If we read the paper aloud slowly, we have two senses--seeing AND hearing--working for us. Thus, what one sense misses, the other may pick up.
Check the Thesis Statement and Organization
Write down your thesis on a piece of paper if it is not directly stated in your essay. Does it accurately state your main idea? Is it in fact supported by the paper? Does it need to be changed in any way? On that piece of paper, list the main idea of each paragraph under the thesis statement. Is each paragraph relevant to the thesis? Are the paragraphs in a logical sequence or order?
Remember That You Are Writing For Others
No matter how familiar others may be with the material, they cannot "get inside" your head and understand your approach to it unless you express yourself clearly. Therefore, it is useful to read the paper through once as you keep in mind whether or not the student or teacher or friend who will be reading it will understand what you are saying. That is, have you said exactly what you wanted to say?
Check the Paper's Development
Are there sufficient details? Is the logic valid?
Check the Paper's Coherence and Unity
Are the major points connected? Are the relationships between them expressed clearly?
Do they all relate to the thesis?
Review your Diction
Remember that others are reading your paper and that even the choice of one word can affect their response to it. Try to anticipate their response, and choose your words accordingly.
Original: The media’s exploitation of the Watergate scandal showed how biased it was already.
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Revision: The media's coverage of the Watergate scandal suggests that perhaps those in the media had already determined Nixon’s guilt.
In addition to being more specific, the revision does not force the reader to defend the media. In the first example, though, the statement is so exaggerated that even the reader who is neutral on the issue may feel it necessary to defend the media. Thus, the writer of the original has made his job of persuading the reader that much harder.
3.3 Why Proofread?
Content is important. But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you've worked hard to develop your ideas and present them for others on paper, you don't want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say.
It's worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression. Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reread, especially after you've been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot. It's better to work with a definite plan that helps you to search systematically for specific kinds of errors.
Sure, this takes a little extra time, but it pays off in the end. If you know that you have an effective way to catch errors when the paper is almost finished, you can worry less about editing while you are writing your first drafts. This makes the entire writing process more efficient.
3.4 The Proofreading Process
You probably already used some of the strategies discussed below. Experiment with different tactics until you find a system that works well for you. The important thing is to make the process systematic and focused so that you catch as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.
Don't rely entirely on spelling checkers. These can be useful tools but they are far from foolproof. Spell checkers have a limited dictionary, so some words that show up as misspelled may just not be in their memory. In addition, spell checkers will not catch misspellings that form another valid word. For example, if you type "your"
instead of "you're," "to" instead of "too," or "there" instead of "their," the spell checker won't catch the error.
Grammar checkers can be even more problematic. These programs work with a limited number of rules, so they can't identify every error and often make mistakes.
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They also fail to give thorough explanations to help you understand why a sentence should be revised. You may want to use a grammar checker to help you identify potential run-on sentences or too frequent use of the passive voice, but you need to be able to evaluate the feedback it provides.
Proofread for only one kind of error at a time. If you try to identify and revise too many things at once, you risk losing focus, and your proofreading will be less effective. It's easier to catch grammar errors if you aren't checking punctuation and spelling at the same time. In addition, some of the techniques that work well for spotting one kind of mistake won't catch others.
Read slowly, and read every word. Try reading out loud, which forces you to say each word and also lets you hear how the words sound together. When you read silently or too quickly you may skip over errors or make unconscious corrections.
Separate the text into individual sentences. This is another technique to help you to read every sentence carefully. Simply press the return key after every period so that every line begins a new sentence. Then read each sentence separately, looking for grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors. If you're working with a printed copy, try using an opaque object like a ruler or a piece of paper to isolate the line you're working on.
Circle every punctuation mark. This forces you to look at each one. As you circle, ask yourself if the punctuation is correct.
Read the paper backwards. This technique is helpful for checking spelling. Start with the last word on the last page and work your way back to the beginning, reading each word separately. Because content, punctuation, and grammar won't make any sense, your focus will be entirely on the spelling of each word. You can also read backwards sentence by sentence to check grammar; this will help you avoid becoming distracted by content issues.
Proofreading is a learning process. You're not just looking for errors that you recognize; you're also learning to recognize and correct new errors. This is where handbooks and dictionaries come in. Keep the ones you find helpful close at hand as you proofread.
Ignorance may be bliss, but it won't make you a better proof- reader. You'll often find things that don't seem quite right to you, but you're not quite sure what's wrong either. A word looks like it might be misspelled, but the spell checker didn't catch it.
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You think you need a comma between two words, but you're not sure why. Should you use "that" instead of "which"? If you're not sure about something, look it up.
The proofreading process becomes more efficient as you develop and practice a systematic strategy. You'll learn to identify the specific areas of your own writing that need careful attention, and knowing that you have a sound method for finding errors will help you to focus more on developing your ideas while drafting the paper.
3.5 Editing and Proofreading Symbols
Proofreading and editing require certain universal symbols often used to determine where corrections are required to be made. Working on a simple publication or a piece of your own may not require your use of these symbols, but when you handle bulky jobs in a set up with clear lines of authority, you may need to use these symbols. It is useful to state however that the person who would need to see the job in which you have used the symbols must understand the symbols and there appropriate uses.