Paper 1 revision: grammar concepts

QUESTION 1: Comprehension

“Discuss” implies that an opinion must be expressed with supporting evidence. Candidates must be taught to provide evidence for their opinions.

QUESTION 2: Summarising

• The use of “approximately 90 words” is a clear indication of a reasonable limit. Using too many words incurred penalties.

• When told to use their own words, candidates must heed that instruction.

• Writing a summary in point form means expressing one idea, fact, thought, etc. per point in 10- 12 words.

• A connected prose summary consists of only one paragraph.

QUESTIONS 3 AND 4 Advertising and other media

• Answers were generally of a poor quality as candidates ignored instructions to confine their comments and evidence to specifics. Again, providing specific evidence is essential to earning marks. A simple “Yes” and “No” is not acceptable.

• Candidates were required to offer interpretations of certain figures of speech like pun, euphemism, irony, etc.

• Appropriate evidence about specific facial  expressions of cartoon figures earned marks

while generalised comments did not. For example: “The raised eyebrows of the man

indicate his confusion while the wide eyes of the woman suggest her alarm.”

QUESTION 5: Editing, using language correctly

• Candidates should be reminded that sound editing is based on a thorough working

knowledge of the rules of English grammar and punctuation.

• Very few candidates could see the need for correct punctuation.

• We urge teachers to teach correct punctuation of direct speech, use of the apostrophe

and concord.

• Common spelling errors: yous (plural form of you), there (for "their").

Students, The English Handbook and Study Guide^TM covers every aspect of the English Language you will need from Senior Primary to Matric.

Here follows a list of grammar concepts which you may be asked to identify, analyse/explain, or correct when deliberate mistakes have been made to test your knowledge.

1.                  active and passive voice

2.                  adjective

3.                  adverb

4.                  auxiliary verb

5.                  concord

6.                  conjunction

7.                  direct speech

8.                  indirect speech

9.                  modal verb

10.              noun

11.              object

12.              predicate

13.              pronoun

14.              subject

15.              verbs (all nine tenses)

16.              apostrophe use (contraction and possessive)

17.              preposition

18.              punctuation marks (all)

19.              phrase vs. clause

syno-, anto-, homonyms, and homophones