the border can help some people and cost others — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Neither is right, because tariffs have no effects on jobs or prices at all — ← Mova's choice · score 5

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 5, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 18, line 3: «Every fix has a cost for someone. Higher interest rates calm prices but raise house payments; tariffs may protect some factory jobs but can raise prices in sho…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «prices» (+3); the same doer «tariffs» (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★★ · wrong ✗

"Minimum wage up in April, chur!" says Mia's sister in Auckland (chur = thanks, great). What might the café owner do?

1. Lower all his prices so more customers come in — ← Mova's choice · score 10
2. Close the café forever, because the law now says so — score 5
3. Pay her less than the law allows and hope nobody notices — no support
4. Raise the price of a sandwich or hire fewer people — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 1 with score 10, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 18, line 10: «A tariff is a tax on goods coming from abroad; news reports said that in 2025 the US announced many new tariffs, and some countries answered with tariffs of th…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same action «come» (+4); a different doer (counts against) (+1). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Teachers strike on Tuesday, trains the next week, and Gran can't visit. "Heaps annoying" says Jake. What is the point being argued?

1. Strikes are always against the law and the strikers all go to prison for it — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Strikes only hurt the bosses and never the people who use trains — no support
3. Strikes press for pay but are felt by everyone who uses the service — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Teachers and train drivers just wanted a day off for fun — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★★ · wrong ✗

«they SHRANK it, same price, that's not bostin'» (bostin' = brilliant). What can Chloe check?

1. The advert for it that was on TV last night — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The weight on the packet and the unit price — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. The shop's opening hours on the door — no support
4. The colour of the wrapper and the logo — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★★ · wrong ✗

A boy says the girl's family can't use the food bank because "her dad has a job". What is true?

1. Only people without any job at all can ever be hungry — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Food banks check everyone's school marks before they help — no support
3. Some families with jobs still cannot cover rising rent, bills and food — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Her dad must be lying about having a job — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Grace's cousin, 25, can't afford to move out. His mum says, "In my day we bought a house at 25!" What was reported?

1. Nobody at all bought a house in the past, so his mum must be wrong — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Houses are cheaper today than they have ever been before — no support
3. Rents and house prices have risen faster than pay in many places — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Young people now earn far more than their parents ever did — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★★ · right ✓

Two politicians say "cut taxes" and "spend more". Aroha's mum says they want the same thing. What does she mean?

1. Both want to get rid of the government altogether — no support
2. Both want people better off; they disagree about the way — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. Neither of them cares about families at all, really — no support
4. Both secretly want prices to go up so that they earn more — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 18, line 4: «Most politicians want people to be better off; they disagree about the way: some want lower taxes so people keep more money, others want more spending to help…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same circumstance (+4); the same action «disagree» (+1). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★★ · wrong ✗

What would happen to a family with a big mortgage if interest rates fell?

1. Their whole mortgage would simply disappear — ← Mova's choice · score 2
2. Their monthly house payment would usually go down — ✓ the right answer · score 2
3. Their monthly house payment would usually go up a lot — score 2
4. Their house would get bigger by itself — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 1 with score 2, tied with another option at 2 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 18, line 3: «Every fix has a cost for someone. Higher interest rates calm prices but raise house payments; tariffs may protect some factory jobs but can raise prices in sho…», reached through what followed the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «higher interest rates» (+4). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-2). The right option, 2, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★★ · wrong ✗

«a coffee's a loonie more than last year, eh» says a Toronto dad (loonie = one-dollar coin). What is this an example of?

1. A tariff on maple syrup — ← Mova's choice · score 8
2. Shrinkflation in the coffee cup — no support
3. A strike by café workers — no support
4. Inflation — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 18, line 10: «A tariff is a tax on goods coming from abroad; news reports said that in 2025 the US announced many new tariffs, and some countries answered with tariffs of th…», reached through what was said in the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+6); the same thing acted on «many new tariffs» (+4). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Identify the term which denotes a sustained rise in the general level of prices over time.

1. Shrinkflation — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. A mortgage — no support
3. A tariff — no support
4. Inflation — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the effect of an increase in interest rates by a central bank?

1. Borrowing becomes less costly, and all prices fall immediately — ← Mova's choice · score 7
2. No household is affected in any respect, since interest rates concern the banks alone — no support
3. Households with mortgages pay less each month, the loans being cheaper — score 3
4. Borrowing becomes more costly, and households with mortgages pay more each month — ✓ the right answer · score 7

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 1 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 18, line 9: «Central banks, like the Bank of England or the Federal Reserve, can raise interest rates, the extra you pay for borrowing money, to slow inflation: borrowing g…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+4); the same doer «borrowing» (+3). The right option, 4, scored 7. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓

Select the response consistent with the established meaning of the term "tariff".

1. A tax levied upon goods imported from abroad — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. A reduction in the size of a product at a constant price — no support
3. A limit upon the price charged per unit of energy — no support
4. A payment made to workers by the government — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

It is given that a product is reduced in weight whereas its price remains unchanged. Determine the measure which permits a shopper to compare its value accurately.

1. The unit price, such as the price per one hundred grams — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The colour and design of the packaging upon the shelf — no support
3. The size of the box, irrespective of its contents — no support
4. The number of advertisements broadcast for the product — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/politics/18-prices-money-and-jobs-why-everything-costs-more/