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SAT Writing Section - Error-Identification Question Testing Tips
The SAT writing section is designed to test an individual's English language skills. In order to evaluate these skills, the error-identification questions in the writing section are specifically designed to evaluate an individual's ability to identify mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and word usage. However, there are certain key concepts about the error-identification questions to keep in mind that may make them easier to answer.
First, it is always a good idea to read the sentence associated with each error-identification question before reading the answers. This is because you may be able to identify the error in the sentence simply by reading the sentence quickly. This is especially important for this section of the exam because you are only attempting to identify a single error in each sentence. Once you determine the error, you also determine the answer.
Second, it is important to realize that (E) will always be the "no error" option so you should focus on determining if one of the other four choices identifies an error within the sentence before choosing (E). In other words, you should only choose (E) if all of the other choices are incorrect and the sentence as a whole appears to be correct.
This does not necessarily mean that you should never choose (E). It merely means that that you should be very careful about choosing your answer, because some of the sentences on the exam may have no errors, while other sentences may have very subtle errors.
Finally, if you are having difficulty identifying an error in the sentence, but the sentence just doesn't look or sound right, try reading each underlined section and the words immediately before and after the underlined section. These "signal" words will often provide clues to make it easier for you to find the error. You should also try reading the words immediately before and after a punctuation mark, because the type of word used may signal whether or not the punctuation mark is appropriate to the meaning of the sentence or paragraph.