SAT Skills Insight
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6/1
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Select a score band
Manage word choice and grammatical relationships between words
Skills needed to score in this band
SKILL 1: Recognize vague pronoun usage (i.e., the pronoun has no clear or specific referent)
SKILL 2: Recognize appropriate pronoun usage (i.e., pronoun agrees with referent in terms of number)
SKILL 3: Recognize subject-verb disagreement with brief interrupter that does not alter the number considered and that does not shift the focus away from the proper subject
SKILL 4: Recognize inappropriate sequence of verb tenses
SKILL 5: Recognize redundancy (e.g., “Annually each year . . .”)
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1
Recognize vague pronoun usage (i.e., the pronoun has no clear or specific referent)
ExampleThe following sentence tests your ability to recognize grammar and usage errors. The sentence contains either a single error or no error at all. The sentence will not contain more than one error. The error, if there is one, is underlined and lettered. If the sentence contains an error, select the one underlined part that must be changed to make the sentence correct. If the sentence is correct, select choice E. In choosing answers, follow the requirements of standard written English.
Among the discoveries made possible by the invention of the telescope they found that dark spots existed on the Sun in varying numbers. No error
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2
Recognize appropriate pronoun usage (i.e., pronoun agrees with referent in terms of number)
ExampleThe following sentence tests correctness and effectiveness of expression. Part of the sentence or the entire sentence is underlined; beneath the sentence are five ways of phrasing the underlined material. Choice A repeats the original phrasing; the other four choices are different. If you think the original phrasing produces a better sentence than any of the alternatives, select choice A; if not, select one of the other choices.
In making your selection, follow the requirements of standard written English; that is, pay attention to grammar, choice of words, sentence construction, and punctuation. Your selection should result in the most effective sentence-clear and precise, without awkwardness or ambiguity.
Of all the people playing roles in the musical, mine is the smallest part.
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3
Recognize subject-verb disagreement with brief interrupter that does not alter the number considered and that does not shift the focus away from the proper subject
ExampleThe following sentence tests your ability to recognize grammar and usage errors. The sentence contains either a single error or no error at all. The sentence will not contain more than one error. The error, if there is one, is underlined and lettered. If the sentence contains an error, select the one underlined part that must be changed to make the sentence correct. If the sentence is correct, select choice E. In choosing answers, follow the requirements of standard written English.
If hordes of insects attacks crops, growers will not make any profits. No error
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4
Recognize inappropriate sequence of verb tenses
ExampleThe following sentence tests your ability to recognize grammar and usage errors. The sentence contains either a single error or no error at all. The sentence will not contain more than one error. The error, if there is one, is underlined and lettered. If the sentence contains an error, select the one underlined part that must be changed to make the sentence correct. If the sentence is correct, select choice E. In choosing answers, follow the requirements of standard written English.
If Plato had not written dialogues describing Socrates' method of teaching, Socrates probably will have influenced only his contemporaries. No error
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5
Recognize redundancy (e.g., “Annually each year . . .”)
ExampleThe following sentence tests your ability to recognize grammar and usage errors. The sentence contains either a single error or no error at all. The sentence will not contain more than one error. The error, if there is one, is underlined and lettered. If the sentence contains an error, select the one underlined part that must be changed to make the sentence correct. If the sentence is correct, select choice E. In choosing answers, follow the requirements of standard written English.
Bill simultaneously listened to music and did homework at the same time because he believed that music enabled him to relax while he studied. No error
Skills needed to score in the next band
In your reading, focus on specific paragraphs that contain pronouns, noting that pronouns must agree in number and person and must refer to specific nouns. In your own writing, pay attention to the consistency of your pronoun usage.
In your reading, choose a paragraph and identify the subjects and verbs in the sentences within that paragraph in order to see that writers pay careful attention to gender, number, and person. In your own writing, pay attention to subject-verb agreement, even when the subject and verb are not next to each other, to ensure that subjects and verbs agree.
