Academic English Workshop 0910s6 Parallel Structures

CC0040

academic English workshops 2009-2010 Session 6– Parallel Structures

Wience Lai

[email protected] 3746-0170 HHB 1630

Part A: Diagnostic Test • Identify and underline the nonparallel structures in the following passage. • Then, revise these sentences to eliminate errors in parallel structure in the space between the lines.

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Part B: Grammatical principles Review

Parallel Structures Using words in parallel form Using phrases in parallel form Using clauses in parallel form Using parallel forms with correlative conjunctions* (paired words)

Using words in parallel form • Put words of the same grammatical form in a series. Example (nouns): Disciplinary action will be taken if a student is found plagiarizing others’ ideas or words. Example (verbs): I have read and chosen an article about the 2008 financial tsunami in the last reflective writing practice. Example (adjectives): A good English learner should be active, diligent and uninhibited. Example (adverbs): No bonus mark will be given to works completed sloppily, untidily and late.

Using phrases in parallel form • Put phrases of the same grammatical form in a series. Example (infinitives): Our lecturer reminded us to submit an essay outline before the deadline and to schedule an appointment with him for essay consultation. Example (gerund): Writing assignments, doing group projects, and reading course texts are the common tasks all college students need to do. Example (participles): Having participated actively in the class activities and asked the teacher for constant feedback, Jonathan was able to perform exceptionally well in this challenging subject. Example (prepositional phrases): To support our argument more adequately, we had better locate other sources of references from the library and on the Internet.

Using clauses in parallel form • Put words of the same grammatical form in a series. Example (active voice): Men and women speak the same language, yet they communicate very differently. Example (passive voice): The division of work in the College is very clear. Student enquiries are handled at the Information Kiosk; staff enquiries are dealt with in the service counter of the General Office.

Using parallel forms with correlative conjunctions* (paired words) • Put words of the same grammatical form in a series. *Correlative conjunctions (paired words): not only… but (also); either… or, both… and, neither… nor; whether… or; not…but. Example: Both mature candidates and overseas applicants are required to write a written test.

Part C: Concept Boosting Exercises Exercise C1: Identify and underline the nonparallel structures in the following passage. Then, revise these sentences to eliminate errors in parallel structure in the space between the lines.

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Part C: Concept Boosting Exercises • Exercise C2: Complete the following sentences with parallel items.

Part C: Concept Boosting Exercises Exercise C3: A title and three supporting sentences are provided for the outline of an essay. Using the techniques of parallelism, write an appropriate thesis statement and a plan of development for an essay based on the information.