Research Matters

Figure 21: Incorrect use of commas
6
5
Mean No.
4
3
2
1
0
G F E D C B A A*
Grade
2004 2007 2014
There are very few instances of incorrect commas. In 2014, incorrect commas appeared to decrease
from the mid- to lower range of attainment compared to 2007 and 2004.This is possibly because
these writing samples contained little or no punctuation. Commas used in comma splices were not
counted again in this measure.
Apostrophes
Overall, there was insufficient data on possessive apostrophes from which to draw conclusions.
In 2014 there appears to be a slight increase in the correct use of possessive apostrophes at the
mid- to high-range (Figure 22) in contrast to the 2007 data. However, incorrect use of possessive
apostrophes also showed a slight increase in the mid-range for 2014 compared to 2004 (Figure 23,
page 32). In 2014, incorrect use dropped away at the lower attainment levels, perhaps because of
punctuation in the writing samples.This is in contrast to 2004 and 2007, where incorrect use
increased at lower attainment levels. Occurrences of omitted possessive apostrophes remained low,
as in the previous years of the study (Figure 24, page 32).
Figure 22: Correct use of apostrophes – possession
1.4
1.2
1.0
Mean No.
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
G F E D C B A A*
Grade
2004 2007 2014
RESEARCH MATTERS – SPECIAL ISSUE 4: Aspects of Writing 1980–2014 | 31