Aseng2010 Ms&Report

8/3/2019 Aseng2010 Ms&Report

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Section C Marking Scheme

Part 1 Reading1. A(6 1)2. A (25)3. B(47)4. D(45)

5.6.7.8.

C(88)B(43)B(55)D(38)

9. A (69)10. D(21)11. B(64)12. C ( 6 3 )

13. C(66)14. A (67)15. D(58)16. C(67)

Part 2 Language Systems17. D(23)18. C(84)19. C(54)20. D(37)21. D(34)* This item was deleted.Note: Figures in brackets indicate the percentages of candidates choosing the correct answers.

22. B(42 ) 27. A (59) 32. B(62) 37. C(48) 42.23. A (69) 28. B(19) 33. A (52) 38. C(49) 43.24. C(57) 29. B(14) 34. B(61) 39. B(74) 44.25. C(66) 30. D(33) 35. B(46) 40. D(56) 45.26. * 31. C(19) 36. A (67) 41. D(44)

C(41)A (34)D(33)A (20)

46. E47. H48. M49. I

50. L51. D52. G53. C

54. A55. J56. K57. B

58. F

59. a/the lack of // an/the absence of // a/the shortage of // not having enough60. surroundings // environment61. negative experience IIpassive activity/experience62. prevent // stop63. ultimate test/way // best way /means64. entertain us65. growth // development // improvement66. dist inguish // differentiate67. television/TV and/or computer // computer and/or television/TV // computer playing games68. former // first69. easily // frequently // often // constantly // much70. are young/little/small/teenagers/adolescent(s) // are growi ng/devel oping71. thinking // (day)dreaming // contemplating72. replaci ng // substituting73. unwilling II reluctant // loathe74. to avoid/escape/evade75. solution // substitute

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76. t hose w h o ^ l ef t to // those left to

77. Butwith ^ K^ two-ca ree r househo ldshas

78. whohave the t ime?

79. re mem ber some )J^ ma in rules // remember some key n^X^n rulesto

80. In a d d i t i o n ^ al l its other benefi t sthe t h e

81 . p r o b a b l y ^ sing le most importan t way // probably single most importan t way

82. hea l th and d ie t n u ^ t i o n // heal th and d^ t n u t r i t i o nof in

83. assoc ia t e p ro fesso r for paed ia t r ic s // associa te professor for paed ia t r ic sand

84. S c h o o l but author of Ending the Food Fightto

85. the f ami ly m e a l i s n ' t e q u i v a l e n t ^ Mum

86. al l the k ids ^>^e s i t t i n g in the din ing r o o m

87. five nights a weekresearch

88. S u r p r i s i n g new re sea rches from the U n i v e r s i t y of M i n n e s o t ais

89. even i f their meal servedhealthily

90. kids eat mor e healt hy than when they eat ondo does

91 . a family diddine together // a family di ddine together // a f ami ly dX^ dine togethwhat

92. no matter whatever yo u eatextending

93. s lows down the process , ex tend family t imedoes working will

94. dinn er just is. not w o r k // dinner jus t is not w o r k // dinner jus t is not work//

95. crea te a rou t ine and s t ick to them

up start96. pick where you left off // pick where you left offinformation

97. t h e y ' l l share informat ions about their l ives

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Section C Reading and Language SystemsGeneral comments

This year' s paper consis ted of 97 items divided into two parts.

Part 1 Reading comprehension1 reading passage 16 multiple-choice questions

Part 2 Language systems:Multiple-choice clozeTheme clozeMatching exerciseSummary clozeProofreading exercise

17 multi ple-choi ce questions (1 item deleted)12 multiple-choice questions13 matching statements17 open-ended questions22 open-ended questions

Each item was worth 1 mark . Items inPart 1 were worth 6%of the subject mark and items inPart 2 were worth12% of the subject mark.

Overall, candidates fared better on the multi ple-choi ce questions (mean percentage correct 49%) than on theopen-ended section (mean percentage correct 41%). One question (question 26) was deleted from theM C clozebecause itwas statistically unreliable.

Part 1- Reading comprehension, Questions 1-16

Candidates achieved a mean percentage correct of55 % in this part ofthe paper. Th e text wasabout creativityand its influence on the economy.Candidates hadrelatively fewer problems when identifying the main idea ina paragraph ortheoverall theme ofa passage. Whe n presented with a setof statements which reflected ideas in a particular paragraph (seequestion1) orpassage (seequestion 16),more than 60% ofcandidates were able to identify which idea wasthe mostprevalent.

Q. 1 According to paragraph 1, creativity...* A . causes good economic things. (61%)B . is aresult of good economic things. (11%)C . is more valuable than good economic things. (8%)D . has become as valued asagood economic thing. (21%)

Q. 16 Which of the following is the best summary of this text?A . The creative ethos is the fundamental spiri t and character of modern culture. (11%)B . The rise of creativity may wel l make some of our problems worse. (8%)

* C . Creativity is the basis for economic and social change but there arelimits to what it can achieve. (67%)D . Creativity has come tobe valued very highly by society and wi l l probably continue to be so. (14%)

Candidates were also relatively better at identifying the meaning ofunfamiliar words. When given a choice ofalternative word replacements, candidates were able to identify which word was the closest in meaning. Forexample, in question 9,68% of candidates were able to infer themeaning of 'pervades' with thehelp of the pre-and post-sentences which provided some clues to identifying its meaning.

(Pre-sentence) Creativity involves distinct kinds of thinking and habits that must be cultivatedboth in theindividual andin the surrounding society. (Post-sentence) Thus, the creative ethos pervadeseverythingfrom ourworkplace culture toour valuesandcommunities, reshaping theway we see ourselvesas economicand socialactors -our very identities. '(lines 47-50)

Q.9 In line 47, thebest meaning of'pervades" is...* A . affects. (68%)

(3%)(13%)(14%)

B . compares.C . encourages.D . supercedes.

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However, when asked toapplyinferenceskills inthecontextof unfamiliar words, candidates' performance wasnoticeably worse. For example, inquestion 8, candidates either overlooked ordi d notunderstand theexpression'trotted out', which wasessential in interpreting the question. Rather, 43% of candidates chose option C whichdoes not convey themultifaceted ormultidimensional quality suggested.

'Second, humancreativity ismultifaceted andmultidimensional. It is not limitedtotechnological innovation ornew business models. It isnotsomethingthat can bekept in abox andtrotted out when one arrivesat the office.Creativity involves distinct kinds of thinkingandhabits that must becultivatedbothin theindividual and in thesurroundingsociety.' (lines 40-47)

Q.8 Inlines 42-44, 'It is not something that can bekept in abox and trotted out when one arrives at the office' suggests thatcreativity is something that you ...A . can demonstrate. (12%)B . can teach someone. (5%)C . cannot teach someone. (43%)

* D . cannot switch on and off. (48%)

Candidates also hadsome difficulty identifying anaphoric reference points inthe text. For example, to answerquestion 7, candidates hadtowork out that 'technological innovation', inparagraph 4,hada similar meaning to'creative inventions' in paragraph 2,and then f ind an example of a creative invention.

Q.7 Inlines 41-42, 'technological innovation' refers back to...A . creative developments. (15%)

* B . inventions l ike the steam engine. (54%)C . growth in productivity and material wealth. (16%)D . structures for eliciting and applying creativity. (12%)

The item that proved most challenging in the reading comprehension was question 10. 63% of candidates madethe same mist ake of tracing the two anaphoric references in the same sentence, 'It reflects' and itplays' back to'the creative ethos'. Howeve r, 'it' refers to the noun phrase 'creativity'. This canbe confirmed inthe post-sentence, 'Furthermore, creativity requires...'.

'Thus, the creative ethospervades everything from our workplace culture to our values and communities,reshaping the way we see ourselvesas economic and social actors - our very identities. It reflects norms andvalues that both nurture creativity and reinforce the role that it plays. Furthermore, creativity requires asupportive environment... '(lines 47-52)Q.10 In line 52,'it'refers to...

A . the way we see ourselvesB . thesurrounding society.C . the creative ethos.

* D . creativity.

Part 2 - Language Systems

Multiple-choice cloze, Questions 17-33Candidates achieved a mean percentage correct of 45% onthis part of the paper.

The text is an article about Snopes.com, 'the definitive Internet reference source forurban legends, folklore,myths, rumors, and misinformation'.

For question 17,candidates hadfewcontextual cues with which to make an inference as to which option wascorrect. These cues, namely Barbara 's ageanddetails ofher profession, could bepicked up i f candidates hadread thepassage in itsentirety before attempting toanswer thequestion.

(8%)(6%)(63%)(21%)

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Q.17 With her bemused tone and a habit of peering over her (17) , Barbara Mikke l s on has the air of a night-shiftdetective who has seen it al l , and in a way, she has.A . husband (18%)B . keyboard (41%)C . shoulders (16%)

*D . spectacles (22%)

Wi t h regard to testing tense, some candidates had difficulty identifying the proper use of the present perfecttense. 32% of the candidates chose the past perfect tense (option C) rather than the present perfect tense. It ispossible that these candidates did not acknowledge that, no matter how long ago the business started, it is a s t i l lon-going, and so should have this present meaning reflected in the choice of tense.Q.22 What began in 1995 as a hobby for a pair of amateur folklorists (22) into one of the Internet's most trusted

authorities . .A . grows (2%)

* B . has grown (41%)C . had grown (32%)D . have grown (22%)

Phrasal verbs (in this case in gerund form) are generally an area of weakness for candidates. For question 28,more than double the number of candidates chose option D 'hanging around' over the correct answer 'nosingaround' (option A). This suggests candidates were more familiar with the idea of 'hanging around', probably asit is a common school activity. However, it is disappointing that more candidates were not familiar with theidiomatic connection of'nos ing ' with detective work.Q.28 A passion for (28) around is what brought the Mikkelsons together, and it's still their prime motivation.

A . going (22%)* B . nosing (18%)C . mucking (13%)D . hanging (44%)

For question 29, only 13% of candidates were able to identify the correct answer while 51 % of candidates choseoption C, 'Eno rmous income' . Perhaps this seemed to make the most sense l o g i c a l l y or was a direct translationfrom candidates' first language. Whichever, the reason that all of the distracters are wrong is that they are alladjectives which contain within themselves a degree of intensification. This in itself negates the use of 'very',itself an intensifier.Q.29 The couple now earn a very (29) income from advertising on the site.

A . wonderful (18%)* B . handsome (13%)C . enormous (51%)D . superb (15%)

Candidates had difficulty with question 31 which tested the use of preposit ions. The item was challengingbecause it was featured after a non-finite clause. The use of dashes may also have confused some candidates.Q.31 ...they still prefer old-fashioned research - poring over vintage catalogues, thumbing (30) four newspapers a day-

(31) finding quick answers online.A . by (26%)B . for (41%)

* C . over (19%)D . from (12%)

Theme cloze, Quest ions 34 - 45This exercise is a discourse completion activity which tests candidates' s k i l l s in identifying a coherent flow ofideas and their ability to recognize how writing conventions affect meaning and cohesiveness.

The text was adapted from a writer's travel memoir to Italy which gives a brief history of the origins of theItalian language. Candidates achieved a mean percentage o f 48% in this part o f the paper.

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Fo r question 35, 46 % o f candidates were able to cor rect ly l i n k modern-day French with a medieval Parisiandialect, while 28% of candidates chose opt ion A, l i k e l y because o f a hasty association between 'Pari s' andParisian'.

Therefore, whatQ.35 A. is spoken in Paris (28%)

* B . we cal l French today (46%)C . people like to speak (17%)D . the most popular language is (7%)

is really a version of medieval Parisian.

Question 43 was one of the highest discr iminat ing items. To p end candidates were able to recognize that'Instead* was the appropriate adverbial to use in this context. Option B, which was 42% of candidates' choice ofanswer, would not be correct because the act of turning back to the streets occur s before the publicatio n o f thebook, not subsequent to it. The difficulty of this item lies in the fact that the text does not present the events inan order that is clearly chronological.

When Dante published his Divine Comedy in 1321, he shocked the literate world by not writing in Lat in .Q.43 *A . Instead, (34%)

B . As a result, (42%)C . In addition, (14%)D . On the other hand, (8%)

Dante turned back to the streets, picking up the real Florentine language spoken by the residents of his city...

The most difficult question in the theme exercise was question 45. Around 45% of candidates choose option Bbecause it was l i k e l y they thought that the 'o thers' was refer ring to 'Boccaccio and Petrarch' whose namesappear just before the gap. However , starting in paragraph 6, the discourse focuses on Dante' s influence on theItalian language, and therefore, option A is the correct answer because it is consistent with the overarching ideasin the text.He wrote his masterpiece in what he called il dolce stil nuovo, the 'sweet new style' of the language, and he shaped thatlanguage evenQ.45 *A . as he was writing it, (20%)

B . more than others d id . (45%)C . when he copied the style, (13%)D . while people were reading it, (19%)

affecting it as personally as Shakespeare would someday affect Elizabethan English.

Matching exercise, Questions 4 6 - 5 8

Candidates achieved an average mean percentage corr ect of 59% in this part o f the paper.

A l l the matching statements dealt with music in one way or another. Fo r matching items 52 and 57, both itemsconsisted o f rheto rical questions and their corresponding statements were also rhetorical questions. While 72%o f candidates were able to pair item 57,

Q.57 Does music simply satisfyan urge?with the corresponding statement B,

Ordoes it triggersensorypleasure responses in the brain?only 22% o f candidates were able to cor rectl y match item52,

Q.52 What ismusic andwheredoes itcomefrom?

with the corresponding statement G,

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G. Why do somesongsmoveusso and others leave uscold?In item 57, the strong seman tic association between ' urge' and 'sensory pleasure responses ' helped candidates topair the two statements. However, for item 52, the association between matching statements was a movement,albeit subtle, from general to slightly more specif ic observat ions on music , and the intent ion on the part of thewriter to engage the readers' personal interest. Candidates looking for a semantic connection frequently pairedquestion 52 with F perhaps because they linked 'where does music come from' with 'the recorded past'.

F. No known human culturenow or anytime in therecorded past lacked music.Summary cloze, Questions 59 - 75

The summary cloze tests candidate's ability to paraphrase. Candidates achieved an average mean score of 34%in this part o f the paper.

The passage used for the summary cloze was about the psychological benefits and fears of spending time alone.Question 60 can be found in the first paragraph o f Version 2. However , the answer to question 60,'envi ronment/surroun dings' is located near the end of the second paragraph o f Version 1. The change in theordering of information within the two texts may explain why 82% of candidates had difficulty answering thisquestion. Possibly they narrowed their scope for finding answers to questions in paragraph 1 to thecorresponding paragraph o f the original text. This is supported by the fact that incorrect responses commonlygiven by candidates include 'attention' or 'mind', words which appear in the first paragraph o f Version 1.For a healthy mind, we need constant stimulation and feedback from our (60) environment / surroundings .For question 61, only 39% of candidates were able to correctly interpret the expression 'Far from being apositive experience', to mean a negative experience. Many candidates took 'posit ive experience' from theoriginal text and direc tly transferred it to question 61.

Even though watching TV can be a (61) negative experience for most viewers,For question 64, candidates were expected to change 'to be entertained' to 'entertain us' . However, only 14% ofcandidates were able paraphrase this corr ectl y.

relax with friends or to sit back and let others (64) entertain us .For question 67, candidates often gave the correct answer but in its plural form, i.e. televisions or computers,hence they lost mark s due to slips in grammati cal accuracy or carelessness.

is quite different from spending time in front of the (67) television and/or computer .In items 72 - 74, less than 2 5% of candidates were able to score marks. Many candidates attempted the questionby changing the structure o f words from the original text, but without success because their choice of words waseither gramma ticall y inaccurate or did not accurately paraphrase the original meaning of the text.

Examples of incorrect answers c ommon ly given for question 72 include 'occ upyi ng' , ' repel lin g'.

they might try (72) replacing / substituting them with other thingsExamples of incorrect answers commonly given for question 73 include 'refusing', 'difficult'.

Nevertheless, they are (73) unwilling / reluctant to study because

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Proofreadi ng exercise , Quest ion s 76 - 97

This article was taken from Read ers ' Dige st about the importance of family dinners. Candidat es achieved amean percentage correct o f 3 1 % for this part.

Items for which less than 2 5% of the candidates scored marks are discussed belo w.

F o r quest ion 76, a large num ber of candi dates were not able to identi fy the use of rel ative pronouns and clausesb y delet ing 'w h o' or inse rting 'are' . Instead, many candidates were distracted by the expres sion 'do drugs' andmade an unnecessary change by attempting to replace the verb 'do' with ' take'.

Q . 7 6 do drugs or get into fights than those who left to

F o r question 77, candidates were not able to identify the superfluous artic le, 'the two-career househo lds'.Instead, candidates attempted to change 'ho useh olds' into the singula r form but that would not be a possibleoption because o f the singular 'house hold ' would not match with plural 'sch edul es' in the subsequent line.

Q . 7 7 their own devices. But with the two-career households anddemanding schedules, who have the time? Yo u do i f y o u

F o r question 82, candidates d id not recog nize the superfluous word 'die t' in 'diet nutr iti on' . Candidates wereexpected to delete either 'di et' or 'nu tri tio n'. Howe ver , many focused on tense errors and changed 'says' to' sa id' .

Q . 82 health and diet nutri tion, ' says Dr D a v i d L u d w i g , anF o r question 88, some candidates who failed to correct 'researches ' to 'res earc h' attempted to correct 'sh ows' inquestion 89 to the plural 'show' so that it agreed with 'School of Public Health ' .Q . 8 8 Surprising new researches from the University of MinnesotaQ . 8 9 School of Public Health shows that even i f their meal served

F o r question 90, candidates d id not change the adjective 'hea lthy ' to the adverb, 'hea lth ily '. Som e candidatesgave the incorrect spelling, 'heal thly' .

Q . 9 0 less formally, kids eat more healthy than when they eat on

F o r question 93, candidates often changed the verb 'slows' to ' s low' so that it matched 'extend ' which was infact the error, rather than vice versa . How ever , the change breaks up the cohes ion o f the text and s t i l l fails toaddress the proper use of gerunds.

Q.93 slows down the process, extend family time,' says Dr L u d w i g .i

General comments and recommendations

T h e items in the readi ng compre hen sio n were aimed at testing candidates' ability to read accurately andefficiently, and to understand and interpret ideas in context. Candida tes were generall y profici ent at reading forgist and working out the mea nin g of unfa mil iar words. Howev er, more attention pai d to the connection of ideaswithin a text would further develop candidates' interpretation s k i l l s and increase their understan ding o f ideas thatare conveyed i m p l i c i t l y .W i t h respect to language systems, candid ates are recomme nded to expand their analysis of gramm aticalstructures beyo nd the sentence to the wid er contex t of paragraph and indeed to the level of the whole text. Moreexposure to a variet y of text-types and English language media w i l l help to improve candidates' knowledge ofcollocations and how linguistic and structural devices are used to achi eve cert ain effects. Incorpo ratingproofreadi ng as a regula r part of the language le arning cur ric ulum w i l l also increase candidates' exposure to awider range o f errors and foster self -corr ecting s k i l l s .

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Aseng2010 Ms&Report