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Tips for Course Writing Assignments

Throughout the course, your instructor will assign Discussion Forum writing assignments. You need to follow closely the instructions and meet the requirements for each writing assignment. These are explained in detail in each assignment as it comes up during the course.
 
Grading of these assignments includes the expectation that students observe correct punctuation and grammar. Three or more writing errors per assignment will result in a lower grade (about 10%).
 
Below is a list of things to do and avoid, based on my observations of previous student submissions. 
 
TIPS:

1. Follow closely the instructions for each assignment. Note details.

2. Start with an effective topic sentence that summarizes what your topic is about and your attitude or opinion about the topic. 

  • Example of a good topic sentence: I believe that music should not be censored, because any form of censorship is a violation of American free speech. (This sentence functions to state an opinion and summarize why the writer holds that opinion).


3. Use college level, formal writing.

  • Do not use contractions, such as “don’t” or can’t.” Those are fine in an email to a buddy, but not in formal writing.
  • When quoting someone or citing articles, make sure the last quotation mark comes after the period of the sentence. Example: In his article, the author states, "It is time to take action." Do not apply the period after the last quotation mark.
  • Be careful how you the student use the term "you" in your writing. For instance, one student wrote the following in a paper about music and copyright law:

"When remixing, you are taking samples of other musician's works and using them in your own work."

Taken literally, "you" and "your" refer to the reader. Hence, the writer is saying that the reader is taking samples of other musician's works, which is not true. Solution: use the term "one" instead of "you." Hence, the sentence now reads more clearly as, "When remixing, one takes samples of . . ."

 

4. PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD before submitting!!! I cannot emphasize that enough. Read the assignment instructions carefully, and make sure your submission meets all the requirements. Here is a partial list of things to proofread against (these are based on the most common errors I have found in student's papers from the past):

1. Subject-verb agreement. "The man and woman was going shopping." Note that "was" should be "were."
2. Run-on sentences. These consist of too many sentence fragments strung together usually by too many commas. Look for any very long sentences in your paper with a lot of commas. Chances are it could be a run-on. Make this one long sentence into two shorter sentences to avoid the error.
3. Make sure that double quotation marks go outside a period, such as ( .") and not on the inside (".).
4. Get rid of any contractions (see above)
5. Make sure that you, the student, use the word "you" correctly without any chance for confusion regarding who you, the writer, are referring to in your paper. See above.
6. Double check the correct formatting for names of songs as opposed to names of CDs or albums.
7. Be consistent in how paragraphs are indented. Make sure all paragraphs are indented the same way.

8. Song titles should be capitalized and enclosed within quotation marks (e.g., "Can't Buy Me Love"). Names of albums or CDs should be italicized.

9. Watch for split infinitives. For instance, "To boldly go where no man has gone before" should be "To go boldly where . . . "
10. Check for spelling errors.
11. Check for correct capitalization in titles, including your title for the essay.
12. Papers must be typed, double spaced and stapled. I will only except hard copies handed in on or before the due date. No late papers are accepted!
13. Cite references using MLA formatting. Refer to the following links to MLA guidelines as well as tips for grammar, punctuation and writing an effective paragraph, which I strongly suggest you review:

Link Links to an external site. Purdue Owl (Grammar and Tips for Effective Writing of a Paragraph)
Link (Links to an external site.) The University of Chicago Grammar Resources

So how many times should you proofread your paper before turning it in? I would suggest at least 13 times based on the above list.


GRADING

Grading will be based on content and writing mechanics. If an essay has content that meets all the requirements for the assignment, is factually correct, and has sufficient detail, the essay will receive full credit.

If there are 3 or less writing mistakes, the essay will not be marked down. Beyond that, scores will mark down based on the number of writing errors.