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Revision
Revision Revision |
One of the keys to success in this course is revision. When you submit assignments, the instructor will read them, make corrections or suggestions on the Word document, and then return them to you. When you open a document, you will see the corrections in blue. Read over the corrections and then make revisions. Remember, you should always attempt to make improvements on your revisions. Do not simply limit yourself to the corrections that are indicated. If you see something that could be written better or clearer, then you should try to improve it. You will be required to revise most of the assignments.
Grades
will not be assigned until after all of the assignments and the revisions
for a section are completed and submitted.
If
assignments are turned in after the due date, the grade will be reduced.
Revisions should be sent in within two days.
Do not, under any circumstances, submit late assignments at the end of the semester.
Revision is not simply proofreading and editing. Revising is more than correcting surface errors or rearranging paragraphs. It requires a thinking about the ideas and organization of the paper as a whole. Some inexperienced writers may be unsure about the difference between editing and revision. Try to remember, editing deals with more technical information -- grammar and punctuation; revision focuses on ideas and organizing and clarifying those ideas.
Proofreading is actually the final step before turning in a paper; revision is part of the process of writing. Don't expect to create a perfect draft the first time. Most writers develop new ideas and refine ideas as they continue working on a paper.
Revision may involve developing ideas in more detail, providing more evidence, taking analysis one step further, improving an introduction, and reorganizing sentences in a paragraph or paragraphs in a paper. It may involve shifting focus, changing emphasis, adjusting the tone in the writing. Revision may also include deleting material that no longer appears relevant and incorporating new material. It may be necessary to throw away a portion of writing and rewrite it from scratch.
After revising your ideas, polish your prose to insure that your ideas are clear. Remember, even though you may think everything in the writing is easy to understand, in business writing you are writing for an audience, and you have to make it clear enough for the reader.
There are a few strategies for reading your paper objectively and critically. First, make sure you have enough time to set the paper aside for a day or two. If you have really become familiar with the topic, you should continue developing new ideas to add to and improve your writing. When you come back to what you have written, you should be able to read it with a fresher eye.
Many instructors suggest reading out loud. Whenever we read, we generally fill in gaps in our writing. If you read out loud, you may find that a word is missing or that a sentence doesn't sound quite right.
It might be a good idea to leave proofreading for grammar and punctuation errors until the paper is just about finished. You will probably change and rearrange sentences during the revision process, so there is little point in making sure sentences are perfect if they will be changed later.
Make sure you read pp. 47-55 on revising and pp. 55-69 on editing.
** A word of caution; this class does not deal with grammar and punctuation. If a student has serious problems with grammar and punctuation, it is the student's responsibility to deal with those problems. I will indicate where problems exist on your papers. Look in the Little, Brown Handbook and on the OWL Handouts page for information on specific problems.
Three Levels of Revision Portland State
Some Warning Signs of a Rushed Paper
University of Richmond Writing Center
The Write Place Catalogue St. Cloud State
Proofreading
Even an informative, well researched paper can be damaged by careless mechanical errors. One of the most common errors that inexperienced writers make is to skip proofreading. Often students look at the papers I return and do nothing more than correct the errors that I have indicated. Always look for ways to improve your writing. Always look for errors that I might not have caught. It is the student's responsibility to locate errors and eliminate them. Good writing has been carefully proofread to eliminate ALL careless errors. When editing and proofreading, correct problems like typos and grammatical errors; read through the paper line by line and make changes. It might be a good idea to start at the end of the paper and read from the last sentence to the first. By doing that, you will not be paying attention to the content. Look for errors in each sentence.
Do not depend on the computer's grammar checker. The one's I have seen make frequent mistakes and sometimes offer incorrect suggestions.
Editing & Proofreading Strategies for Specific Sentence-Level Errors
General Strategies for Editing and Proofreading
How to Proofread and Edit Your Writing A Guide for Student Writers
The Rewriting and Editing Process
Editing and Proofreading Strategies for Revision