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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

I wrote a bit of rude reply on my son's English test!

130 replies

LinoleumBlownapart · 03/04/2018 17:04

Now I'm feeling a bit bad and I can't erase it because I wrote in pen, but my son got 8.75 out of 10 on his English as a second language test (we live abroad) but he chose the only right answer and the teacher marked it wrong. I wrote because I thought maybe she wanted the answer in past perfect! On the second page he got another question wrong, I think she wanted him to write "haven't" but he wrote "don't have". But "My parents haven't a lot of money" sounds wrong, but is it? I'm attaching pictures because I'm confusing myself. AIBU to talk to the teacher or should I let it go and not be one of those parents.

I wrote a bit of rude reply on my son's English test!
I wrote a bit of rude reply on my son's English test!
OP posts:
Judashascomeintosomemoney · 03/04/2018 18:33

DDs best friend has this native language as a second language problem, but the other way round. She’s a native Spanish speaker, whole family only speak Spanish at home. Yet my DD regularly scores more than her in written tests even though she protests ‘but you wouldn’t say it like that!’ . Ticks her right offGrin

Dickybow321 · 03/04/2018 18:36

My DS's GCSE French teacher reckons only native speakers will be getting the grade 9 in the new GCSEs they're sitting in a few weeks. Reading this thread has made me hopeful she's wrong Grin

Original poster
LinoleumBlownapart · 03/04/2018 18:40

Thank you! Yes I wrote "had chosen" that's why I'm feeling "knobby" now. DS said that was supposed to be the correct answer, but it's not correct obviously. I think letting it go would be my normal action, but one of my jobs is to ensure the teaching standards are high, as I'm actually school admin. While it didn't affect my son as the grade was good anyway, this question being 'wrong' could be the difference for some children passing and failing the year. Universities look at high school grades too and this is not the first time this has happened, just the first time I've been on the parent end of it...Sad

OP posts:
shirt · 03/04/2018 18:47

Actually in British English, we usually treat collective nouns as plurals that take plural verbs. I wonder if some posters here have received some American influence! Grin

ShowOfHands · 03/04/2018 18:49

Is Victoria using male pronouns? I like how on trend the test is.

Happycow · 03/04/2018 18:53

Isn’t it “have not had”? Haven’t / don’t have is present tense, the question wants present perfect.

Happycow · 03/04/2018 18:54

If my y memory of school grammar lessons is correct, which it may not be!

catinapoolofsunshine · 03/04/2018 19:00

In DD's English as a foreign language class for 12-13 year olds, the children are only allowed to speak English.

The teacher explained to them during one lesson, that they were about to take a test and should answer all 14 questions. DD's friend and desk neighbour noticed that her test only had 8 questions, printed on one side of the paper.

She put her hand up and said

"Please Mrs H, my test has no backside!"

Her teacher responded

"Oh no! Has everyone else got a backside? Show me your backsides everyone!"

DD burst out laughing, because she is 12 and English lessons are usually very dull for her. Her teacher knows DD is a native English speaker and chose not to use the usual teacher response of asking her to share the joke... She only ever enlightened her immediate neighbour.

StinkPickle · 03/04/2018 19:00

@ShowOfHands is right! Very inclusive... ;)

BitOutOfPractice · 03/04/2018 19:02

Ah don't worry about it op. We are all s bit knobby now and then Thanks

HermionesRightHook · 03/04/2018 19:02

If someone told me 'My parents haven't a lot of money' I would assume that meant that they were minor aristos forced into some sort of trade or profession because the family estate was entailed to the elder brother.

It's not wrong, it's just not what your average English speaker in the UK would say.

Technonan · 03/04/2018 19:15

I've worked in language assessment for much of my life. The problem with multiple choice for language is that language is very versatile and all too often, more than one option is correct. 'Chose' is the best option of the ones available. 'Had chosen' would be better, but it isn't there, as far as I can see. 'My parents don't have a lot of money' is fine. It'll help him to be cynical about tests which is no bad thing.

WingsOnMyBoots · 03/04/2018 19:19

"My parents haven't a lot of money! is definitely WRONG!!! It makes no sense. If she has said this is right I would have to check all of the other questions because this is, in my eyes, a glaringly obvious mistake.

It is either:

"My parents haven't/have not GOT a lot of money". or "My parents don't/do not have a lot of money".

Flyingpompom · 03/04/2018 19:22

Have chosen won't work with the relative clause at the end. Actually it would be has chosen, not have chosen anyway. Team is singular.
Only option that could be correct is chose, otherwise it could be had chosen, but that's not there, so the answer is chose.

If I were the teacher I would expect to be corrected on such a fundamental mistake. She's teaching them wrong, plain and simple. Nothing knobby about your response.

I've taught English for 15 years, btw.

pepperpot99 · 03/04/2018 19:22

IT IS NOT WRONG!!!! it is only that that particular nuance in expession has been replaced with the addition of 'got' . I know a fair bit about grammar as well as linguistics so please - stop calling it 'bad English'. It really isn't.

kalinkafoxtrot45 · 03/04/2018 19:28

I used to help German teenagers with their English homework and exam prep. The rubbish some of those teachers used to come out with...it would make you weep.

Flyingpompom · 03/04/2018 19:28

Pepperpot, who are you shouting at?

pepperpot99 · 03/04/2018 19:46

In that particular instance I was shouting at WingsOnMyBoots who stated that "my parents haven't a lot of money" is "definitely WRONG" ( so in my defence they were also shouting - and used multiple exclamation marks for dramatic emphasis Grin.)

I'm right though. People use poor grammar so frequently that they start believing it to be accurate .

EastMidsMummy · 03/04/2018 19:58

Yes, “My parents haven't a lot of money” isn’t wrong, but it is archaic.

NeedForBlossom · 03/04/2018 20:02

But what IS wrong:-

In the third paragraph underneath it says 'Seam Engine not 'Steam'...

Elphame · 03/04/2018 20:15

I'd say "haven't a lot of money" - haven't got a lot of money sounds clumsy to my ear. I did read al lot of classical literature as a teen.

diddl · 03/04/2018 20:21

"Team" isn't always singular is it?

I think that the rest of the sentence is so clunky though that chose is probably the best bet as it fits either!

Original poster
LinoleumBlownapart · 03/04/2018 20:25

OP - you are rather vulgar and picky to call the teacher out.

The problem is, as I said, I work in the school. My job is partly to ensure teaching standards are high and the children are treated fairly. Marking a student down for a correct answer is a problem.

OP posts:
HerRoyalNotness · 03/04/2018 20:25

chocolate

I LOVE that! 😂😂😂

kikibo · 03/04/2018 20:26

Without being able to read the pics because they're far too small, 'My haven't a lot of money ' shouldn't really be marked as correct because the language level of these students is too low to understand the minute nuance. The preferred option is 'don't have ', surely?
As pp have said, if the question asks to conjugate the verb 'to have ', then 'don't have ' is the only option, as 'don't ' is an auxiliary verb and therefore deemed to be part of 'to have', especially in English.

As to correcting the teacher, the teacher should not teach mistakes. No compassion. 8.75 out of 10 or not, wrong is wrong. The teacher should see it as an opportunity to learn, not as a threat.