NSSCO English Second Language 6109 common mistakes
NSSCO English Second Language 6109 · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Lifting a full sentence or clause from the passage as the answer to a reading question, even when the question says 'in your own words'.
Candidates often treat comprehension as location-hunting: they find the relevant line and copy it because they fear that changing the wording will change the meaning. Limited vocabulary also makes paraphrase feel risky.
What to do instead
Underline the key word in the question, locate the relevant lines, then cover the passage and write the answer from memory. Replace at least two content words with synonyms or a different word class, and change the sentence structure. Check that the answer still matches the question, not just the topic.
Answering only part of a multi-part question, or giving one point where the question asks for two or three, and ignoring the stated word limit.
Candidates read the first line of the question and start writing immediately. Number words such as 'two reasons' and limits such as 'no more than 40 words' are treated as decoration rather than marking criteria.
What to do instead
Before reading the passage, underline every command word, number and limit in the questions. Number your answer points 1, 2, 3 in the margin before writing. After writing, count points and words; if the limit is exceeded, cut examples and repetition rather than essential content.
Producing a narrative or a general description when the task requires an article, letter, speech or report, and omitting the format features that go with that genre.
Candidates rehearse one memorable story and try to reuse it regardless of the prompt. They may also not have learned the difference between a letter's salutation and closing, an article's headline, or a speech's direct address to the audience.
What to do instead
Spend two minutes before writing identifying purpose, audience and genre. Write a mini-checklist of format features for each genre and tick them off. Open with a sentence that fits the genre, not with 'I am going to write about'. Practise the same topic in two genres to see how the shape changes.
Writing continuous prose as one solid block, or dividing it into paragraphs that each begin with a new idea but have no topic sentence or link to the previous paragraph.
Candidates plan only content, not structure, and they equate a new paragraph with a new line rather than a new stage in the argument. Cohesive devices are often limited to 'and', 'but' and 'also'.
What to do instead
Plan four or five paragraph headings before writing. Begin each paragraph with a clear topic sentence, then support it with explanation or example, then link forward. Build a small bank of linkers for addition, contrast, cause and conclusion, and use them at paragraph boundaries rather than in every sentence.
Making repeated subject-verb agreement errors and shifting tense within the same paragraph, especially when writing about a text or reporting an event.
First-language grammar patterns interfere, and candidates edit only for content after finishing. When ideas are generated under time pressure, verb endings receive less attention than vocabulary.
What to do instead
Reserve the final five minutes for a verb-only edit: underline every finite verb and check its subject and tense. In argument essays, choose present tense for general claims; in narratives, choose past tense and keep it. Keep a personal list of the five agreement patterns you get wrong most often.
Joining independent clauses with commas to form run-on sentences, and omitting capital letters or apostrophes in possessives and contractions.
Candidates transfer the rhythm of speech into writing and punctuate by pause rather than by grammatical structure. Apostrophe use is often guessed because contraction and possession are not distinguished in spoken English.
What to do instead
Apply a sentence-boundary check to every full stop: read each sentence aloud and ask whether it contains two complete ideas that need a full stop, semicolon or conjunction. Learn three apostrophe rules with examples, and proofread for capital letters at sentence starts and for proper nouns.
Including personal opinion, evaluation or invented examples in a summary or information-transfer task, or copying long stretches of the source text.
Candidates confuse summary with comprehension or with essay writing. They believe adding a judgement shows understanding, and they copy because they lack confident synonyms under time pressure.
What to do instead
Highlight only the points that answer the task, then list them as bullet notes with no opinion. Write the summary from the bullets with the passage covered. Compress by deleting examples, repetition and figurative language, and check that every sentence contains only source information in new wording.
In directed writing, selecting irrelevant details from the source and missing the required audience, purpose or register, such as using slang in a formal letter to a principal.
Candidates treat directed writing as free writing and do not analyse the role, reader and outcome specified in the prompt. They also include every detail they find rather than selecting what the task requires.
What to do instead
Before writing, note the role, audience, purpose and required format in a four-box plan. Select only details that serve the purpose, and mark each selected detail with the paragraph where it will appear. Choose register deliberately: formal titles and full forms for official letters, contractions and direct address for a speech to peers.
Missing answers in the listening section because attention is fixed on writing a complete sentence while the recording continues, or because the question paper was not previewed.
Candidates try to produce polished prose in real time and do not realise that the marks depend on catching key information, not on full sentences. They also start reading questions only after the recording begins.
What to do instead
Use the reading time to underline question keywords and predict the type of answer needed. Write abbreviated notes or single words during the recording and complete sentences afterwards. If an answer is missed, mark the place and move on immediately rather than losing the next two items.
Giving one-line answers in the speaking test, reading aloud from prepared notes, or repeating the question instead of developing a response.
Candidates are anxious about making grammatical errors and choose short answers as a safety strategy. Prepared notes feel reassuring but produce flat intonation and little interaction.
What to do instead
Practise a three-part answer pattern: direct answer, reason, brief example or contrast. Record yourself and check that each answer lasts about twenty seconds without reading. Use note cards with keywords only, and rehearse follow-up questions so you can respond to the examiner rather than deliver a monologue.