Q&A - PSLE English

[anneshirleygilbert]

Hello Tianzhu,


I’m just a little curious … why do you choose (2) for your answer?

Q : We cannot enter the zoo. We have not purchased the admission tickets.

------------------------------ unless ---------------

A1 : We cannot enter the zoo unless we have purchased the admission tickets. OR
A2 : We cannot enter the zoo unless we purchase the admission tickets.

(2)We cannot enter the zoo unless we purchase the admission tickets.

Rgds
Anne

[whitety]

Hi anneshirleygilbert,


What’s your answer ? I think I would choose A1 as the answer.

Thanks!

[anneshirleygilbert]

Hi Whitety,


Actually, I think both are acceptable.... simply because there's no context.

Let me explain.

If I were standing in front of Mandai Zoo, I'd tell use (1) to tell my husband why I'm standing there waiting.

If I were casually telling a friend new to the country, I'd use (2).

I do understand grammar rules must be carefully adhered to, but sometimes, I think the marking for S&T is a little too stiff.

I'm trying to understand the system and what the examiners are looking for. I've not always been successful.

[whitety]

Hi anneshirleygilbert,


I asked my daughter the question yesterday and she gave the same answer as me.

I tested her the previous tag question and this time she recalled her P5 teacher taught her about positive statement, negative tag and vice versa. She said the teacher did not mention about about the special features on positive statement positive tag. So let’s hope this kind of question doesn’t come out in PSLE.

[tianzhu]

whitety:

Hi tianzhu,


You are such a helpful person. Not only can you help with Maths questions, you can also help in English. Keep up the good work. We need people like you to help us parents!

Thanks!

Hi

Alamak, so paiseh.

Actually, I’ve benefitted more from answering those questions as it gives me an opportunity to find out more about grammar.

The English thread is relatively quiet as compared to the others; hopefully we can see more participation from members.

Best wishes

[tianzhu]

anneshirleygilbert:

Hello Tianzhu,

I'm just a little curious ... why do you choose (2) for your answer?

Hi

Thank you for your response. It gives me an opportunity to think about the question again.

The present perfect tense signals that one event or action will be finished before the second.

Take this sentence,

Unless Alan has been to Japan, he will not be permitted to lead the tour.

In this example, it is necessary to emphasise the earlier action as it’s a prerequisite.

For the zoo question, I am of the opinion that it is not so necessary to emphasise the act of buying the ticket as an earlier event. You have to buy the ticket before you enter the zoo, so that’s quite a natural thing to do.

That’s why I chose the present tense. But I might be wrong.

I do agree with you that the lack of context in some questions might lead to multiple answers.

Best wishes

[anneshirleygilbert]

Thank you, Whitety, for your upadte on the "tag-on" question.


Yes, I also think "positive statement-positive tag" is a little above PSLE level. But it’s good to know there exists such a rule. Language is so fluid, and even within the English language, there can be exceptions to the rule. Indeed, learning is a journey. I endeavour to make this journey as pleasant and enjoyable as I can for my daughter.

I share your hope that no such question appear in the PSLE exam paper.

Thanks, again.

[whitety]

Hi anneshirleygilbert,


You’re welcome! I’m also finding ways to make this year a pleasant journey for my dd…er…enjoyable??? … I only hope she can have sufficient rest/sleep everyday.

[CayennePepper]

Hi all

I have a question about quoting sentences, for comprehension questions such as: Which sentences tells us...?

How do we quote? Can we just write the relevant sentence as the answer? Are quotation marks needed?

E.g. Ans:
1- They urged her not to quit.
2- \"They urged her not to quit.\"
3- The sentence is \"They urged her not to quit.\"
4- The sentence is \"They urged her not to quit\".
For (3) and (4), where should the full stop be placed? After the ending quotation mark or before?? :scratchhead:

Much thanks in advance!

[Mdm Koh]

CayennePepper:

Hi all

I have a question about quoting sentences, for comprehension questions such as: Which sentences tells us...?

How do we quote? Can we just write the relevant sentence as the answer? Are quotation marks needed?

E.g. Ans:
1- They urged her not to quit.
2- \"They urged her not to quit.\"
3- The sentence is \"They urged her not to quit.\"
4- The sentence is \"They urged her not to quit\".
For (3) and (4), where should the full stop be placed? After the ending quotation mark or before?? :scratchhead:

Much thanks in advance!

Quotation marks are needed. You also need a comma after the word \"is\". The full-stop can be placed before the quotation mark or after. It's a matter of style.