B Analysis

What is the purpose of proofreading?

Proofreading is an important academic skill, yet many essays
do not get proofread. The main reasons for this are:
Proofreading: an
• Students do not see the point of proofreading, so do activity th a t two
not proofread.
can enjoy!
• Students lack the technique and knowledge of how to It is very useful to proofread your
proofread, so do it poorly. work with a friend. As well as
• Students run out of time to proofread and are unable to do it. making the process more interesting
The aim of this step is to identify why proofreading is (and possibly fun), there are good
important. Steps 47 and 48 look at specific strategies which academic reasons for doing this. As
can be developed to improve your proofreading skills, and the quotation at the beginning of
identify the kind of problems which you should be looking for. this step suggests, it is much easier
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to see the mistakes in someone

In brief, writing which has not been proofread can appear:
else’s writing than in your own. In
addition, it may be useful to work
Difficult to understand with a friend whose mother tongue
Taking time to proofread your essay can significantly improve is different from yours, since he or
the reader’s ability to understand the content. Specific she might be able to identify
problems to target include: mistakes which you cannot.
■ Overly long sentences. Break them down into smaller
sentences which can be more easily understood.
• Proofreading, can also help identify sentences which are too long as this is a common
problem which students face because they thinking that longer sentences are by
definition a better thing when actually they can be very difficult to follow and you often
end up repeating the same information.
Lack of cohesion. Is it clear what all pronouns refer to? Is there a ‘chain’ through your
writing? Have you used linking devices appropriately?

Unprofessional
If a student does not take pride in his or her work, this will create a very negative impression
on the person marking the essay. The marker may think that this carelessness is reflected in
the content.
# Typos. Is everything spelt correctly? Have you made any silly, unnecessary mistakes?
• Texts(witclj)are not proofread often repeat teh same information.
W Poor punctuation. Have you used full stops/commas/semicolons correctly? Have you used
capital letters in the right way? Is any of the punctuation informal?
• Proofreadin^£)can also help identify sentences which are too long as ...
\m Poor formatting. Have you paragraphed appropriately? Have you used the same font
throughout?
•C^ jj ^ f t e r v f i P j g ^that you repeat yourself.
W Weak structure. Are all your sentences complete? Is there a subject and verb in all of
them?
• You also need to check if your sentences make C ^ .
 Unbalanced
Proofreading can help smooth out an essay and ensure you are consistent.
■ Inconsistent position. Is your argument the same throughout the essay?
Do you contradict yourself at any point?
■ Repetition. Have the confidence to state something once and well. Do not repeat
the same information.
• You often find that you repeat yourself.

Non-academic
Your essay should follow the generally agreed academic conventions.
■ Inappropriate language. Have you used the right level of formality - not too informal
but also not overly formal?
• Technical, bespoke jargon mixed with words which are really slangy is something else
which should be avoided.
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■ Referencing conventions. Have you followed the recommended conventions? Are they
consistent? Have you sourced where you found all your ideas?
• As Sowton 2012 argues, ‘proofreading is as important as planning’.
■ Lack of supporting evidence. Have you ensured that the arguments/conclusions which
you are making are supported?
• We can conclude, therefore, that proofreading is important.
This conclusion cannot be made based on the supporting evidence which precedes it.

How should I proofread?

For your proofreading to be successful, it is recommended that Focusing your
your answers in part A should be towards the right-hand side proofreading
of the spectrums. The reasons for this are: By knowing your own strengths
■ How frequently? and weaknesses, you can focus
As indicated by the reasons above, you should always your proofreading more effectively.
proofread. Good time-management skills are important, to Analyze those specific areas where
ensure you include proofreading in your essay planning. you know you have problems.
■ How detailed?
There is no point in proofreading your essays unless you do it in a focused way. Proper
proofreading is a thorough examination of your essay. Just looking at the surface without
going into detail will only marginally improve the quality of your essay. You should want to
find problems with your essay - too often proofreading tends to ignore problems. To do this,
you need to read your essay critically (see Step 8).
1 When?
Most people, when they finish writing their essay, want to hand it in as soon as possible.
Many students have no choice about this, as they only finish their essay a few minutes
before the deadline. Whenever possible, however, you should wait 48 hours after finishing
your essay before proofreading it. It is important to get some distance from your essay so
that you can gain some freshness and clarity. If you do not have 48 hours, even a short break
will help. Although proofreading is a process which can be time-consuming and boring, it is
necessary. Any time which is spent proofreading will be time well spent. It is much better to
spend an hour on proofreading than an hour on additional research or writing.