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Transcript
The Writing Section: A Brief Overview As you already know, the new SAT contains a Writing Section, which consists of the (dreaded!) essay, as well as multiple choice questions. The essay will be addressed later in your manual, so let’s focus on the multiple choice questions for now. There are 49 multiple choice questions that assess your knowledge of grammar and usage, your ability to use language in a clear, consistent manner, and your ability to improve a piece of writing through revision and editing. These questions DO NOT ask you to define or use grammatical terms and DO NOT test spelling and capitalization. These questions are worth 70 % of your overall Writing score. The Writing Section of the SAT looks like this: 25 MIN. SECTION ESSAY 25 MIN. SECTION 35 QUESTIONS 10 MIN. SECTION 14 QUESTIONS 11 IMPROVING SENTENCES 18 ERROR IDENTIFICATION 6 IMPROVING PARAGRAPHS 14 IMPROVING SENTENCES Unfortunately, there is no order of difficulty on the Writing Section, so your Personal Objectives and Goal score (POG) will be slightly different from the Critical Reading Section. The best piece of advice is to look at your practice tests and determine which types of questions you are best at, and focus on answering those throughout the test. Remember it is okay to skip questions if you can not eliminate any answer choices – just be sure to skip that particular bubble on your answer sheet! On the following pages, you will find a specific review that will help you tackle the types of questions found in the Writing Section. Feel free to consult any grammar textbook (such as Warriner’s) if you think you need even more practice – although the rundown you are about to receive is probably MORE than you’ll need! ERRER IDENTAFIKATION These questions are different from most other multiple choice questions in that they ask you to choose the answer that contains a mistake. Some important things to know about Error IDs (aka Identifying Sentence Errors): There is never more than one error per sentence. If there is an error, it is always underlined. So, for each underlined portion, first identify the part of speech you’re dealing with, then check for all of the possible errors for that part of speech. Approximately 20% of all Error IDs are correct as written, so don’t be afraid to pick answer choice E. Error IDs are usually short, so you should be able to move quickly through them and eliminate at least one answer choice. This means you should guess aggressively on these types of questions! As soon as you discover one of the underlined portions is correct, eliminate it as an answer choice. IMPROVING SENTENCES: THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT These questions focus on a different skill from Error IDs: the ability to recognize and write clear, effective, accurate sentences. You are given a sentence, part or all of which is underlined, and you will have to determine whether the underlined portion contains an error. If it does, you will be given suggestions for revising that sentence; you will need to choose the correct revision from the ones offered. The basic techniques for tackling an Improving Sentences question are: Read carefully, maybe even aloud to yourself – very quietly, of course! Check for an error in the underlined part. If there is no error, choose answer choice A, which is a word-for-word repeat of the underlined part. 20% of the sentences will be perfect as written. If you find an error in the underlined part, omit A as an answer choice and look to eliminate any other answer choices that make the same error. If you aren’t sure whether the underlined part contains any errors, look at your answer choices and try to look for ways in which they vary. If you can figure out which of the variations is right, you can eliminate choices. Look for things that are short and sweet. Conciseness is most important here. GRAMMAR 101: A CRASH COURSE FOR THE SAT For both Error IDs and Improving Sentences there are five main steps you should follow to find the mistake in a sentence. These five steps are simply the five places a sentence can go wrong. If you check these five, you will find the mistake: Verbs Pronouns Nouns Prepositions Random Things Each of these will be covered at length on the following pages. VERBS The three most important things to check about a verb are that it: Agrees with its subject Is parallel in structure to other verbs in the sentence Is in the proper tense Subject-Verb Agreement ►Singular with singular, plural with plural. Don’t let ETS distract you with subjects and verbs that don’t agree and lots of words in between them. Disregard all extra words and look for the actual subject and verb: 1. The statistics released by the state department makes the economic situation A B look bleaker than it really is. No error. C D E What is the subject? Singular or plural? __________________________________ What is the verb? Singular or plural? ____________________________________ 1. Although Tama Janowitz and Jay McInerney both have new books on the market, only one of the two are successful. A. B. C. D. E. only one of the two are successful of them, only one of the two is becoming successful only one of the two books are successful only one of the two books is successful one only of the books has been successful Collective Nouns and Pronouns All of the following take singular verbs: family (is) jury (is) group (is) audience (is) congregation (is) United States / any country (is) either (is) neither (is) none (is) each (is) anyone (is) no one (is) everyone (is) ►Two singular subjects joined by “and” make a plural subject. Two nouns joined by “or” can be singular or plural, depending on the last noun given. Pam AND Jim, neither of whom takes the bus, ARE now walking to work. Pam OR Jim IS walking to work. Pam OR Jim’s friends ARE walking to work. Parallelism ►All verbs in a list must be in the same style, tense, and form (think Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!) 1. The Halloween party was a great success: the children enjoyed bobbing A B for apples, playing party games, and to put costumes on. No error. C D E Tense The three major tenses you will be looking for are present, past, and future. There should not be a change in tense within a sentence UNLESS it is truly important that one thing happened before or after something else. First check the tenses of the verbs in the sentence that aren’t underlined to see whether they match the tense of the underlined verb. 2. Throughout the Middle Ages, women work beside men, knowing that the effort A B C of men and women alike was essential to survival. No error. D E “-ing” Words Beware of “having,” “being,” and other “-ing” words: they are awkward and often used incorrectly in answer choices. 3. At first, peanut butter was known not as much for its convenience or taste but for its being easy to digest. A. B. C. D. E. but for its being easy to digest the explanation being its digestibility the explanation was its being easily digestible but for its being digestion-easy as for its digestibility Note here the use of the idiom “not as much _____ as.” Idioms will be covered in depth in a later section. PRONOUNS Whenever you see a pronoun underlined, check for: agreement ambiguity case (subject or object) Pronoun Agreement ►A pronoun usually stands in for a noun. If the noun being replaced is singular, the pronoun must be singular. If the noun is plural, the pronoun must be plural. 1. Everyone on the softball team who came up to bat squinted at the pitcher in A B C order to keep the sun’s glaring rays out of their eyes. No error. D E Notice how ETS has placed the pronoun that refers to the subject far from it in the sentence? They’re hoping you’ll forget which noun it refers to. Also notice how they stick the plural noun “eyes” next to “their”? Don’t let them trick you! Pronoun Ambiguity There should never be any confusion about which noun a pronoun is replacing. Take the example “Jerry and Nick decided to paint his room purple.” Whose room is getting painted, Jerry’s or Nick’s? You’ll never know, because the pronoun is ambiguous. Be on the lookout for: Pronouns like “it” or “they/them” that show up late in a sentence Two singular or two plural nouns that come early in the sentence and a pronoun that comes at the end of the sentence 3. Many economists feel that taxpayers should pay less, on the theory that A B they will spend more and boost the economy. No error. C D E What is the pronoun near the end of the sentence? _________________________ To whom could it refer? _____________________________________________ Pronoun Case: Subject or Object ► A subject pronoun is the person or thing performing the action. Subject Pronouns: Singular: I, you, he, she, it, who Plural: we, you, they, who ►An object pronoun is the person or thing receiving the action. Object Pronouns: Singular: me, you, him, her, it, whom Plural: us, you, them, whom Look at the example: Clare is more creative than me. Clare is more creative than I. Which one is correct? Why? __________________________________________________________________ Try these: 5. The leading roles in the widely acclaimed play, a modern version of an Irish A B folktale, were performed by Jessica and him. No error. C D E 7. Linda and her decided to see the movie, which started at 10:00 pm. No error. A B C D E 9. Joe went with Marie and I to the Italian restaurant on the corner of Smith Street A B C D and Jones Avenue. No error. E NOUNS When you see nouns on the Writing Section, think of numbers; ETS loves to give you two nouns that refer to each other, but are different in number (singular or plural). If an underlined noun refers to another noun (or vice versa), make sure the two nouns match in number. 3. As elections approach, campaign managers pay more attention to swing voters, A B who often don’t make their decision until the day of the election. No error. C D E If there are many voters, they should have more than one decision, right? Exactly. PREPOSITIONS AND IDIOMS Prepositions express relationships between other words, nouns usually, including relationships of time or space. Here are some common ones: ACROSS AFTER AT AS BEFORE BETWEEN BY FOR FROM IN LIKE OF ON OVER THROUGH TO UNDER UNTIL UP WITH Certain words must be paired with certain prepositions; these phrases are called idioms. Idioms are simply peculiarities in the English language and they include clichés such as raining cats and dogs, jump the gun, etc. There are tons of idioms out there – be on the lookout for these repeat offenders on the SAT: I am indebted __________ you. I am resentful __________ you. I am delighted __________ or __________ you. I am worried __________ you. I am astounded __________ you. The men had a dispute __________ politics. You have a responsibility __________ take care of your pet. You are responsible __________ your pet. My friends are different __________ your friends. His talent is so huge __________ limitless! RANDOM THINGS If you have checked your sentences for the aforementioned areas and you are still unsure about which answer to choose, take a quick peek for the Random Things listed below. While these are less common errors, they may pop up occasionally – so be prepared! Faulty Comparisons Think apples and oranges – you can’t compare them, right? No, because they are different! The same thing goes for verbs, nouns, and pronouns. What is wrong with the following example? Debi goes shopping at this store because the prices are better than the other store. What is being compared? __________________________________________ What should be compared? _________________________________________ Try these: 10. Jack was disappointed because his score on the SATs was not as outstanding as Rob. A. B. C. D. E. was not as outstanding as Rob did not stand out as much as Rob was not as outstanding as Rob’s score did not surpass Rob was not as outstanding than Rob’s 12. Although Ramsey High School’s soccer team seemed to have stronger players, Bergenfield actually won the game. A. B. C. D. E. Bergenfield actually won the game Bergenfield have actually won the game the game was actually won by Bergenfield’s team Bergenfield’s team actually won the game the winner actually was Bergenfield’s team Misplaced Modifiers Funny things can happen if you don’t put modifiers (single words or phrases) in the right places. A modifier should be right next to the thing it modifies, which makes it easy to spot these types of errors. Be on the lookout for: Descriptive phrases at the beginning of a sentence, set off from the sentence by a comma. Remember, the thing after the descriptive phrase and the comma MUST BE the subject. (Another approach would be to simply place the subject in the beginning of the sentence.) 12. While getting ready for the party, the hot water ran out and Mindy was forced to take a sponge bath with cold water. What is the descriptive phrase at the beginning? __________________________________________________________________ What comes right after the comma? _____________________________________ Is that what the phrase is intended to modify? _____________________________ Try it again: 12. Perhaps the most beautiful natural vegetation in the world, the West of Ireland explodes each spring with a tremendous variety of wildflowers. A. B. C. D. E. Perhaps the most beautiful natural vegetation in the world In what may be the world’s most beautiful natural vegetation Home to what may be the world’s most beautiful natural vegetation Its vegetation may be the world’s most beautiful More beautiful in its natural vegetation than anywhere else in the world Adjectives and Adverbs ►Adjectives modify nouns; Adverbs modify verbs, adverbs, and adjectives. ETS loves to put adjectives where it should use adverbs and vice versa. If you see an adjective or adverb underlined, look to see what the adjective or adverb is modifying. 1. The sneaky thief, hoping to evade police, ran quick into the alley after brazenly A B C D stealing the jewels. No error. E 1. If you look close at the prices, you’ll see that the “economy size” of detergent is A B actually more expensive than the smaller trial size. No error. C D E Countable vs. Not Countable What is the difference between: Many and Much? Fewer and Less? Number and Amount? The difference is many, fewer, and number are used when the item you are describing is countable; much, less, and amount are used when the item you are describing is not countable. MANY people can eat MUCH pudding. If I had FEWER classes I could do LESS studying. I need a large NUMBER of tomatoes to make a large AMOUNT of tomato sauce. Active and Passive Voice ETS prefers the active voice over the passive voice. He took the SATs. is much better than The SATs were taken by him. Active voice is a much stronger form of expression! Comparison Words The correct words for comparisons depend on the number of things you are comparing: two, or more than two. MORE (for two things) vs. MOST (for more than two) LESS (for two things) vs. LEAST (for more than two) BETTER (for two things) vs. BEST (for more than two) BETWEEN (for two things) vs. AMONG (for more than two) Try the examples below: 1. Given Nick and Jake as possible dates, Nick is the most appealing one. No error. A B C D E 2. I am less likely to be chosen than you are. No error. A B C D E 3. Taking English is better than taking math. No error. A B C D E 4. Between the three of us she is the loudest. No error. A B C D E Diction Every now and again, ETS will give you a diction error question. These are tricky because many words look so similar that they may seem correct when they aren’t. Look at the following words and provide the correct definition for each of them. IMMINENT _________________ and EMINENT ___________________ PROSCRIBE _________________ and PRESCRIBE _________________ INTELLIGENT _______________ and INTELLIGIBLE_______________ COMPLIMENT_______________ and COMPLEMENT_______________ INCREDIBLE________________ and INCREDULOUS_______________ FARTHER_______________ and FURTHER_______________ IRRITATED_______________ and AGGRAVATED_______________ STATIONARY_______________ and STATIONERY_______________ ILLICIT_______________ and ELICIT_______________ PRINCIPLE_______________ and PRINCIPAL_______________ Try this: 1. After Karen used all of her stationary to complete her thank-you notes that A she had written, she mailed them immediately. No error. B C D E What did Karen use? _________________________________________________ What does this word mean? ____________________________________________ One last thing… Sometimes, ETS uses awkward-sounding words or phrases that sound wrong, but are actually correct. If you come across them, remember that they are RIGHT! ought not to be shall heretofore notwithstanding of which whom 2. The boy whom I adore ought not to be forced to perform such lowly household A B tasks as those to which you allude. No error. C D E IMPROVING PARAGRAPHS You will encounter six questions in the Writing Section that require you to make corrections to a “first draft” of an essay. A few things to note: The “20% correct” rule does not apply here. There are more flaws in the paragraph than you will be asked about. Don’t even worry about them – focus on the questions you are being asked! Step 1: The Passage The good news is you DON’T HAVE TO READ THE WHOLE THING! It does not matter if you understand the entire thing or if you can speak intelligently about the passage once the test is over. What matters is getting the questions right! Step 1: Skim the passage quickly. Don’t worry about reading every word or understanding everything about it. Step 2: Go right to the questions. The following passage will be used for a number of questions in this section. Start now by skimming it quickly: (1) Conservation and ecology are hot topics at our school. (2) Students used to just throw everything out in one big garbage pail. (3) Sure, it was easy. (4) It wasn’t good for the environment. (5) I volunteered to head up the conservation team. (6) My friends and I decided to map out our strategies. (7) First we needed to get students to become aware of the problem. (8) Educating was important. (9) A thing to do was implement a recycling program. (10) We checked with the local town government. (11) They would supply the recycling bins. (12) We had to supply the people who would be willing to recycle. (13) The most important thing students had to learn to do was to separate their garbage. (14) Glass in one container. (15) Plastic in another. (16) Our final step was to get the teachers and administrators involved. (17) Paper can be recycled too. (18) We ran a poster contest. (19) The winners are hanging in our halls. (20) Reuse, recycle, renew. (21) That’s our new school motto. Step 2: The Questions There are three basic types of questions: Revision Questions: You’ll be asked to revise sentences or parts of sentences. Combination Questions: You’ll have to combine two or more sentences. Content Questions: You’ll answer questions regarding the content of the passages. Revision Questions These questions are similar to the Improving Sentences questions covered in the previous section, so you should generally follow the same steps and watch out for the same things. Here are some additional points to keep in mind: Go back to the passage and read the sentences before and after the one you’re supposed to revise – doing this will give you the necessary context to make the revision. If you spot an error, eliminate any answer choice that repeats it. If you don’t spot an error, go to the answer choices and eliminate any answer choices that contain errors that you can see. Be careful of ambiguities like “it” or “they.” Try one: 36. In context, what is the best way to revise sentence 9? A thing to do was implement a recycling program. A. B. C. D. E. Next, we needed to implement a recycling program. Implementing a recycling program was a thing to do. A recycling program needed to be implemented. Implementing a program for recycling was the step that would be next. A program would need to be implemented next for recycling. Remember the best revision is the one that states the sentence in the most concise, clear way. Eliminate answer choices that are too wordy or awkward-sounding. Combination Questions These ask you to revise two sentences by combining them. You can probably answer these without even going back to the passage – just look for the answer choice that is the most concise! Also, note if the two sentences are going in the same or opposite directions. 37. Which of the following represents the most effective way to combine sentences 20 and 21? Reuse, recycle, renew. That’s our school’s new motto. A. B. C. D. E. Reuse, recycle, renew and you know our school’s new motto. The new motto of our school is that: Reuse, recycle, renew. Reuse, recycle, renew are the new motto of our school now. The new motto of our school is reusing, recycling, and renewing. Reuse, recycle, renew is our school’s new motto. 38. Which of the following represents the best revision of the underlined portions of sentences 7 and 8? First we needed to get students to become aware of the problem. Educating was important. A. B. C. D. E. problem for educating was important problem of educating. It was important problem to educate was important problem: education was important problem for education was important to us TIP: When combining sentences, look for a colon or a semi-colon in the answer choices – they are usually right! And just in case you forgot… ► A colon is used for lists. ► A semi-colon separates two independent clauses. Content Questions ETS will sometimes ask you a question regarding the content of the passage. There are a few different approaches: I. II. III. Which sentence should immediately follow or precede the passage? Which sentence should be inserted into the passage? What is the best description of the passage as a whole? Types I and II Be sure to keep as close as possible to the subject matter of the section your putting a sentence into. Don’t go off on any tangents! Go back to the passage and read a couple of lines before the sentence in question to establish context. 39. Which of the following sentences, if added after sentence (4) would best serve to link the first paragraph to the second paragraph? A. B. C. D. E. Unfortunately, the environment suffered. Clearly, we had to make a change. Easy things are often not good for the environment. However, people can be very lazy. The school was against any change. Type III From answering the other questions, you should have a basic idea of what the passage is about. Think about the main ideas of the passage and the author’s purpose.