Practice reviewing your work carefully. For the next assignment you write, review it fully as part of the writing process. This will require you to finish the first draft about one week before the hand-in date, e.g. by setting yourself an earlier deadline than the submission date. This exercise is best done with a word-processed essay. Do not worry if it is a little over the word limit at this stage. (a) Print out a copy of the essay. Do not look at it for at least two days after finishing this version. (b) Review 1: spelling, grammar and sense. Read through the draft critically (try to imagine it had been written by someone else) and correct any obvious errors that strike you. Does the text make sense? Do sentences/ paragraphs flow smoothly? (c) Review 2: structure and relevance. Consider again the structure of the essay, asking yourself whether you have really answered the question that was set (see study exercise 69.1). Are all the parts in the right order? Is anything missed out? Have you followed precisely the instruction(s) in the title? Are the different parts of the essay linked together well? (d) Review 3: shorten and improve style. Check the word count. Shorten the essay if required. Look critically at phrasing and, even if the essay is within the word limit, ask yourself whether any of the words are unnecessary or whether the text could be made more concise, more precise or more apt.

Step by step solution

01

Drafting

Start writing the essay well before due date. Set a personal deadline one week prior to the submission date and aim to complete the first draft by your personal deadline.

02

Temporary Isolation

After completing the first draft, don’t look at it for at least two days. This will help gain fresh perspective when you review it later.

03

Review 1: Spelling, Grammar, and Sense

After the self-imposed isolation period, print out a copy of your essay. Review it with a critical eye; pretend as if someone else wrote it. Make note of any obvious spelling and grammatical errors. Also, check the coherence of the text. Make sure sentences and paragraphs flow smoothly into each other. Correct any issues noted during this step.

04

Review 2: Structure and Relevance

Next, reassess the structure of your essay. Consider if you have answered the question set in the exercise. If not, add in the missing parts. Verify that the essay follows the instructor's guidelines and all parts are well-connected.

05

Review 3: Shorten and Improve Style

After structural reassessment, check the word count. Reduce the word count if the essay exceeds the limit. Regardless of the word count, reevaluate the choice of words. Aim to make the text more concise, precise, and appropriate. Remove any unnecessary words and improve the style of the essay.

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