TestMagic

ShalomFang · 04-09-2005, 03:55 AM

Most people in this forum are just looking around but not give others any reply! Whether you agree it or not, it is the fact!
Maybe they just give a reply to something useful to themselves. Comment others' compositions? They seem to have no interets!!!!
I just don't understand why so many people stint their words. Sometimes a reply with even a single word may give the poster much courage, especially when it comes to a rookie just like me.

Sigh~ The world is just like this?!

**Erin** · 04-10-2005, 02:19 AM

(I've moved your post here, where I like to keep all the site feedback.)

Yep, it's always been like this, for various reasons, and nothing I've ever tried has worked.

I do have a new idea, though. I'm thinking something like this--at the beginning of every essay you post, you say something like this:

"I agree to rate your essay if you'll rate mine. If you give me lots of feedback, I'll give you lots of feedback; if you make just a few short comments, I'll do the same. I can't guarantee that my feedback will be helpful or accurate, but I will try my best. And finally, I don't mind even short comments!"

We could shorten this, eventually, and call it TestMagic Karma. If enough people do this, we could link to the TestMagic Karma page for those who aren't familiar with it, like so: "I believe in TestMagic Karma."

On a side note: If this usage of the word karma is inappropriate in any way, please let me know.

Vaya · 04-10-2005, 04:34 AM

All complaints should be forwarded to God or gods or whatever power who created us, human beings.

Sorry for taking an ironic viewpoint, but that's how it it is: people are selfish and care mostly about themselves. What we can do about it? Start from yourself and spread the good around. Comment on other people essays and hope that somebody else will also be generous and will share their comments.

Anyways, good luck.
Renata

ish · 04-10-2005, 05:04 AM

erin, i have no clue abt the others, but i dont see anything wrong with the usage of the word karma.
its sad that we have to resort to statements like "i'll help you if you'll help me", esp in a forum like this, isnt it.
this is a grt post. i just hope that ppl try to be more helpful from now.

**Erin** · 04-10-2005, 05:27 AM

Well, I think the problem arises because reading and commenting is pretty tedious and time-consuming, and on top of that, there's not much ROI (return on investment) with the essays (compared with the other sections).

I prefer to think people just don't visit those forums as much.

Vaya · 04-10-2005, 06:06 AM

Other thing is that people don't think they are competent to comment on essays. You have to know the format and requirements really well to point out that something should be improved.

Yet another thing... I am not trying to be a bad person here or something, but it is just totally unfair then a person post one and only post asking his/her essay to be evaluated. And somebody does evaluate and you never hear a response again. No "thank you" or "hello" or anything. I mean, people should earn the essay review, because it is a really time-consuming activity. And on top of that t's highly personal. I mean, not many other people will benefil from your essay review.

Maybe I am being a mean person here, but I don't review an essay by people who did not contribute.

Renata

manasi4gre · 04-11-2005, 12:25 PM

erin and all others,
sorry for catching up the post late! but this particular matter was lurking in my mind for some days after regularly going through the essays section.

yes,"testmagic karma" should be followed and implemented..i dont feel there is any thing wrong with "karma".Like Erin said,reading essays may be tedious and time-consuming,may not even produce any return on investment,yet a kind word of encouragement does not hurt anyone.

I may be sounding a bit harsh but I have experienced the same when i posted two of the TOEFL essays i had written.I have always followed the principle of helping out others by giving them suggestions and points on how to improve and would definitely like a kind word or suggestion from rest of the TMians as well when i submit my essays,to help the spirit of Test magic grow.. that is other than the few handful of people who take pains to regularly read and rate the essays,there hardly seem to be many people who take it as a collective effort...

according to me,people who would like to have their essays evaluated at testmagic should also spend some time to read and evaluate other essays and help other test takers.Even after people are done with their test,they should try to atleast take some time out to help others who are in their position now-preparing themselves to take the test and anxious to get their work improved..

I do agree with all of you here..and thanks to the person who has brought up this topic!

scheng75 · 04-11-2005, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShalomFang

Most people in this forum are just looking around but not give others any reply! Whether you agree it or not, it is the fact!
Maybe they just give a reply to something useful to themselves. Comment others' compositions? They seem to have no interets!!!!
I just don't understand why so many people stint their words. Sometimes a reply with even a single word may give the poster much courage, especially when it comes to a rookie just like me.

Sigh~ The world is just like this?!

You are right that it is unfortunate that acts of altruism are rare these days, but I do think that there are more reasons why people don't comment, one big factor would be people's time constraint.

I'm very active on the "Admissions" and somewhat present on the "GRE" section because I feel like this is the area where I know the most. I go to great lengths trying to help others with the knowledge I have, but I hardly go into other sections because of time constraint and I don't really know much about the other test formats or topics. I'm giving you some explanations hoping to restore some of your faith & hope in humanity.

I don't mind helping people but finding where my help is needed takes time too (browsing through many threads...). Like Erin suggested, it is helpful if the person posting an essay makes it clear that short comments are welcomed or maybe they are mainly concerned about the flow and not every grammatical error. I am very selective when it comes to asking help on my essays or papers, so I can sometimes assume that other people are equally picky.

Just to give you an idea. I regularly correct my friends' essays, not necessarily because my English is that great (it's above average), but because I'm VERY meticulous. I spend anywhere from 20-60 mins on each page I help revise/edit, therefore, I need a lot of notice in advance in order to commit to helping. I not only correct grammar and spelling, but I also make suggestions on how to write certain sentences in more concise ways. Before I start editing/revising, I also need to know what the exact direction and format are for the essay and who the audience is...

After having said all that, since I don't regularly visit other sections where essays may be posted, feel free to PM me something you want proofread, but I may or may not have time to go through it in detail, especially if it's really long. I can quickly scan it and tell you briefly my thoughts.

My background: Moved to the US at 8. I took the TOEFL in 1992 and I don't really remember much, but my score was 670 (paper-based). I took the GRE in 1999 & 2004 (highest: 780Q & 640V) and currently applying to Econ Ph.D but may not pursue after all. Don't know much about the GMAT or current TOEFL and did not study for the GRE AWA.

ShalomFang · 04-12-2005, 04:09 AM

First, I am so happy to see so many replies here. Just as Vaya said, I posted "I found a big problem" for grouching. Because I do know it does not work at all.

But I have some ideas different from yours. I don't agree that commenting a composition is always time-consuming. Because nobody will order you to give his or her articles an elaborate and decent comment. "Hey, buddy! You must spend at least 1 hour on commenting my article!"

I think comment is a free and full of accomplishment-feel work. You can just point out some mistakes or some sentences hard to understand or just tell them your feeling. If enough people contribute their simple comments, then an article would be amended to be good enough, at least there are few errors in it.

Maybe it does not fit Erin because he is really a great man. And he always makes his best to comment others’ articles, including mine. I just want to tell Erin here that even he only give my article a simple reply I would appreciate him much because he has so many things to do in the forum and he has only 24 hours a day.

In sum, I hope to keep free feeling in this forum.

Last, I am not afraid to tell you that I am Chinese and my English is really suck! Just as what you have seen luckily.

But, I am keeping trying…HAHAHAHAHAHAHA……………………………………………………..

**Erin** · 04-12-2005, 06:56 AM

Well, since we have such a nice discussion going, I'd like to quote scheng (How to get a particular TMian to notice a thread?):

Quote:

I'm not an one-liner kind of person even when I send PM, so I have to construct a PM and proofread, takes too long. I proofread everything at least twice.

I am also this kind of person--I find it hard to write just a few words, and if I do, it often comes across as rude when I really didn't mean to be.

At any rate, I did notice that you commented on a few essays, so at least you're practicing what you preach, LOL.

04-09-2005, 03:55 AM	#1 (permalink)
ShalomFang Within my grasp! Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 223	I found a big problem !!!! Most people in this forum are just looking around but not give others any reply! Whether you agree it or not, it is the fact! Maybe they just give a reply to something useful to themselves. Comment others' compositions? They seem to have no interets!!!! I just don't understand why so many people stint their words. Sometimes a reply with even a single word may give the poster much courage, especially when it comes to a rookie just like me. Sigh~ The world is just like this?!

04-10-2005, 02:19 AM	#2 (permalink)
Erin So many things to do... Forum Admin Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: USA Posts: 8,240	TestMagic Karma (I've moved your post here, where I like to keep all the site feedback.) Yep, it's always been like this, for various reasons, and nothing I've ever tried has worked. I do have a new idea, though. I'm thinking something like this--at the beginning of every essay you post, you say something like this: "I agree to rate your essay if you'll rate mine. If you give me lots of feedback, I'll give you lots of feedback; if you make just a few short comments, I'll do the same. I can't guarantee that my feedback will be helpful or accurate, but I will try my best. And finally, I don't mind even short comments!" We could shorten this, eventually, and call it TestMagic Karma. If enough people do this, we could link to the TestMagic Karma page for those who aren't familiar with it, like so: "I believe in TestMagic Karma." On a side note: If this usage of the word karma is inappropriate in any way, please let me know. _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ [Say 'hi'!] [Google Interviews Erin] [San Francisco Chronicle Interviews Erin]

04-10-2005, 04:34 AM	#3 (permalink)
Vaya TOEFL Essay Guru Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: NYC Posts: 730	Re: I found a big problem !!!! All complaints should be forwarded to God or gods or whatever power who created us, human beings. Sorry for taking an ironic viewpoint, but that's how it it is: people are selfish and care mostly about themselves. What we can do about it? Start from yourself and spread the good around. Comment on other people essays and hope that somebody else will also be generous and will share their comments. Anyways, good luck. Renata _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ Spread the love of Google: most answers are out there

04-10-2005, 05:04 AM	#4 (permalink)
ish Dumbledore's Army Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 2,334	Re: I found a big problem !!!! erin, i have no clue abt the others, but i dont see anything wrong with the usage of the word karma. its sad that we have to resort to statements like "i'll help you if you'll help me", esp in a forum like this, isnt it. this is a grt post. i just hope that ppl try to be more helpful from now. _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ If you can't change your mind, are you sure you have one? Be weird whenever you have the chance Don't lurk! Please participate OF COURSE I DON'T LOOK BUSY...I DID IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME.

04-10-2005, 05:27 AM	#5 (permalink)
Erin So many things to do... Forum Admin Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: USA Posts: 8,240	Re: I found a big problem !!!! Well, I think the problem arises because reading and commenting is pretty tedious and time-consuming, and on top of that, there's not much ROI (return on investment) with the essays (compared with the other sections). I prefer to think people just don't visit those forums as much. _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ [Say 'hi'!] [Google Interviews Erin] [San Francisco Chronicle Interviews Erin]

04-10-2005, 06:06 AM	#6 (permalink)
Vaya TOEFL Essay Guru Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: NYC Posts: 730	Re: I found a big problem !!!! Other thing is that people don't think they are competent to comment on essays. You have to know the format and requirements really well to point out that something should be improved. Yet another thing... I am not trying to be a bad person here or something, but it is just totally unfair then a person post one and only post asking his/her essay to be evaluated. And somebody does evaluate and you never hear a response again. No "thank you" or "hello" or anything. I mean, people should earn the essay review, because it is a really time-consuming activity. And on top of that t's highly personal. I mean, not many other people will benefil from your essay review. Maybe I am being a mean person here, but I don't review an essay by people who did not contribute. Renata _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ Spread the love of Google: most answers are out there

04-11-2005, 12:25 PM	#7 (permalink)
manasi4gre TestMagic Guru Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: INDIA Posts: 1,810	Re: I found a big problem !!!! erin and all others, sorry for catching up the post late! but this particular matter was lurking in my mind for some days after regularly going through the essays section. yes,"testmagic karma" should be followed and implemented..i dont feel there is any thing wrong with "karma".Like Erin said,reading essays may be tedious and time-consuming,may not even produce any return on investment,yet a kind word of encouragement does not hurt anyone. I may be sounding a bit harsh but I have experienced the same when i posted two of the TOEFL essays i had written.I have always followed the principle of helping out others by giving them suggestions and points on how to improve and would definitely like a kind word or suggestion from rest of the TMians as well when i submit my essays,to help the spirit of Test magic grow.. that is other than the few handful of people who take pains to regularly read and rate the essays,there hardly seem to be many people who take it as a collective effort... according to me,people who would like to have their essays evaluated at testmagic should also spend some time to read and evaluate other essays and help other test takers.Even after people are done with their test,they should try to atleast take some time out to help others who are in their position now-preparing themselves to take the test and anxious to get their work improved.. I do agree with all of you here..and thanks to the person who has brought up this topic! _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ "Fear less,hope more; whine less,breathe more; Talk less,work more; hate less,love more; Then all the good things are yours ." ---Proverb---

04-12-2005, 04:09 AM	#9 (permalink)
ShalomFang Within my grasp! Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 223	Re: I found a big problem !!!! First, I am so happy to see so many replies here. Just as Vaya said, I posted "I found a big problem" for grouching. Because I do know it does not work at all. But I have some ideas different from yours. I don't agree that commenting a composition is always time-consuming. Because nobody will order you to give his or her articles an elaborate and decent comment. "Hey, buddy! You must spend at least 1 hour on commenting my article!" I think comment is a free and full of accomplishment-feel work. You can just point out some mistakes or some sentences hard to understand or just tell them your feeling. If enough people contribute their simple comments, then an article would be amended to be good enough, at least there are few errors in it. Maybe it does not fit Erin because he is really a great man. And he always makes his best to comment others’ articles, including mine. I just want to tell Erin here that even he only give my article a simple reply I would appreciate him much because he has so many things to do in the forum and he has only 24 hours a day. In sum, I hope to keep free feeling in this forum. Last, I am not afraid to tell you that I am Chinese and my English is really suck! Just as what you have seen luckily. But, I am keeping trying…HAHAHAHAHAHAHA……………………………………………………..

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