Directions:
1. Go through each section below and self-evaluate your first draft by checking if you did or did not complete the task. You do not need instructor feedback from your first draft to complete this worksheet.
2. If you did not complete the task, give a brief explanation of why.
Revising and Editing Overall Tips
· Is your paper double spaced?
· Yes or No:
· Have you printed out a copy to read over?
· Yes or No:
· Did you visually scan your paper for paragraph length? Paragraphs that are either too long or shorter than the others may need some revision.
· Yes or No:
· Have you read your paper aloud to catch errors?
· Yes or No:
· Have you given your paper to a friend/instructor/CLA tutor to review?
· Yes or No:
Revising
· Did you reread the assignment details?
· Yes or No:
· Now that you have a draft, is your thesis statement clear, limited, and interesting, and is it supported in your draft?
· Yes or No:
· Does your thesis statement contain a main point and three subtopics?
· Yes or No:
· Are all your sources cited correctly? Does each parenthetical citation have a matching entry on the Reference page?
· Yes or No:
· Does every entry on the Reference page have matching parenthetical references?
· Yes or No:
· Review your introduction. Do you have a strong hook that engages the reader?
· Yes or No:
· Review the conclusion. Does it sum up your main points and restate the thesis?
· Yes or No:
Paragraph Revisions
· Does each paragraph have a strong topic sentence?
· Yes or No:
· Do all sentences support the topic sentence?
· Yes or No:
· Is the paragraph organized logically?
· Yes or No:
· Do the sentences transition smoothly and logically?
· Yes or No:
· Is each paragraph supported with sufficient details, examples, statistics, facts, research?
· Yes or No:
Editing
· Did you correct suggestions made by your word processing program’s spell check and grammar check?
· Yes or No:
· What errors have teachers most corrected on your past papers? Did you check for those same errors on this paper?
· Yes or No:
Did you check for some of the most common errors in your paper? Answer Yes or No:
Comma splices/Run-ons:
Sentence Fragments:
Subject/verb agreement:
Faulty parallelism:
Misplaced commas:
Misused colons, semicolons:
Commonly confused words (for example- there, their):
Are there any words that you use repeatedly in your paper?
Consider word choice. Can you identify any sentences/phrases which are awkward and need to be rephrased?
Could your sentence structure use more variety?
Part 2: Strengths and Weaknesses
Directions: Go through each component description below. Then give a brief explanation of what you did well, what you can improve upon, and your reasoning why – all boxes must be complete.
| Organization: Proper heading in the upper left hand corner, five separated paragraphs, Reference Page | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: | |
| Research : Proper topic that is supported with a peer reviewed article (research is included through in-text citations/paraphrased information from article(s) | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: | |
| Conventions/Mechanics: Proof-read entire paper, no spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors; double-spaced throughout entire paper; paragraphs indented; references are listed correctly on reference page; minimum word count has been met and maximum word count has not been exceeded | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: | |
| Word Choice: Academic writing is met, correct words used in context; essay contains a variety of sentence structures and uses complete, detailed expressions within the writing. *No incomplete, incoherent, or fragment sentences are found. | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: | |
| Voice/Tone: Essay is written in 3rd Person Point of View (there is no “I” statements in the writing); message is clear and original in thought from the writer’s perspective on the topic and arguments (research is only there to support these claims). | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: | |
| Sentence/Paragraph Fluency: There is a smooth transitioning between paragraphs; sentences within the body paragraphs flow and are easy to read and follow; there is an unison of the topic chosen and the arguments presented in the essay; research enhances the paragraphs, and does not take the majority of the paragraph itself-again, research is to support, not create the essay. | What was done well: | What can be improved upon: |
| Reasons why: | Reasons why: |
Part 3: Summary and Reflection
Directions: Please write a summary based on the guidelines given below; write your summary in the space provided.
In 250-300 words answer the following:
· After reviewing your strengths and weaknesses, what will you do the same and what will you do differently when completing your next college essay?
· What are some resources that you can use to help improve your areas of weakness?
· What advice would you give a new student to help with writing their first college essay?