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Learner includes a by-phrase when the agent is part of the claim and omits it when it is not, and recognises the agentless passive used to avoid responsibility.
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Six agentless passives. Three are fine as they are.
The data were collected in 2019. Does the missing agent matter?
When to omit, when to include, and what a reader hears.
The data were collected in 2019.
The report was published last week.
Who collected them is not part of the argument.
Adding by researchers would be weight with no return.
Twelve sentences in context, six of each.
Sort each item into the correct category
Eight sentences. Four gain an agent, four lose one.
Argument: the previous government is responsible. The scheme was introduced in 2019. →
Argument: the findings show a clear trend. The data were collected by a research team in 2019. →
Argument: several large firms broke the rules. The rules were broken. →
Argument: the report's findings are reliable. The report was published by the university press last week. →
Argument: the department, not the schools, made the cut. Services were cut. →
Argument: the bridge has lasted well. The bridge was built in 1890 by workers on short contracts. →
Argument: the planning committee blocked the reform. The proposal was rejected in March. →
Argument: the samples are handled consistently. The samples are frozen within an hour by laboratory staff. →
Two passives, and say why each agent stayed or went.
Topic: a government cutting funding for something.
Sentence 1: a passive that names the agent, because the claim needs it. Sentence 2: a passive that omits the agent, because the claim does not.
Then give one line on each saying why.
One per line.
Two short answers.
Ask by whom? of your own sentence. Answer honestly.