Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The importance of proofreading

A few days ago, I posted an entry about the president's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.

I am an inveterate proofreader--I even proofread my emails before I send them, and who does that?

Anyway, I did my usual proofreading before I published the blog post. Imagine my chagrin when I looked at my blog this morning and found a big, old, nasty mistake in the headline. I had written "Did the president said what many Americans don't want to hear?" Egad.

This is a perfect example of why I always suggest to students that they have someone else proofread their important papers and assignments. Often, we don't see our own mistakes. My last blogpost is a perfect example.

So do as I say, not as I do. Have someone else read your writing before submission. It could save you from all kinds of embarrassment--and could have saved me from having to write this post!

2 comments:

Will said...

Great article! A proofreader tips for everyone - If you have the text on your computer, make it into a larger font than you're use to. You'll be amazed at how much easier it is to spot mistakes.

Laura Wittern said...

This is a wonderful suggestion--and one which I had not thought of. So, all of you who wish to get higher grades, remember to increase the font on your word processor for your final read-through. Thanks, Will!