WR 101 Editing Strategies

Lecture Hours: 1
Credits: 1

Covers punctuation and editing skills needed in upper level college writing courses and writing-intensive jobs. Course may be repeated for a maximum of two credits.

Prerequisite: Placement into WR 115; or completion of WR 090 (or higher), with a grade of C or better; or consent of instructor.
Repeatable: 2

Student Learning Outcomes:

Identify and discuss different approaches to grammar (standard usage, common usage, context/field-specific usage), including historical and modern usage.
Examine beliefs and attitudes about grammar and editing.
Consider reader expectation during drafting, revising, and editing and make choices reflecting increased consciousness about grammar and style.
Use basic punctuation (comma, period, semi-colon, and colon) in a consistently correct manner.
Identify appropriate situations for using less common punctuation marks (apostrophes, ellipsis, quotation marks, dashes, hyphens, and underlining).
Identify and correct error patterns specific to the individual writer that interrupt meaning, using and/or applying effective individual proofreading and editing techniques, peer proofreading and editing techniques, recommendations from peer-tutors, Writing Center volunteers, and/or the class instructor.
Identify the differences between Standard English grammar and modern writing situations like email, text messaging, and message boards.
Use technology appropriately to efficiently catch and correct grammar errors while avoiding pitfalls common to many word-processing programs.
Offer meaningful and appropriate feedback on the work of others using common proofreading marks.

Content Outline

Editing Skills
- Difference between drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading
- What makes a good editor
- Common proofreading marks
- Historical overview of editing/grammar choices and changes
Commas
- History of the comma
- Differences among style guides
- Comma with introductory words and phrases
- Comma with introductory dependent clauses
- Comma when joining two complete sentences with coordinating conjunction
- Comma with lists
- Comma with interrupting words and phrases
- Common comma errors
- Inappropriate uses of the comma
Noun and Verb Errors
- Apostrophes
  - Plural nouns
  - Possessive nouns
  - Contractions
  - Special uses of apostrophes
- Collective nouns
- Commonly confused words
- Indefinite Pronouns
- Consistency and verb tense
Semicolons and Other Limited Use Marks
- Semicolons
- Quotation marks
- Ellipsis
- Dashes
- Hyphens
- Parentheses
- Capitalization
- Periods
- Underlining and Italics
Avoiding Pitfalls of Technology
- How to use spell-check and grammar-check
- Tricks for maximizing capability of word processing software
- Commonly confused words
- Standard English grammar versus text-speak
Developing an Editing Style
- Picking a handbook/manual
- Workplace specific manuals
- Creating checklists for individual patterns of error
- Editing for different audiences
- Being consistent