Practice Test

Why it is hard

The errors sit together in the paragraph's last sentence, and neither is heard easily, so students who judge by ear look for problems elsewhere. The strongest pull applies two familiar but wrong rules, no comma before “and” and a plural pronoun for a mixture of several ingredients, to a sentence that is already correct. The question rewards testing each pronoun against its noun and each comma against a rule before reading the pairs.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   Both real errors sound natural: “each pancake … when they start to bubble” passes because several pancakes are cooking, and “sweet delicious breakfast” seldom sounds as if it needs a comma between its adjectives. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

   Eight underlined spots are paired into four proposed revisions, one pair per sentence, and a pair is right only if both of its edits fix real errors, so every edit has to be tried in place. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Before reading the choices, test each underlined spot yourself: find what each pronoun and verb refers to, and decide whether each comma is needed. Then look for the pair whose two edits both fix real errors.

Traps

• Fixes what isn't broken: Changes a part of the sentence that was already correct, while the real error stays; or, where the question asks which sentence has an error or should go, picks one that is correct and belongs.
• Agreement: A verb that does not agree with its subject, or a pronoun that does not agree with the word it stands for.
• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a surface strategy Expected pull: weak

  Deletes the comma after the first of three names in a series and changes “their” to “her,” though the pronoun refers to all three siblings.

• B Agreement (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Counts two tasks, opening the box and pouring, and wants the plural “are,” though the subject is the singular “job,” and drops the comma before “slowly adding.”

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: strong

  Applies the rule that a comma never comes before “and,” though this one joins two complete clauses, and makes “it” plural for the ingredients, though it means the mixture.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

Students no longer have to supply the fix, only find the faulty spot, so the question rests on recognizing a comma splice. The error sits in the first sentence behind a long museum name, while the phrases “including Muhammad Ali’s boxing gloves” and “written in 1863” look more suspicious to anyone unsure about phrases set off by commas. Testing each spot for a full sentence on both sides finds it quickly.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   A comma alone joins two full clauses at “Institution, the,” and because the long museum name delays the break, the comma reads as a pause rather than a missing period. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The first clause runs 19 words, most of them the museum’s name, so by the time “the museum is already” arrives it sounds like a continuation, not a new sentence. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   Each of the four clickable phrases straddles a comma or a period, so students must check, at every one, whether the words on each side could stand as a sentence. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Find the subject and main verb of each sentence and count how many complete thoughts it holds, then check whether the punctuation at each underlined spot suits what comes on either side.

Traps

• Fixes what isn't broken: Changes a part of the sentence that was already correct, while the real error stays; or, where the question asks which sentence has an error or should go, picks one that is correct and belongs.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a surface strategy Expected pull: weak

  Suspects the break after “year” because two sentences meet there, though a period already separates two complete sentences correctly, each with its own subject and verb.

• C Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Believes a phrase opening with “including” after a comma is a fragment, though it correctly attaches examples to “more than 30,000 objects” within a complete sentence.

• D Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Thinks “written in 1863” cannot describe the copy without “which was,” though the sentence already has its verb “is” and the participial phrase is correctly set off.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of choice 3 calls “including Muhammad Ali’s boxing gloves and a dress sewn by Rosa Parks” a “nonrestrictive appositive phrase.” An appositive renames a noun; this phrase gives examples of the objects, and “including” followed by a noun phrase works as a preposition, so it is a prepositional phrase. The explanation of choice 4 calls “written in 1863 during the presidency of Abraham Lincoln” a “nonrestrictive clause”; it has no subject or finite verb of its own, so it is a participial phrase. The site now says “nonrestrictive prepositional phrase” and “nonrestrictive participial phrase.” Both parts are still correctly constructed, and the answer, “Institution, the,” is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The shift to “Then she studies” stands out in a story told in the past tense with “spent,” “did” and “recited,” and finding either half of the right option is enough to choose it. That makes this one of the easiest editing questions. Students who miss it usually trust a half-remembered comma rule, such as a comma before “so,” and stop checking the verb in the same option.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong minor Working it out

   Only two nouns, “emotions” and “motivations,” follow “the,” so the comma between them has no job, yet a habit of putting commas before “and” in lists hides it. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   The four options each pair a tense change with a comma change, one option per sentence, and an option is right only when both of its edits repair real errors. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Find the tense of the paragraph's first verb, check every underlined verb against it, and then confirm that the comma change in the same choice is needed too.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Verb tense or form (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Thinks “had spent” is needed because the preparing came before the audition, and accepts a comma after “play” that would cut off “at the community theater.”

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Applies the rule of a comma before “so” joining two clauses, missing that “so that” opens a purpose clause with no comma, and accepts the present-tense “does.”

• D Verb tense or form (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: weak

  Notices that the tenses clash but takes the present-tense “studies” as the standard, shifts “recited” to match, and drops the comma that sets off “making slight adjustments.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The sentence is long, two of its five decisions turn on subtle comma rules, and the site counts the answer right only when both edits are right. The comma before “and do not require” is the strongest trap, because a comma before “and” is a habit many students apply without checking whether a new clause begins. The paired commas around “an image recorded on a copper plate coated in silver” are already correct, and deleting either one breaks the pair.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong major Working it out

   Both needed edits rest on rules students rarely hear: “first, official” are not coordinate adjectives, so no comma, and “which are digitized” adds nonessential detail about photos of today, so it needs one. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Much to keep track of moderate Working it out

   There are five comma decisions in one sentence and both selections must be right to score, so each edit is judged on its own while the rest of the sentence is held in mind. (Sweller, 1988; Carpenter, Just & Shell, 1990)

3. Complex sentences moderate Understanding the question

   The sentence runs 57 words and stacks an appositive, a participial phrase beginning “using a process,” and a relative clause with two verbs, so finding where each phrase starts and ends is itself the task. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Take the five underlined words one at a time: name what the phrase after each one does in the sentence, decide whether a comma belongs there, and choose only the two edits you are sure of.

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Deletes the comma that opens the appositive “an image recorded on a copper plate coated in silver,” which defines daguerreotype and must be set off from it.

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: moderate

  Deletes the comma that closes the same appositive, perhaps feeling the sentence has too many commas, though a phrase set off mid-sentence needs a comma on each side.

• E Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: strong

  Applies the habit of a comma before “and,” though here “and” joins two verbs that share one subject, “which,” inside one clause, not two complete clauses.

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Left out by students who think a comma always separates two adjectives, though “first” describes “official selfie” as a unit, so the adjectives are not coordinate.

• D Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: moderate

  Left out by students who read “photos of today which are digitized” as one essential phrase, missing that the which-clause adds nonessential detail and needs a comma.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option C says the comma after “silver” “is needed to separate the clauses.” Neither side of that comma is a clause. Before it is the appositive “an image recorded on a copper plate coated in silver,” as the explanations of Options B and C say; after it is the phrase “using a process that was more complicated…,” a participial phrase with no subject of its own. The comma ends the appositive. The site now says the comma “is needed to end the appositive and separate it from the phrase that follows.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The error is in the first sentence, but it hides behind a comma that sounds like an ordinary pause, while the later spots carry features that look riskier: a transition word, a clause beginning “much of which,” the phrase “in fact.” Students who test each spot for a complete sentence on both sides find the splice at once. Those who look for a revision that merely sounds polished are drawn to the semicolon, which is correct but fixes nothing.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The comma after “continents” joins two complete sentences, and because “at one time” sounds like an introductory phrase continuing the thought, the splice reads as a natural pause. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   Each revision changes only punctuation at one underlined spot, and the semicolon one is correct English, so students must ask whether each spot was wrong to begin with, not only whether the change looks right. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The paragraph’s sentences are long, with the appositive “known as Pangaea” and the clause “much of which were,” whose odd-sounding verb draws suspicion to a spot that is correctly punctuated. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: At each underlined spot, read the words on both sides and ask whether each side could stand as a sentence, then pick the revision that leaves every sentence correctly joined or separated.

Traps

• Fixes what isn't broken: Changes a part of the sentence that was already correct, while the real error stays; or, where the question asks which sentence has an error or should go, picks one that is correct and belongs.
• Fragment or run-on: Creates or keeps a sentence fragment, a run-on sentence or a comma splice.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Knows a semicolon can join two clauses before “additionally” and picks that tidy-looking change, though the period it replaces was already correct and the comma splice up front remains.

• C Fragment or run-on (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Treats the long second sentence as a run-on and splits it after “Panthalassa,” leaving “Much of which were in Earth’s Southern Hemisphere” as a fragment with no main clause.

• D Fragment or run-on (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Thinks “in fact” belongs inside the sentence before it, set off by commas, which joins two complete sentences with only a comma and creates the error the paragraph already has.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option C says a period after “Panthalassa” would separate the dependent clause “much of which were in Earth’s Southern Hemisphere” “from its subject: ‘ocean waters called Panthalassa.’” The clause has a subject of its own, “much”; “ocean waters called Panthalassa” is its antecedent, the noun phrase that “which” refers to. The explanation also calls the clause “an adjective for ‘ocean waters’”; a clause is not an adjective but an adjective (relative) clause, which modifies the noun. The site now says “from its antecedent” and “an adjective clause that modifies ‘ocean waters.’” The reasoning and the answer, A, are unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The which-clause has a closing comma after “World” but no opening one, and the sentence still sounds natural, so many students see the lone comma as the mistake instead of noticing its missing partner. Bracketing the extra description first, from “which” to “World,” exposes the gap quickly. The remaining choices fall to two rules students usually know: city and country are separated, and a second verb sharing the subject takes no comma.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   “Rome, Italy which is considered” reads smoothly aloud, yet the comma after “Italy” is needed twice over: to close the city-and-country pair and to open the nonessential which-clause. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   Thirty-one words hold a two-part place name, a which-clause wedged between subject and verb, and two verbs, “is” and “once could hold,” sharing one subject, so each comma must be judged against that frame. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Strip the sentence down to its main subject and verb, then check every marked spot against that core: what is the comma, or the missing comma, doing there?

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Treats “Rome, Italy” as a single name that should not be broken, not knowing that a comma always separates a city from the country that follows it.

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Applies the sound rule against a comma between a subject and its verb to the comma before “is,” missing that it closes the which-clause and must stay.

• D Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Adds a pause before “and once could hold” because the sentence is long, though that second verb shares the subject, the Colosseum, and takes no comma.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The paragraph's only real errors sit at the end of its longest sentence, where a plural noun pair just before the faulty verb hides the mismatch. Students who do not hear “allow” as wrong start doubting correct marks instead, such as the colon before an embedded question or the comma after “To start with.” Every wrong pair also changes a verb or pronoun that already agrees, so reading each edit back into its sentence rules those pairs out.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   In sentence 4 the plural pair “texture and flavor” sits just before “and allow,” so the verb sounds right, but it belongs to “which,” the warmer serving, and must match “enhances.” (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked moderate Choosing the answer

   Each pair proposes two edits in one sentence, eight in all, and a pair is right only if both of its edits fix real errors, so every edit has to be tried in place. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   Sentence 4 hangs a which-clause with two verbs onto the main clause, and the comma before “and allow” splits that clause's compound predicate in a way few students hear as wrong. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Before reading the choices, find each verb's true subject and test every marked comma yourself; then look for the choice whose two edits both fix errors you found.

Traps

• Fixes what isn't broken: Changes a part of the sentence that was already correct, while the real error stays; or, where the question asks which sentence has an error or should go, picks one that is correct and belongs.
• Agreement: A verb that does not agree with its subject, or a pronoun that does not agree with the word it stands for.
• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Agreement (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: strong

  Hears “the two” as the subject and wants “are,” and distrusts a colon before a question, though “the difference” is singular and the colon is correct.

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Believes a short opener like “To start with” needs no comma and accepts “they are,” though the pronoun stands for the singular “butterfat content.”

• C Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a surface strategy Expected pull: weak

  Picks edits to a sentence that is already correct, unbalancing the commas around the which-clause and giving the singular “mixing process” a plural verb.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The one missing comma sits at the end of a long sentence, right after an unfamiliar word, and the sentence still sounds acceptable without it. The strongest pull applies the appositive rule one spot too early, between a descriptive title and the name it introduces, while the other two wrong edits remove commas that the date and the added phrase about the record both need. Bracketing each piece of added information, from where it starts to where it ends, exposes the gap after the sport’s name.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   Two quiet rules decide the question: the closing appositive “a sport that combines jogging and juggling” must be set off from “joggling,” while a title placed straight before a name, as in “Boston University student Zach Prescott,” takes no comma. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Hard words minor Understanding the question

   “Joggling” is a word few students have met, and without the comma “in joggling a sport” can read like a verb and its object rather than the name of a sport followed by its definition. (Perfetti, 2007; Freedle & Kostin, 1993)

3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The 36-word sentence strings together a date, a title and name, a “while” phrase, the phrase “breaking the 32-year-old world record” and a closing appositive, so every comma has to be judged against where these parts begin and end. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Find the main subject and verb, then take the four underlined spots in order and ask what the words on each side are doing and whether a comma belongs between them.

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Treats the comma after “2018” as extra, not knowing that a full date takes a comma after the year as well as between the day and the year.

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Applies the appositive rule to “student Zach Prescott,” but a title placed directly before a name is not set off, and a lone comma there would cut the title off from the name.

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Deletes the comma before “breaking the 32-year-old world record” as if the phrase belonged to the juggling, though without it the lacrosse balls seem to break the record instead of Prescott.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

Every marked spot but one already follows a rule, and the sentence reads smoothly as printed, so students who edit by ear go hunting for a pause to add or a comma to remove. The strongest pull inserts a comma between “from a deli” and “in her neighborhood,” two phrases that work as one, and another deletes the series comma because it sits right before a verb. Testing the two adjectives with “and” settles the question in seconds.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   “Tempting savory sandwiches” sounds complete without a comma, so the error is invisible to the ear; only putting “and” between the two adjectives, or swapping them, shows that they are coordinate and need one. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The 34-word sentence opens with a nine-word infinitive phrase and then lists three actions, the first running ten words to “neighborhood,” so each marked comma must be judged against where these parts begin and end. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Take the four marked spots one at a time and name the comma rule that applies there; change only the spot where the sentence breaks a rule, not one that already follows it.

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Treats the comma after “Friday” as an interruption, though the nine-word opening phrase “To surprise her dad for his birthday on Friday” has to be set off from “Yolanda.”

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Treats “in her neighborhood” as extra information to set off, but the phrase identifies the deli and works with “from a deli” as one unit, so no comma goes between them.

• D Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Stretches the rule against separating a subject from its verb to the comma before “prepared,” though that comma ends the first of Yolanda’s three actions in a series.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The sentence sounds natural as printed, so a student listening for pauses could put a comma in almost any of the four places. The question rewards knowing the test for coordinate adjectives: when “and” fits between two describing words and their order can be swapped, a comma belongs there. “Agile and athletic” passes that test, while “only and professional” fails, because “first and only” works as one unit that limits the whole phrase “professional basketball player.”

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The missing comma falls between “agile” and “athletic,” two adjectives that each describe Chamberlain, and the phrase reads smoothly without it, so the error has to be found by rule rather than by ear. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   All four edits add a comma, and two of the spots come between describing words, after “agile” and after “only,” so each pair must be tested with “and” before one is chosen. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Take the four marked words one at a time, say what the words on either side of each are doing, and add a comma only where a rule calls for one, not wherever you would pause.

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Hears an emphatic pause in “the first and only,” as if writing “the first, and only,” though a single comma there splits a pair that works as one unit.

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Believes any two describing words in a row need a comma and spots “only professional,” though “only” cannot be swapped with “professional” or joined to it by “and.”

• D Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Puts a comma before “to score 100 points in a single game” because the sentence is long, though that phrase tells what made him the first player and takes no comma.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

Every choice makes the same kind of change, so the question comes down to telling one real comma splice from three commas doing legitimate work. The most dangerous spot is after “race,” where a subject and verb sit on both sides of the comma, just as at the real error, and only the word “Once” marks the first part as dependent. Students who test each side for a complete thought, not just for a subject and a verb, find the splice in the opening sentence quickly.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The run-on hides behind the short phrase “at that time,” which makes the comma after “name” sound like an ordinary pause; only checking that each side can stand alone exposes the comma splice. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   All four revisions swap a comma for a period, so every underlined spot needs the same test: could the words before it and the words after it each stand as a sentence? (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

3. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The three correct commas guard three different structures, an opening “Once” clause, a participial phrase beginning with “paving” and an appositive after “261,” and each has to be recognized as unable to stand alone. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: At each underlined comma, read the words before it and the words after it as separate pieces and ask whether each could stand alone as a sentence; that shows where a period belongs.

Traps

• Fragment or run-on: Creates or keeps a sentence fragment, a run-on sentence or a comma splice.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Fragment or run-on (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Finds a subject and verb on both sides of the comma after “race” and calls it a splice, missing that “Once” makes the first part a dependent clause that cannot stand alone.

• C Fragment or run-on (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Treats the long third sentence as a run-on and ends it after “hours,” leaving “Paving the way for the official rule change” as a fragment with no subject or main verb.

• D Fragment or run-on (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: moderate

  Spots the subject and verb “she had worn” after the comma following “261,” but they sit inside a phrase that renames the number, so the new sentence would be a fragment.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Stem and explanation: The handbook spells the runner’s name “Katherine Switzer” in the paragraph and twice in the explanation. She is Kathrine Switzer, who entered the 1967 Boston Marathon as “K. V. Switzer,” so the site now spells her name that way, in the question’s title too. No answer depends on the spelling.
• Explanation: The DOE’s explanation of Option C calls “paving the way for the official rule change that allowed for the inclusion of women” a dependent clause, and on that basis calls the sentence a complex sentence. The words have no subject or finite verb of their own: they are a participial phrase, which the site now calls them, and the site no longer calls the sentence complex for that reason. Its explanation of Option D calls “the same number she had worn in that first run in 1967” a modifying clause; it is an appositive phrase, a noun phrase that renames “number 261,” and the site now says so. Neither phrase can stand alone as a sentence, so Options C and D are still wrong, and the answer, Option A, is unchanged.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The paragraph holds two errors of different kinds, an unclosed “who” clause and a slip into present tense, and the other two proposed edits change text that is already correct. Students who catch the tense shift but not the comma are left between two pairs, and many then delete the sound comma after the opening “When” clause. The question rewards finding both errors in the paragraph before reading the pairs.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The “who owned a cleaning product company” clause opens with a comma but never closes, and sentence 2 still reads smoothly aloud, so the missing comma after “company” is easy to miss. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. A very close wrong answer moderate Choosing the answer

   The right pair and the pair that deletes the comma after “homes” share the “becomes” to “became” fix, so only the comma edit, after “company” or after “homes”, tells them apart. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987; Gorin & Embretson, 2006; Ascalon et al., 2007)

3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   The four pairs draw on four possible edits in four sentences, so each edit has to be judged on its own and a pair accepted only when both are needed. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Find the errors yourself before looking at the pairs: check whether each comma is needed or missing, and check that each verb's tense fits when its event happened.

Traps

• Punctuation: A comma, semicolon, colon, dash or apostrophe used where it does not belong, or missing where it does.
• Verb tense or form: The wrong tense, an inconsistent shift of tense, or a wrong verb form.
• Fixes what isn't broken: Changes a part of the sentence that was already correct, while the real error stays; or, where the question asks which sentence has an error or should go, picks one that is correct and belongs.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Gets the “becomes” to “became” fix but, missing the unclosed “who” clause in sentence 2, deletes the comma that correctly ends the opening clause of sentence 1.

• B Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a surface strategy Expected pull: weak

  Changes two correct parts, deleting the comma after an opening clause and adding a needless past perfect, while both real errors in sentences 2 and 3 stay.

• D Verb tense or form (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: moderate

  Adds the needed comma after “company” but thinks the later event needs “had remarketed”, missing the real tense error, the present-tense “becomes” in sentence 3.

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

Most students who miss this question can find the which-clause but treat its two edges differently: they see the closing comma after “World” as an error and never notice that the opening comma is missing. The question rewards marking where the extra description begins and ends before judging any single comma. Knowing that a city and its country are always separated settles the rest quickly.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The missing comma after “Italy” does two jobs at once, closing the city–country pair and opening the which-clause, and “Rome, Italy which is considered” reads smoothly enough that few students hear the gap. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The sentence packs a place name, a nonessential which-clause and a compound predicate (“is the largest amphitheater ever built and could hold”) into 30 words, so every comma has to be placed within that structure. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

Strategy: Mark where the extra description of the Colosseum begins and ends, then ask of each comma whether it separates a city from its country, sets off that description, or splits subject from verb.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Treats Rome and Italy as one name that needs no comma between them, not knowing that a comma always separates a city from its state or country.

• C Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: strong

  Applies the real rule against a comma between subject and verb to the comma after “World,” missing that it closes the which-clause and must stay.

• D Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Adds a comma wherever the long sentence seems to pause, before “and could hold,” though that second verb shares the subject and takes no comma.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Explanation: The handbook calls “could hold more than 50,000 spectators” a dependent clause. It has no subject of its own: it is the second half of a compound predicate (the Colosseum “is the largest amphitheater ever built and could hold…”), which is why no comma goes before it. The site now calls it “part of a compound predicate.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

Students who miss this one usually look for the error in the wrong place: the phrases “including Muhammad Ali’s boxing gloves” and “written in 1863” look suspicious, while the real splice hides behind the long museum name. The question rewards checking each spot for a subject and verb on both sides of its punctuation. Two choices offer the same “, and the” fix, so knowing the fix is not enough without finding where it belongs.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong moderate Working it out

   The error is a comma splice after “Institution,” where a comma alone joins two complete clauses, and a comma sounds like a natural pause when the sentence is read aloud. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Complex sentences minor Understanding the question

   The eight-word museum name stretches the first clause, so by the time “the museum is already” arrives, it reads like a continuation rather than a new subject and verb. (Abedi & Lord, 2001; Freedle & Kostin, 1993; Messick, 1989)

3. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   The four underlined spots fall in four different sentences, and each has to be tested for whether a complete sentence sits on both sides of its punctuation. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Check each sentence for a subject and main verb and count its complete thoughts, then decide whether the spot each choice changes actually breaks a rule before picking a fix.

The wrong answers, classified

• B Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a surface strategy Expected pull: weak

  Recognizes “, and the” as the usual run-on fix but applies it where a period already separates two complete, correctly punctuated sentences.

• C Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Believes a phrase opening with “including” after a comma is a fragment, so turns it into a which-clause, though the phrase already attaches correctly to “objects.”

• D Fixes what isn't broken (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Thinks “written in 1863” cannot describe the copy without “which was,” though the sentence already has its verb “is” and the phrase is correctly set off.

What was corrected from the DOE handbook, and why

• Explanation: The handbook says the correct revision “adds the word ‘and’ before the comma.” In “Institution, and the,” the word “and” comes after the comma, so the site now says “after the comma.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it

Why it is hard

The tense error is easy to hear: “Then he studies” breaks a past-tense story told with “spent,” “did” and “recited.” Spotting either half of the correct choice is enough to find it, which is why this is one of the easier editing questions. Students who go wrong are usually drawn by a comma rule they half remember, such as a comma before “so,” and stop checking the verb.

1. A rule that doesn't sound wrong minor Working it out

   The comma in “emotions, and motivations” separates just two items, and many students have learned to put a comma before “and” in any list without counting the items. (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

2. Every choice must be checked minor Choosing the answer

   Each choice bundles a verb change and a comma change in a different sentence, so all four sentences must be checked, and a choice is right only if both of its edits are needed. (Embretson & Wetzel, 1987)

Strategy: Note the tense of the paragraph’s first verb, check every other verb against it, and only then test whether the comma half of that choice is also needed.

The wrong answers, classified

• A Verb tense or form (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: weak

  Thinks “had spent” is needed because the preparing came before the audition, and accepts a comma after “play” that would split “a play at the community theater.”

• B Punctuation (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals a misconception Expected pull: moderate

  Follows the rule of a comma before “so” joining two clauses, missing that “so that” introduces a purpose clause and takes no comma, and accepts the present-tense “does.”

• D Verb tense or form (Connors & Lunsford, 1988)

  Reveals partial knowledge Expected pull: weak

  Notices that the tenses clash but takes the present-tense “studies” as the standard, shifts “recited” to match, and drops the comma that sets off “making slight adjustments.”

How the questions are analyzed, and the research behind it