Week 14 — Quiz (auto-graded) · Editing: Grammar, Mechanics & Common Errors

Course: English Composition (ENGL 1A) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Lindgren
Objective tested: Objective 7 — editing for grammar and mechanics; the most common surface errors.
Points: 10 (1 each) · Assignment group: Quizzes (10% of grade) · Due: end of Module 14. AI is not permitted on quizzes.

This is the human-readable quiz with its vetted answer key and feedback. The import-ready Classic QTI is in F-quiz-week-14-qti.xml (generated by a validated script — parses with 10 items, every single-answer item exactly one correct). The Canvas placement block is at the bottom of this file. No free-response items — all auto-gradable (MC / multiple-answer / matching / true-false).

Conventions-integrity note (LOAD-BEARING this week): every sentence in every item has been mechanically checked. A sentence labeled a comma splice is two independent clauses joined by only a comma; a sentence labeled a fragment cannot stand alone; a run-on is two independent clauses with no punctuation between them; every option marked correct is genuinely correct. Each "identify the error" item contains exactly one option with the named error and no other distracting error. Rules cross-checked against Purdue OWL and Khan Academy Grammar.

Blueprint

No trick questions; distractors target the Week 14 misconceptions named in the lecture outline (a comma can't join two sentences; length isn't the run-on test; its vs. it's; agreement with a phrase in the way).

Questions, key, and feedback

Q1 (MC). Which of the following is a sentence fragment (an incomplete sentence)?
- A. Although the comments on my draft were harsh. ✅
- B. My instructor returned the drafts on Friday.
- C. I revised the introduction twice.
- D. The thesis needs more support.
Feedback: A opens with the dependent marker although, which leaves the thought hanging — it can't stand alone, so it's a fragment. (B, C, and D each have a subject and a verb and express a complete thought.) Fix A by attaching it: "Although the comments on my draft were harsh, they helped me revise."

Q2 (MC). Which sentence is a comma splice (two complete sentences joined by only a comma)?
- A. I finished the essay, and I submitted it early.
- B. I finished the essay, I submitted it early. ✅
- C. After I finished the essay, I submitted it early.
- D. I finished the essay and submitted it early.
Feedback: B joins two independent clauses (I finished the essay / I submitted it early) with only a comma — a comma splice. (A uses a comma plus the coordinating conjunction and; C opens with a dependent clause; D has one subject and a compound verb — all correct.)

Q3 (MC). Which sentence is a run-on (fused) sentence (two complete sentences with no punctuation between them)?
- A. The lab was closed, so I worked at home.
- B. The lab was closed the computers were all in use. ✅
- C. Because the lab was closed, I worked at home.
- D. The lab was closed; the computers were all in use.
Feedback: B runs two independent clauses together with no punctuation at all — a fused sentence. (A uses a comma + so; C subordinates the first clause; D uses a semicolon — all correct.)

Q4 (MC). Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
- A. Editing comes last, revision comes first.
- B. Editing comes last revision comes first.
- C. Editing comes last; revision comes first. ✅
- D. Editing comes last, revision, comes first.
Feedback: C correctly joins two closely related independent clauses with a semicolon. (A is a comma splice; B is a run-on; D adds a stray comma and is still a splice.)

Q5 (MC). Which revision correctly fixes this comma splice — "My evidence was thin, my thesis was strong."?
- A. My evidence was thin my thesis was strong.
- B. My evidence was thin, but my thesis was strong. ✅
- C. My evidence was thin, my thesis, was strong.
- D. My evidence was thin, my thesis was strong, however.
Feedback: B adds a comma plus the coordinating conjunction but, a valid fix that also fits the contrast in meaning. (A deletes the comma and creates a run-on; C adds a stray comma and is still a splice; D tacks on however but leaves the comma splice in place.) A period or a semicolon would also fix it.

Q6 (MC). Which sentence has correct subject–verb agreement?
- A. The box of pens are on the desk.
- B. The box of pens is on the desk. ✅
- C. Each of the writers revise differently.
- D. One of the paragraphs need work.
Feedback: B matches the real subject box (singular) with is; the phrase of pens doesn't change the subject. (A uses are for the singular box; Each in C and One in D are singular and need revises and needs.) The cure: find the real subject and ignore the of ___ phrase between it and the verb.

Q7 (MC). Which sentence uses its / it's correctly?
- A. Its been a productive week for the writing group.
- B. The committee published it's report today.
- C. The novel is famous for its surprising ending. ✅
- D. Its a long paper, but its argument is clear.
Feedback: C uses the possessive its (no apostrophe) correctly. (A needs It's = It has; B needs the possessive its, since it is report is nonsense; D's first Its needs It's = It is.) The test: read it as "it is" — if that's nonsense, use its.

Q8 (Matching). Match each error type (or move) to its correct description.
| Item | Correct description |
|---|---|
| Fragment | An incomplete sentence that cannot stand on its own |
| Comma splice | Two complete sentences joined by only a comma |
| Run-on (fused sentence) | Two complete sentences with no punctuation between them |
| Comma + coordinating conjunction | A correct way to join two complete sentences |
Feedback: Three errors and one correct move. The two that look alike — comma splice and run-on — differ only by what sits between the two complete sentences: a lone comma (splice) versus nothing at all (run-on). A comma plus a FANBOYS conjunction is the correct join.

Q9 (True / False). "A long sentence is automatically a run-on sentence."
- True
- False ✅
Feedback: False. Length is not the test. A long sentence can be perfectly correct, and a short string can be a fragment. The test is clause structure — how many independent clauses there are and what punctuation (if any) joins them. (This is the week's headline misconception.)

Q10 (Multiple answer — select all that apply). Which of the following contain a sentence-boundary error (a fragment, a comma splice, or a run-on)?
- A. I read the paper aloud, and I caught two errors.
- B. When I read the paper aloud. ✅
- C. I read the paper aloud I caught two errors. ✅
- D. I read the paper aloud, I caught two errors. ✅
- E. Reading the paper aloud helped me catch errors.
Feedback: B is a fragment (a dependent clause alone); C is a run-on (two complete sentences, no punctuation); D is a comma splice (two complete sentences, comma only). A is correct (comma + and joining two independent clauses), and E is correct (Reading the paper aloud is the subject; helped is the verb).

Answer key (quick reference)

Quality gate (self-checked): each single-answer item (Q1–Q7) has exactly one correct option; the matching item (Q8) pairs four items to four distinct descriptions one-to-one; the T/F (Q9) keys False; the multiple-answer item (Q10) keys B, C, D (and requires A and E left unselected). EVERY example sentence was mechanically verified against the can-each-side-stand-alone test: each labeled fragment cannot stand alone, each comma splice is two independent clauses + a lone comma, each run-on is two independent clauses + no punctuation, and each option marked correct is genuinely correct (Q1 B/C/D; Q2 A/C/D; Q3 A/C/D; Q4 C; Q6 B; Q7 C; Q10 A/E). Every example sentence is the instructor's own illustration, attributed to no one — so there are no quotations, sources, or citations to mis-attribute in this quiz. Rules cross-checked against Purdue OWL (Run-ons/Comma Splices/Fused Sentences; Sentence Fragments) and Khan Academy Grammar. No computation in this quiz. No free-response items. Citation-integrity + correct-conventions gate: PASS.

Item-bank entries (for variants + the midterm/final)

All ten items are tagged course=ENGL1A · week=14 · objective=7 · topic=editing-grammar-mechanics and deposited in Item Bank: Week 14 — Editing: Grammar, Mechanics & Common Errors. The final (Week 16) and the per-term variant updates draw fresh items from this bank. (Tags: q1 fragment-id, q2 comma-splice-id, q3 run-on-id, q4 correct-punctuation, q5 fix-the-splice, q6 subject-verb-agreement, q7 its-vs-its, q8 error-type-match, q9 length-not-the-test, q10 boundary-error-multi.)

Canvas placement block

canvas_object   = Quizzes::Quiz
title           = "Week 14 Quiz — Editing: Grammar, Mechanics & Common Errors"
assignment_group = "Quizzes"
points_possible = 10
grading_type    = points
due_offset_days = 6        # 6 days after module start
published       = true
shuffle_answers = true
ai_permitted    = false    # AI is not permitted on quizzes
provenance      = "~ Prof. Lindgren's edition · Fall 2026 · built with thecoursemaker.com"