How to combine a passage with a table, graph or second source
TEAS 7 outline: Evaluate and integrate data from multiple sources and formats, including media
- Text usually gives rules and reasons; tables and graphs give numbers.
- Read a visual's title, labels, units, and key before its numbers.
- Link the sources through a shared term, such as a name, date, or unit.
- Primary sources report original work; secondary sources describe other people's work.
- Judge credibility by author, purpose, date, and evidence, not the web address ending.
Key facts
- Text usually supplies rules, reasons and conditions; tables and graphs supply numbers, comparisons and trends; images and diagrams show location, appearance or steps.
- Read a visual's title, labels, units and key before reading any numbers in it.
- Combine sources through a shared term, such as a name, date, unit or category that appears in both.
Show all 6 key factsShow fewer
- A primary source reports original work its authors did themselves, such as their own measurements or interviews; a secondary source describes, summarizes or comments on other people's work.
- Judge credibility by the author's expertise, the publisher's purpose (including whether it sells something), the date, and whether claims are backed by data or references.
- A web address ending in .gov or .edu is limited to government or educational institutions, but anyone can buy a .com, .org or .net address, so the ending alone never proves a source is reliable.
Quick check1 question · 2 more at the end
Quiet Hours at Lakeview Hospital
Priya, a nursing student, is writing a report on whether Lakeview Hospital's Quiet Hours program has made patient units quieter at night. Under the program, staff on participating units dim the hallway lights, lower phone ringer volume, and hold nonurgent conversations away from patient rooms between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. The program began on March 1 on Units 2 and 4 only. Units 1 and 3 kept their usual routines.
Priya has gathered three sources.
Source 1 is a report written by Lakeview's quality team. The team placed a sound meter in the hallway of each unit and recorded the average nighttime noise level in February, before the program began, and again in April. The table below comes from that report.
| Unit | Uses Quiet Hours? | February average (decibels) | April average (decibels) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No | 54 | 53 |
| 2 | Yes | 56 | 47 |
| 3 | No | 52 | 52 |
| 4 | Yes | 55 | 48 |
Source 2 is a 2025 article in a nursing magazine. Its author, a nurse researcher, summarizes eleven published studies of hospital noise programs and lists them in a reference section.
Source 3 is an unsigned web page posted by a company that sells sleep masks and earplugs. It states that "hospital quiet programs never work" and that "the only real fix is our Silent Night kit." The page does not cite any studies or data.
Which of Priya's sources is a primary source for her question about Lakeview's units?
Correct answer: D.
A primary source reports original work that its authors did themselves, such as their own measurements, experiments or interviews. A secondary source describes, summarizes or comments on work other people did. The quality team measured the noise on each unit, so its report is primary; the magazine article is secondary no matter how expert its author is.
A Expertise affects credibility, not source type; the author summarizes other researchers' studies, so the article is secondary.
B Summarizing other people's studies is exactly what makes a source secondary, not primary.
C Coming from a company does not make a source primary; the page reports no original measurements at all.
D Correct: the quality team recorded the noise data on Lakeview's units itself, so the report is original, firsthand work.
Full lesson
Each part starts with its main idea. Open a part when you want the details.
The short answer: With two sources, first decide which one holds each piece of the answer: text usually gives rules and reasons, while tables and graphs give numbers. Read the visual's title, labels and units, link the sources through a shared term, then judge credibility by who made each source, why, when, and with what evidence.
1 Which source answers which part of the question?Each type of source is good at a different job, so match the question to the source first. 1 min
Each type of source is good at a different job, so match the question to the source first. This one decision prevents most mistakes on two-source questions.
| Source type | What it usually holds | Question words that point to it |
|---|---|---|
| Paragraph text | Rules, reasons, conditions, exceptions | why, who qualifies, what must happen |
| Table | Exact values side by side | how many, which is highest, what time |
| Graph | Change over time, comparisons | increased, decreased, trend |
| Image or diagram | Location, appearance, steps | where, which part, what it looks like |
Many questions need one piece from each. The text gives a rule; the table gives the number you apply the rule to.
2 How do you combine a text with a table step by step?Use a five-step method that works for tables, graphs and second passages alike. 1 min
Use a five-step method that works for tables, graphs and second passages alike. Name each source first, then let the question send you to the right one.
- Name each source. What is it, who made it, and when?
- Split the question. Which part needs a rule? Which part needs a number?
- Read the visual's frame. Title, column labels, units and key come before numbers.
- Link through a shared term. Find the name, date or category that appears in both.
- Check the answer against both sources. It must fit the text and the numbers.
Example text and table:
The hospital shuttle runs from the north parking lot to the main entrance. Riders who need the wheelchair-accessible van must call the shuttle desk at least one hour before the departure they want.
| Departure (north lot) | Arrives (main entrance) |
|---|---|
| 6:50 a.m. | 7:05 a.m. |
| 7:20 a.m. | 7:35 a.m. |
| 7:50 a.m. | 8:05 a.m. |
Question: Dana needs the accessible van and must reach the main entrance by 7:45 a.m. What is the latest time she can call?
Walk-through:
- Rule (text): call one hour before the departure.
- Number (table): the last arrival before 7:45 is 7:35, which leaves at 7:20.
- Combine: 7:20 minus one hour is 6:20 a.m.
Classic wrong turn: subtracting an hour from 7:45 (the arrival goal) instead of from the departure time.
3 What is the difference between primary and secondary sources?A primary source reports work its authors did themselves, and a secondary source talks about other people's work. 1 min
A primary source reports work its authors did themselves, and a secondary source talks about other people's work. Expertise and quality do not change which kind it is.
| Source | Type | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A team's report of its own measurements | Primary | The authors collected the data |
| A transcript of an interview | Primary | Original firsthand material |
| A review article summarizing 15 studies | Secondary | It describes research others did |
| A news story about a new study | Secondary | It reports someone else's findings |
4 How do you decide whether a source is credible?Ask four questions about who made a source, why, when, and on what evidence. 1 min
Ask four questions about who made a source, why, when, and on what evidence. A source that fails several of them is the weakest choice.
- Who? Is an author named, with relevant expertise?
- Why? Is the publisher informing readers, or selling something?
- When? Is it current enough for the topic? Science usually needs recent work.
- What evidence? Does it show data or references, or only confident wording?
Absolute or emotional wording ("never works," "the only real fix") is a warning sign. Information that several independent, reliable sources repeat is more trustworthy than a claim found in only one place.
Common mistakes
The traps students fall into most. Read these before you practice.
Watch out: Apply a fact only to the group the text says it covers; a rule for some units, people or dates does not describe all of them.
Watch out: Read the units and labels before comparing numbers, not after choosing an answer.
Watch out: Expertise does not make a source primary; a summary by an expert is still secondary.
Watch out: Being online is not a flaw by itself; judge the author, purpose and evidence instead of the format.
Watch out: A source that sells a product deserves caution, but that alone does not prove every statement in it false.
How to remember it
Think "rule from the words, number from the table, trust from the maker." Say it before every two-source question.
Self-check:
- In the shuttle example, which source gave the rule and which gave the number?
- Explain why a nurse's summary of five studies is secondary, not primary.
- Name two reasons an unsigned web page selling a product would be a weak source.