Center for Student Success

8 Steps Toward Successful Proofreading

 

. PLAN: Give yourself enough time to not only research and write the paper, but to proofread too. Keep in mind that the best proofreading is done when you can get a fresh look at it, so get some distance; come back when you are ready.

. PRINT A HARD COPY: Reading and correcting are easier to do when it is on paper. The computer screen can cause your eyes to strain, especially the more you read.

. DON'T RELY ON SPELL CHECK: Spell-check and grammar-check can help with some errors, but not all. Spell-check won't catch things like "their" vs. "there" or "hear" vs. "here."

. KNOW YOUR ERROR PATTERNS: Error patterns are mistakes you make on a regular basis. Do your instructors usually mark commas usage or comment on organization? It is helpful to work with your instructors and the Writing Lab to identify your error patterns.

. PROOFREAD FOR ONE TYPE OF ERROR AT A TIME: It is easy to be distracted or overwhelmed by the proofreading process. If you usually struggle with commas and capitalization, you should read first for commas, then capitalization.

. CHECK ALL PROPER NAMES AND SPECIAL TERMINOLOGY: Proper names and relevant terminology are too important to risk misspelling, and spell-checkers usually cannot recognize incorrect spellings.

. USE PROVEN PROOFREADING TECHNIQUES: Read your paper aloud; you�ll be able to catch mistakes that you wouldn't visually see. Also, try reading each line individually or each sentence backwards this is good for spelling errors.

. GO TO THE WRITING LAB: While the Writing Lab can't fix your paper, they can help you practice these techniques.

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