Editing and Proofreading

 

Editing and proofreading are all about revising a piece of work. These two levels of reviewing a written work help improve the content, structure and grammar of an assignment.

 

1-    Editing Vs Proofreading

Although many people use these terms interchangeably, editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading. Hence, they focus on different aspects of the writing.

 

1.1    EDITING

Editing is what you start doing as soon as you finish your first draft. You reread your draft to see; whether the written work is well-organized, paragraphs are smooth, and your evidence really backs up your argument. Therefore, you can edit your work on several levels:

 

1.1.1    CONTENT EDITING

Content editing focuses on; 1- Have you done everything the assignment requires? 2- Does your content make an argument? 3- Is the argument complete? 4- Have you supported each point with adequate evidence? 5- Is all of the information in your paper relevant to the writing goals?

 

1.1.2    OVERALL STRUCTURE

This level of editing demands to check; 1- Does your assignment have an appropriate introduction and conclusion? 2- Have you stated your thesis statement clearly in your introduction? 3- Does each paragraph written in the body of your assignment relate to your thesis? 4- Are the paragraphs arranged in a logical sequence to reach conclusion?

 

1.1.3    STRUCTURE WITHIN PARAGRAPH

Here, the editor focuses on; 1- Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence? 2- Does each paragraph stick to one main idea? 3-Are there any extraneous or missing sentences in any of the paragraphs?

 

1.1.4    CRARITY WITHIN SENTENCE

This type of editing is done on sentence level which tends to evaluate; 1- whether the meaning of each sentence is clear? 2- Have you chosen proper words to express your ideas? (One way to this type of search is to read one sentence at a time, starting at the end and working backwards).

 

1.1.5    STYLE EDITING

Style editing focuses on the tone of the draft (formal, informal, persuasive, etc.). It also checks the use of pronouns. For example, some people incorrectly apply only ‘he’ to refer to doctors just because they have 'she' for nurses. Its main target is to ensure the use of mix mode of sentence constructions i.e. simple, voicing and narration etc.

 

1.2    PROOFREADING

Proofreading is the final stage of the reviewing process which focuses on the surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. Proofreading begins only after you have finished all the stages of editing.

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 reading usually misses a lot. It is better to work with a definite plan that helps in searching systematically for specific kinds of errors.

 

1.3    PROOFREADING PROCESS

Proofreading is a process which comprises on different phases. This systematic process helps you focus on catching as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.

 

1.3.1    SPELL CHECK

The first stage is checking the spellings of the words. Try to get a print of the draft and encircle all spelling mistakes. Don’t rely entirely on spelling checkers. These can be useful tools but they do not provide a fool proof checking.  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.

 

1.3.2    GRAMMAR CHECK

Grammar checkers can be even more problematic. These programs work with a limited number of rules, so they cannot identify every error and often make mistakes. They also fail to give thorough explanations to help you understand why a sentence should be revised. You may use a grammar checker to help you identify too-frequent use of the passive voice, but you need to have ability of evaluating the feedback it provides.

 

1.4    PROOFREADING TECHNIQUES 

1- 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.

2- 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 unnecessary corrections.

3- Try to separate the text into individual sentences. Simply press the ENTER key after searching through every sentence (for errors) in a paragraph. This will begin your paragraph with a new line every time. Your focus remains better on the opening line of a paragraph. You can look for grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors. If you’re working with a printed copy, try using a ruler or a piece of paper to isolate the line you are working on.

4- 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.