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Writing Test
29
ARCO
■ SAT II Subject Tests
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Improving Paragraph Strategies
1. Begin by reading the entire passage. During your initial reading, do not try to identify specific
errors in the essay. To be sure, you may identify one or more errors during your first read-through, but the
main purpose of the read-through is to become familiar with the structure and development of the essay.
The questions that follow will focus your attention on those parts of the passage that the test-writer thinks
are in need of correction or revision.
2. Pay careful attention to the relationships between and among sentences. One of the features
that distinguishes Improving Paragraph questions from Identifying Sentence Error and Improving Sen-
tences is the use of a context, namely, the passage. The use of a passage allows for questions that test your
appreciation of the connections between sentences in an essay. (Question 5 is a good example.)
3. Use a checklist of errors. For Improving Paragraph items, you can use the checklist of errors
developed for Identifying Sentence Errors. Add to the checklist the following:
Verbs
Is the tense of the verb in the sentence to be revised consistent with the tense of other verbs in
the passage?
Is the form of the verb in the sentence to be revised parallel with that of other verbs in the
passage?
Pronouns
If the sentence to be revised contains a pronoun, is its referent in the preceding sentence? Does
the pronoun, in fact, have a referent? Does it agree with its referent?
Diction
If a suggested revision includes a choice of specific words, is your choice consistent with the
overall tone of the passage?
4. Pay careful attention to the overall development and organization of the passage. Again, the
use of a passage for this question type allows for questions about development and organization. (Ques-
tions 2 and 5 are examples of such questions.) To your checklist you should also add:
Organization
Does a revision improve the logical development of the passage by presenting ideas in a more coherent way?
If a revised sentence includes a transitional phrase, does the phrase signal the appropriate connection
between the first idea and the second?
If a revised sentence includes a paragraphing decision, does the revision ensure that each new paragraph
created has one and only one main topic?

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