meant to be

Question

"The dissertation requirement is meant to be a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement is meant to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."

Do both sentences work?
If yes, is one better than the other?

Thank you.

Clive · Accepted Answer

Hi,

"The dissertation requirement is meant to be a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement is meant to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."

Do both sentences work? Yes.
If yes, is one better than the other? Both seem a bit clumsy to me.

#1 suggests to me there may also be other ways.
Both #1 and #2 suggest to me some reservation on the part of the speaker.

Compare these as more definite.
"The dissertation requirement is a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement gauges whether a student has mastered the subject."

Clive

SuperESL · Answer

Hi,

I am somewhat hesitant to write -

"The dissertation requirement is meant to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement gauges whether a student has mastered the subject."

- because the notion that a requirement itself can 'gauge' anything sounds funny. Of course it is the way in which a student fulfills the requirement (i.e. whether the dissertation written is superior in quality, etc.) that gauges whether the student has mastered the subject, not the requirement itself.

I am more comfortable with -

"The dissertation requirement is a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement is meant to be a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."

- because the "a way to" phrase implies a process in between through which the dissertation requirement or its fulfillment generates a judgment on whether a student has mastered the subject.

Am I nit-picking here?

Thank you.

Clive · Answer

HI,
I am somewhat hesitant to write -

"The dissertation requirement is meant to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement gauges whether a student has mastered the subject."

- because the notion that a requirement itself can 'gauge' anything sounds funny. Of course it is the way in which a student fulfills the requirement (i.e. whether the dissertation written is superior in quality, etc.) that gauges whether the student has mastered the subject, not the requirement itself. I understand. Can you perhaps get rid of the word 'requirement' and just speak instead of 'the dissertation'?

I am more comfortable with -

"The dissertation requirement is a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."
"The dissertation requirement is meant to be a way to gauge whether a student has mastered the subject."

- because the "a way to" phrase implies a process in between through which the dissertation requirement or its fulfillment generates a judgment on whether a student has mastered the subject.

Am I nit-picking here? Yes. But that's what we often do on the Forum.

I don't much like the word 'gauge'. It implies to me degrees of mastery. But it seems to that at this level the student either masters the subject or he doesn't.

How about this?
eg The dissertation shows whether a student has mastered the subject.
eg The dissertation demonstrates a student's mastery of the subject..

Clive.

SuperESL · Answer

I do think there are different degrees of mastery at all levels in an academic discipline, the same with writing.

Getting rid of the word 'requirement' does help.

Thank you.

Clive · Answer

Hi,

I do think there are different degrees of mastery at all levels in an academic discipline, the same with writing
Then I wouldn't use 'whether'. That word suggests you either do or you don't.

Clive

SuperESL · Answer

Yes, I can now sense that 'gauge' does imply measurement along a continuum. But then, just for the sake of argument, I guess there can still be cut-off points along a continuum. So one can say that the dissertation tells us where a student stands along a continuum of mastery of the subject and also whether he makes the cut. In any case, your point about the connotations that 'gauge' carry is definitely taken.

Thank you.

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