Editing And Visual Text

In this chapter, we will be learning about Editing and Visual Text skills.

Let’s go through the topics to be covered in this chapter:

• Editing Skills 
  • Pronoun, Word Form and Conjunction errors 
  • Connectors
  • Prepositions
  • Articles
  • Identifying general tense
  • Comparatives
  • Noun Agreement (Plural/Singular)
  • Subject-Verb Agreement
     
• Visual Text Skills
  • Purpose, Audience and Context
  • What is the main purpose of the message?
  • How does the image help to convey the main message?
  • Evaluative Questions
  • Inferential Questions

Editing Skills

Pronoun Errors

Pronoun errors occur when the incorrect pronoun is used with regard to the subject/object being referred to, and the situation it is being used in.

Types Of Pronouns

1. Subject pronouns: The person or the doer of the action.
   Example: He is eating. Here 'he' is the person doing the action.
    
2. Object pronouns: The receiver of the action.
   Example: He poked him on the face. Here 'him' is the subject.
    
3. Possessive pronouns: This shows that something belongs to someone.
   Example: This pen is mine. It shows who it belongs to.
    
4. Reflexive pronouns: It tells who did it.
   Example:I did it by myself.

Let’s understand the above topics with the help of some examples:

Example 1: Find the pronoun error.

1. The flexible schedule allows persons with disabilities to participate in the gig economy, enabling them to support himself.
   Answer: Himself would be replaced with 'themselves.
    
2. The Polydactyl cat is unique because they can have up to seven toes on each foot.
   Answer: 'They' would be replaced with 'it'.
    
3. That dog is so cute. I can’t believe that it is her’s.
   Answer: 'her’s' would be replaced with 'hers/his'.

Word Form Errors

There are four major word forms we must know. Students must be able to recognise the indicators which help us to identify word form.

• Nouns (presence of the articles the, a, an)
• Verbs (presence of tenses)
• Adjectives (describing a noun)
• Adverbs (describing a verb)

Example 1: 

1. Protest          \(\xrightarrow[]{\qquad}\)       Protestation
   (verb)                                (noun)
    
2. Confident      \(\xrightarrow[]{\qquad}\)       Confidence
   (adjective)                         (noun)
    
3. Persistent     \(\xrightarrow[]{\qquad}\)       Persistence

Example 2: 

Last year, in order to gain greater expose and experience, Kate visited a neighbouring country to take pictures of the people, their culture and way of life.                                

Answer: The correct answer would be 'Exposure'. Change the verb into a noun.

Example 3: 

What is wrong with this message?

Answer: 'Excellence' should be changed to 'excellent'.

Conjunction Error

A conjunction error occurs when the relationship between ideas is wrongly connected by a conjunction.

Types Of conjunctions:

1. Coordinating conjunctions: Casual Relationship

• FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)

2. Subordinating conjunctions: Links two situations

• Since/Because/When

3. Correlative conjunctions: Works in Pairs

• Either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also

Examples: 

1. We will pay you double what we promised unless you get the work finished by this weekend instead of Monday.
   
   Explanation: Unless is a very difficult connector. It means if you do not.
   Edited: We will pay you double what we promised if you get the work finished by this weekend instead of Monday.
    
2. Other than a variety of fascinating flowers, you will also find interesting species of insects since you find a lot of water.
   
   Explanation: The word 'since' is absolutely wrong
   Edited: Other than a variety of fascinating flowers, you will also find interesting species of insects where/when you find a lot of water.
    
3. My cousin could not decide whether to go to NUS nor NTU for further studies.
   
   Explanation: If the word nor is used wrongly it is a conjunction error.
   Edited: My cousin could not decide whether to go to NUS or NTU for further studies.

Let’s understand the above topics with the help of some questions:

Question 1: 

Excerpt:

When I was young, I believed that the key to happiness was to do all the right things and make all the right decisions. Therefore, experience has taught me that no one ever manages to do that. 

What error does the sentence in blue contain?

1. Pronoun
2. Word form
3. Conjunction/connector
4. None of the above

Answer:

C) Conjunction/connector

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option No C i.e. conjunction/ connector. The linking word used to link these two portions is wrong i.e. the word 'therefore' is incorrect. 'However' shall be used.

Question 2:

Excerpt:

No one can live without experiencing setbacks or disappointment. The important thing is to be resilience and to bounce back. 

What error does the sentence in blue contain?

1. Pronoun
2. Word form
3. Conjunction/connector
4. None of the above

Answer:

B) Word form

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option No B i.e. word form, because 'resilience' is the wrong word. The correct word is 'resilient'. The word 'resilience' is a noun and 'resilient' is an adjective.

Question 3:

Excerpt:

This thought struck me forcefully, some months ago, when I attended a dinner party with a group of middle-aged friends. As I looked around the table, I realised that every one of them had at least one very real source of sorrow, anxiety or regret in their lives. 

What error does the phrase in blue contain?

1. Pronoun
2. Word form
3. Conjunction/connector
4. None of the above

Answer:

D) None of the above

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option No D i.e. none of the above. A friend is a noun and the correct word is friends which is also a noun. If Noun to noun, whether singular or plural is not called the word form error. Nor is it a pronoun error.

This type of error is a Noun Agreement error, hence, it is none of the above.

Question 4:

Excerpt:

Each of them might easily have given in to self-pity or gloom, despite none of them had.

What error does the sentence in blue contain?

1. Pronoun
2. Word form
3. Conjunction/connector
4. None of the above

Answer:

C) Conjunction/connector

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option No C i.e. conjunction/connector. 'Despite' is a conjunction which shows one positive and one negative but this is the wrong conjunction of contrast. 

The correct conjunction of contrast should be 'however'. 

Question 5:

Excerpt:

They still seemed determined to enjoy their lives, believing that they can enrich it through love and personal growth.

What error does the phrase in blue contain?

1. Pronoun
2. Word form
3. Conjunction/connector
4. None of the above

Answer:

A) Pronoun

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option A i.e. pronoun. 'It' should be replaced with 'them/themselves'.

Connectors

Contrast Connectors

1. Conversely

Example: Zoey may not perform up to the mark in science subjects, but conversely, he has an impeccable hold in literature.

• Zoey may not perform up to the mark in science subjects. Conversely, he has an excellent hold in literature.

2. Nevertheless

Example: What you said was right but nevertheless harsh.

• What you said was right. It was nevertheless harsh.

3. Whereas

Example: All of her daughters are engineers whereas the younger one chose to be a teacher.

• All of her daughters are engineers but the younger one chose to be a teacher.

Question 6: 

Correct the following sentences:

1. These animals do not survive in tropical climates as they are able to thrive in the harsh and arid deserts.
2. Hawkers are a type of cultural heritage. Although, they cannot be resistant to change and trapped in the past.
3. The World Health Organisation has successfully eradicated the infectious diseases of smallpox and rinderpest through the development of effective vaccines. While, the principles that they pledge to abide by in their work may hamper the organisation’s efforts.

*Use ‘conversely’, ‘nevertheless’, and ‘whereas’.

Answer: 

1. These animals do not survive in tropical climates whereas they are able to thrive in the harsh and arid deserts.
2. Hawkers are a type of cultural heritage. Nevertheless, they cannot be resistant to change and trapped in the past.
3. The World Health Organisation has successfully eradicated the infectious diseases of smallpox and rinderpest through the development of effective vaccines. Conversely, the principles that they pledge to abide by in their work may hamper the organisation’s efforts.

Prepositions

Avoid using prepositions at the end of sentences

Prepositions must be followed by a noun and have an object, they should rarely be placed at the end of a sentence. For example, it’s generally not correct to say:

1. The table is where I put my books on.

In the above example, the use of the preposition 'on' isn’t necessary. We could remove 'on' and the meaning would be the same. Therefore, the preposition was extraneous or unnecessary. That said, here’s an example where it’s perfectly acceptable to use a preposition at the end of a sentence:

2. I turned the TV on.

If you removed 'on' from the end of this sentence, it would change the meaning. Instead of switching on the set, you would be saying that you turned the TV itself. Alternatively, this could be written as:

I turned on the TV.

Question 7: 

Correct the following sentences:

1.  I had some free time so I decided to drop into and say hi.
2. There is a hut found at the middle of the forest which used to store firefighting equipment.
3. When compared about naturally produced alternatives, mass-market products seem less desirable.

Answer: 

1. I had some free time so I decided to drop by and say hi.
2. There is a hut found in the middle of the forest which used to store firefighting equipment.
3. When compared to naturally produced alternatives, mass-market products seem less desirable.

Articles

A, An and The

'A' and 'an' signal that the noun modified is indefinite, referring to any member of a group. 

For Example:

1. 'My daughter really wants a dog for Christmas.'
   This refers to any dog. We don't know which dog because we haven't found the dog yet.
    
2. 'Somebody call a policeman!'
   This refers to any policeman. We don't need a specific policeman; we need any policeman who is available.
    
3. 'When I was at the zoo, I saw an elephant!'
   Here, we're talking about a single, non-specific thing, in this case an elephant. There are probably several elephants at the zoo, but there's only one we're talking about here.

Let’s understand the above topics with the help of some questions:

Question 8:

Correct the following sentences:

1. Kamaal thought Nellie was like an unicorn - beautiful, rare and completely untameable.
2. Behind every great man is the woman.
3. In an event of rapid decompression, personal oxygen masks will be deployed.

Answer: 

1. Kamaal thought Nellie was like a unicorn - beautiful, rare and completely untameable.
2. Behind every great man is a woman.
3. In the event of rapid decompression, personal oxygen masks will be deployed.

Question 9:

This thought struck me forcefully, some months ago, that in order to have a healthy body, one must have the positive attitude.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Article
2. Preposition
3. Connectors
4. No error

Answer: 

The correct answer is Option A i.e Article error.

Edited:

This thought struck me forcefully, some months ago, that in order to have a healthy body, one must have a positive attitude.

Question 10:

Laugh and a world laughs with you; snore and you sleep alone.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Article
2. Preposition
3. Connectors
4. No error

Answer: 

The correct answer is Option A i.e. Article error.

Edited: 

Laugh and the world laughs with you; snore and you sleep alone.

Comparatives/Superlatives

1. We compare adjectives and adverbs using comparatives and superlatives. Comparatives compare two items while superlatives compare three or more. 
2. Comparatives commonly utilise either the suffix ‘-er’ (e.g. smaller, cuter, nicer) or the modifier ‘more’. Superlatives commonly use the suffix ‘-est’ or the modifier ‘most’.
3. Identify helping words such as ‘than’, ‘between’, ‘two’ for comparative questions. Identify helping words like ‘the’ for superlative questions.

Let’s understand the above topic with the help of examples:

Example 1: 

Correct the following sentences:

1. You play tennis best than I do.
2. I ran pretty far yesterday, but I ran even farthest today.

Answer:

1. You play tennis better than I do.
2. I ran pretty far yesterday, but I ran even farther today.

Noun Agreement

Some nouns are notoriously difficult to quantify. Students are often unsure whether to use the singular or plural form when they see these words. These are the top 7 commonly confused uncountable nouns.

1. Equipment - All medical equipment must be sterilised before use. 
2. Furniture - He likes to collect antique furniture. 
3. Luggage - You should never leave your luggage unattended. 
4. Accommodation (mainly UK) - There’s a shortage of affordable accommodation in major cities like London.
5. Feedback - The new programme received a lot of positive feedback from viewers. 
6. Evidence - Scientific evidence shows a link between smoking and lung cancer.
7. Research - They are conducting some fascinating research on animal languages. 

Example 1:

Correct the following sentences:

1. Following a series of disruptions and many crisis, the researchers finally began to see progress. 
2. The internet is a useful tool to acquire many kinds of informations.

Answer: 

1. The plural form of crisis is crises.
   Edited: Following a series of disruptions and many crises, the researchers finally began to see progress. 
    
2. Edited: The internet is a useful tool to acquire many kinds of information. 

Subject Verb Agreement

Identifying the correct subject

1. Usually, the last noun before the main verb will be the subject.
2. If there’s the word ‘of’ in the phrase, the subject will be the word just before ‘of’. (e.g. A minority of the farmers has decided to leave the farm.)
3. If the subject is a collective noun, the agreeing verb should be singular. (e.g. The school of fish swims towards the island during the monsoon period.)

Example 1: 

Correct the following sentences:

1. The majority of the shareholders want the company to pursue a more aggressive cost-reduction strategy because it fears low-cost competition from Asia.
2. Indeed, even during that period of decline, the seeds of cultural restoration was being sown.

Answer: 

1. Edited: The majority of the shareholders wants the company to pursue a more aggressive cost-reduction strategy because it fears low-cost competition from Asia.
2. Edited: Indeed, even during that period of decline, the seeds of cultural restoration were being sown.

Question 11:

Environmentalists are not sure whether styrofoam or plastic is worst for the environment.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer:

A) Comparative.

Explanation:

The word 'worst' is incorrect because we are comparing two things i.e. Styrofoam and plastic. As 'worst' is superlative, i.e. comparing three things and 'worse' is comparing between two, hence it is a comparative error.

Question 12:

The issue of identity and belonging can pose a challenge to children of mixed heritages.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer:

B) Noun Agreement.

Explanation:

The word 'heritage' is an uncountable noun, and therefore cannot be made plural.

Question 13:

In such a dismal investment climate today, neither of the companies expect to outperform their benchmark.  

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer:

C) Subject-Verb Agreement.

Explanation:

The word 'neither' is singular and as the noun is singular it cannot be changed. We can only change the verb i.e. the word 'expect', to be changed to 'expects'.

Question 14:

Even though Pep, Pip and Pop are all neighbours, Pep lives in a house that is farthest from Pip's than it is from Pop's. 

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer: 

A) Comparative.

Explanation:

Edited: 

Even though Pep, Pip and Pop are all neighbours, Pep lives in a house that is farther from Pip's than it is from Pop's.

Question 15: 

Crisis always lead to opportunity. You must be shrewd to capitalise on them. 

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer: 

B) Noun Agreement.

Explanation:

'Crisis' is singular. 'lead' is plural and the pronoun that is used to describe crises is also plural. The plural form of crisis is crises.

Question 16:

A factor that should not be overlooked in building design is access pathways for people with disabilities.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer:

D) No error.

Question 17:

This pie is best than all the rest that I have tasted!

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer: 

A) Comparative.

Explanation:

Edited: 

This pie is better than all the rest that I have tasted!

The word 'than' suggests a comparison being made between two, hence the word 'better' should be used.

Question 18:

The dog in my neighbour’s house bark all night. They keep me up and I cannot sleep.

What grammatical error does the above sentence contain?

1. Comparative
2. Noun Agreement
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
4. No Error

Answer: 

B) Noun Agreement.

Explanation:

As the word 'they' is used, which means it is plural and the 'dog' is singular, hence it should be changed

Edited:

The dogs in my neighbour’s house bark all night. They keep me up and I cannot sleep.

Skills Focus: Visual Text

Before attempting the questions for visual text, it is useful to look at the main purpose (why?), audience (for whom?) and context (what is it?)

Purpose

Questions to ask:

• What is the intention found in the main message? 
  • To recruit volunteers
• What does it ultimately want the readers to do?
  • Join the YEP

Audience

Questions to ask:

• For whom?
  • Youths
• Is there a more specific group targeted (e.g. age/gender)?
  • Yes
• What is the tone of the message?
  • Enthusiastic

Context

Questions to ask:

• What is it? (A brochure/ poster/advertisement/webpage?)
  • Webpage
• Is there info on where it is placed?
  • No

Let’s understand the above topic with the help of some questions:

Study the poster below and answer the questions that follow.

Question 19: 

Who is the intended target audience? 

1. Youths.
2. Youths aged 15 to 35.
3. Youths aged 15 to 35 from educational institutes and registered organisations.
4. Youths aged 15 to 35 from educational institutes and registered organisations who wish to volunteer overseas.

Answer: 

C) Youths aged 15 to 35 from educational institutes and registered organisations.

Explanation:

Option No B is too general and Option no 4 is too specific but wrong as it includes only educational institutes and registered organisations that wish to volunteer overseas and not the local ones.

We should be more specific but without being wrong, hence option No C is correct.

Question 20:

Which sentence summarises the main aim of the webpage?

1. 'If you have answered ‘Yes’ to any of the above, lead or join a Youth Expedition project today!'
2. 'Lead or join a Youth Expedition project today!'
3. 'For more information on events and programmes by Youth Corps Singapore, click on the respective links above.'
4. 'There are three key phrases for every YEP, i.e. Preparation, Overseas Project and Local Project.'

Answer: 

A) 'If you have answered ‘Yes’ to any of the above, lead or join a Youth Expedition project today!'

Question 21:

What is the tone evoked by the expression ‘See you around!’ at the bottom of the webpage?

1. It wants to attract readers to join their programme.
2. It is a friendly and enthusiastic tone.
3. It is a loud and attention-seeking tone.
4. The exclamation mark and the personal pronoun 'you' engages the reader and grabs his attention.

Answer: 

B) it is a friendly and enthusiastic tone.