Errors in the tests

[Torsten]

Hi Amy and Charles,

Thanks for your suggestions, they'll be online soon.
Regards,
Torsten

TOEIC listening, photographs: A well maintained garden

[Mister Micawber]

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[Yankee]

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Though I realize that Alan has a fairly severe allergy to commas, I think this test could use some re-evaluation in the punctuation department:
http://www.english-test.net/esl/learn/english/grammar/er020/esl-test.php

I hope Alan will agree that sentence 8 needs a period/full stop after the word "example" (at the very least).

There is also a typo in sentence 4: haven should be haven't
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"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Torsten]

Hi Amy,

Thanks a lot for your support, I've made both changes and they'll go online tomorrow.

TOEIC listening, photographs: A river walk

[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

I've posted some questions about this test:
http://www.english-test.net/esl/learn/english/grammar/ii097/esl-test.php#six

Sentence 8 needs repair. If I had my druthers, I'd also edit questions 6 and 7 (tense usage).

My specific questions are here:
http://www.english-test.net/forum/ftopic19697.html#64202
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_________________
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Yankee]

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http://www.english-test.net/esl/learn/english/grammar/ei084/esl-test.php

In sentence 8 the word sportswear is misspelled:

The clothing manufacturer recently branched ......... into sportswear.
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_________________
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Torsten]

Hi Amy,

Many thanks for pointing that typo, it will be corrected soon.

TOEIC listening, photographs: Ruins

[Yankee]

Hi Torsten

Did you (or anybody else) also look at this test?
http://www.english-test.net/esl/learn/english/grammar/ii097/esl-test.php

There are apparently two correct answers for sentence 8: rope and tether.
'Tether' is given as the correct solution. The answer that I would consider to be much more typical and common (rope) is listed as incorrect. But why?
Look at definition 14 here: http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=rope&r=66
Perhaps this is another case of BE vs AmE usage being different, but I think it is extremely misguided to categorize AmE usage as being incorrect simply because it is different from the usual usage in the UK.

I also asked further questions about this test:
The tense usage (especially the use of the present perfect) in questions 6 and 7 sounds quite odd to me. It sounds to me as if there might possibly have been some cutting and pasting done when the test was being written, with the result that the present perfect ended up being used inappropriately. Maybe this actually is a common usage in BE, but it simply sounds wrong to me.

If the author of the sentence believes the usage of the present perfect to be standard/normal in the context of the two test questions, don't you think that it would be worthwhile to at least get some further input about it -- especially in view of the fact that another native speaker ESL professional doesn't understand the tense usage?

PS
The fact that I found it necessary to write another, much longer post about this test is a good example of why the tests are so prohibitively time-consuming to evaluate and/or edit.
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_________________
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Torsten]

Hi Amy,

I agree with you -- as you can see anybody is invited to share their opinion on English grammar issues here on the forum. That's what you and many other users have been doing very actively. It's important to ask grammar questions and discuss certain phrases and structures. We all know that there various versions of English such as US American, Canadian, New Zealand, Irish, Scottish, etc. and fortunately all these variations can coexist peacefully.

As for your remarks regarding 'the end of my tether' and the usage of the persent perfect, these are interesting questions and I'm sure we will find an answer to them.

Many thanks.

TOEIC listening, photographs: A woman wearing a headset

[Yankee]

[Yankee]

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Shall I interpret your silence to mean that the author of the test has disagreed privately with everything I've suggested? :?

(I made a point of using the word shall because I guess I know who may be disagreeing... ;) Despite the differences in BE and AmE, I can't understand why there would be any disagreement on the suggestions I made in my last post.)
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"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Alan]

Hi,

For the record I have now changed 'rope' to 'string' so that there should be no doubt that the required answer is 'tether'. At the time of writing the Letter of Complaint I was unaware of a similar expression using 'rope'.

Alan
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English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Yankee]

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How about clarifying the rest of the "record", Alan?

Should it be assumed that it is typical in British English to use the present perfect when the definite, finished time of a past event is specifically stated in the very same breath? (In question 6, the time of the finished, past event was mentioned even before you got to the verb.)

If so, this isn't just a case of the present perfect sounding awful to my American ear (in questions 6 and 7), but this also seems to fly in the face of other things that you yourself have posted. For example:

[Alan]

Hi,

I'm touched that you have taken the trouble to dig out what I have written before. I think enough has been said about those particular sentences and tenses and I am sorry they sound so awful to you. I do not understand why you see it as your role to ask me to justify what I have written over the last three/four years. I see it as my role to write articles, tests, newsletters and answers concerned with the language English in order to help users for whom English is not their first language. By and large the users appear to have been satisfied with what I have written judging from their comments.

Alan
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English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Progressive Forms

[Yankee]

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Yes, you have written many, many fine things, Alan. But I fail to see that as a reason not to answer my question. Do you suppose I am the only person who doesn't understand the usage in your test? I would certainly expect either an explanation or a correction to be valuable to quite a few forum members. Right now, though, we have only "my side" of the story. And mine comes from the American perspective on the use of English.

I have taken the time to post a number of different things to try to convince you that my question here is an honest one:

- I've told you that the sentence sounds awful to me with the present perfect
- I've acknowledged the possibility that this may be a case where British usage is different from American usage
- I've acknowledged the possibility of a simple "cut and paste" error
- I've posted my suggested "easy change"
- I've taken the time to find quotes of yours in the hope that you would finally understand why I don't understand the usage in the sentence.

Your failure to address my question suggests to me that the usage of the present perfect in questions 6 and 7 is in fact not typical in the UK either. So why not just do a bit of editing there too?
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_________________
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." ~ Abraham Lincoln