When an examiner reads your essay, it’s a little like watching a film. Every grammar slip — a spelling mistake, an incomplete sentence, a comma where a full stop should be — makes that film stop, stutter or scratch.
Imagine sitting in a cinema while the projectionist puts their hand over the lens every two minutes. You’d lose immersion instantly and stop paying attention to what actually matters.
That’s why grammar matters. You want your examiner absorbed in your sophisticated analysis, your deeply personal creative piece or your careful dissection of a character’s fatal flaw — not distracted by errors. VCE English assessment rewards expressive, fluent and coherent use of language, and grammar is a big part of that. Here are ten common pitfalls, and how to fix each one.
Part one: sentence-level mistakes
1. Incomplete sentences (fragments)
A fragment looks like a sentence but doesn’t express a complete idea. Something essential is missing — usually a subject, a verb or the rest of the thought. In formal writing, fragments make your work feel choppy and can confuse your reader.
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Because the protagonist couldn’t forgive himself.
Because the protagonist couldn’t forgive himself, he isolates himself from the rest of the town.
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Such as the destruction of the community’s trust.
The novel explores several key consequences, such as the destruction of the community’s trust.
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A moment of clarity during the climax.
This event provides a moment of clarity during the climax.
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When the narrator finally reveals the truth.
When the narrator finally reveals the truth, the story’s tension finally breaks.
How to avoid them
- Check for a subject and a verb. Every sentence needs someone or something doing an action or being described.
- Watch the “dependent” words. Because, although, when, if and such as all need a main idea attached.
- Read it aloud. Fragments sound like you’ve stopped mid-thought.
- Combine short fragments. The fix is often sitting right next to the fragment in your essay.
2. Subject–verb agreement
Even a sharp idea falls flat if the subject and verb don’t match. A singular subject takes a singular verb; a plural subject takes a plural verb.
| Incorrect | Correct | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| The character struggle with guilt. | The character struggles with guilt. | Character is singular, so the verb is singular. |
| The themes is confronting. | The themes are confronting. | Themes is plural, so the verb is plural. |
| Either option were acceptable. | Either option was acceptable. | Either is treated as singular. |
3. Tense consistency
Switching tenses mid-paragraph distracts your reader and weakens your argument. Unnecessary jumps between past, present and future interrupt the flow and pull attention away from your analysis.
Text Response and Analysing Argument: use the present tense. In analytical essays, write in the literary present — discuss the text as if it’s happening now:
- “Fitzgerald reveals the emptiness of wealth…”
- “Sunset Boulevard presents Norma Desmond as a tragic figure and explores how…”
The literary present also creates a consistent, authoritative and active voice. Argument analysis follows the same logic: you’re analysing what the writer does and how their language affects the audience.
Crafting Texts: flexible, but deliberate. Creative writers can play with tense to build mood, pacing or perspective — the same instinct that helps a summer head start on Crafting Texts pay off once term begins. But every shift must be intentional. Moving from present to past to introduce a memory, or into the future to foreshadow, can be powerful — as long as it happens at a clear structural point (usually a new paragraph) and serves a purpose. Slipping tenses by accident just confuses the timeline.
Quick self-check
After drafting a paragraph, underline every main verb. If they’re not all in the same tense, ask: is this shift deliberate? If not, fix it.
4. Articles and prepositions
Small words — a, an, the, in, on, at — signal specificity, time and place. Choose the wrong one and you subtly change your meaning. As a rule of thumb:
- Use a/an for something general or not yet named, and the for something specific or already known.
- Use in for larger areas and longer time periods, on for surfaces and days, and at for precise locations and times.
5. Overly long sentences (run-ons and comma splices)
Long, rambling sentences are one of the most common problems in student essays. Keep an eye on sentence length, pacing and flow:
- Read it aloud. If you run out of breath, it’s too long.
- Count the commas. Lots of commas often means several independent ideas are glued together.
- One sentence, one core point. If you’re attaching points with different purposes, split them.
- Check the length on the page. Beyond two handwritten lines, a warning light should flicker. Beyond four, you’re in dangerous territory.
Part two: simple word-choice fixes
These are small, but examiners notice them every time.
its / it’s
It’s = “it is” or “it has” (“it’s clear”). Its shows possession (“its significance”). If the apostrophe isn’t marking missing letters, leave it out.
their / they’re / there
Their shows possession (“their argument”). They’re = “they are”. There indicates place or existence (“there are several themes”). Mixing them up is like wearing odd socks to a SAC: small, but noticeable.
affect / effect
Affect is usually a verb, meaning to influence (“the tone affects the reader”). Effect is usually a noun, meaning a result (“the effect of the metaphor”). You affect something to create an effect.
your / you’re
Your shows possession (“your interpretation”). You’re = “you are”.
then / than
Than compares (“more nuanced than”). Then shows sequence or result (“first analyse, then write”).
Avoid contractions in formal essays
In Text Response and Analysing Argument, write “the reader will not respond…” rather than “the reader won’t respond…”. In creative writing, contractions are fine — and often help your voice sound natural.
How to build your grammar muscle
Your weekly grammar routine
Key takeaways
- Every error interrupts the “film” in your examiner’s mind.
- Check each sentence for a subject, a verb and a complete idea.
- Keep analytical essays in the literary present; make creative tense shifts deliberate.
- One sentence, one point — split anything that runs past a couple of lines.
- Master the five commonly confused word pairs.
Final word
Your analysis may be brilliant, but your writing has to let the examiner see it. Grammar isn’t a technicality — it’s the vehicle that carries your ideas. Polish these ten hotspots and your writing moves from “good” to “excellent”.
Explore the English Kit guides
We cover grammar, sentence control and style in depth in The English Kit’s guides for VCE students — and we can mark your writing to show you exactly which patterns to fix.
Explore the guides →Quick answers
Does grammar affect my VCE English mark?
Yes. VCE English assessment criteria reward expressive, fluent and coherent use of language, which includes grammar, punctuation and sentence structure. Frequent errors also distract examiners from the quality of your ideas.
What tense should I write my text response in?
Use the literary present — discuss the text as if it’s happening now (for example, “Fitzgerald reveals…”). Analytical and argument analysis essays generally use present tense too.
How can I tell if my sentence is too long?
Read it aloud. If you run out of breath, if it contains several commas joining separate ideas, or if it runs beyond two to three handwritten lines, split it.
