Intensive English Language Program
http://www.pdx.edu/esl/PSU_Faculty
Why Do You Need to Revise and Proofread Your Paper?
Revising your essay/paper/project is not the same as proofreading. Although these are separate steps in
the writing process, they are both done between the first draft and the final draft of your work.
Students often spend too little time on these steps – or, worse, skip them altogether – but these two
steps can change your writing drastically. There are strategies you can use to make the revising and
proofreading of your paper manageable.
Revising for content
Always start with revising for content. Ask yourself these questions. If you can’t answer, ask a
friend if they can. If they can’t, then you need to revise!
 Is the thesis statement an answer to the essay prompt?
 Are there guiding ideas in the thesis statement?
 Are the paragraphs in the paper a reflection in both organization and content to
the thesis statement and guiding ideas?
Check paragraph development
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Is the introduction boring? (if yes, add a story, definition and/or statistic!)
Do any quotes, paraphrases and summaries need citation? Is the paper need to
be APA, MLA or other citation format?
Is there sufficient reason for using all pieces of research? (this is the response to
your research)
Are there sufficient examples to illustrate your responses?
Is the conclusion more than just repeating the thesis statement, or does it make
a conclusion for the essay prompt?
Proofreading for Grammar, Spelling and Mechanics
Proofreading is not just reading your paper, top to bottom, beginning to end, looking for
spelling, grammar, comma mistakes and indentation issues.
You will miss mistakes if you only look for these. You wrote your paper, so your brain is ready to
fill in any missing comma or incorrect spelling. Your brain thinks you are right, and it works
MUCH faster than your eyes.
Try some of the strategies below to see which work best for you:
The work associated with this page is licensed under Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License. You
may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you attribute the author as well as the Portland State University-Intensive
English Language Program.
Intensive English Language Program
http://www.pdx.edu/esl/PSU_Faculty
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Figure out the types of errors you typically make, and proofread for one error at a
time. What errors do you usually make? Write them below:
o _______________________________________________________________
o _______________________________________________________________
o _______________________________________________________________
Once you've looked for the mistakes that you usually make in your papers, do a final
general proofread for anything else you might have missed.
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If working on a computer, turn on the spell checker and grammar checker before
you proofread. This is still no substitute for proofreading, but it will highlight sections of
your paper that might need revision.
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Copy and paste essay into Google Translate and listen to it. Or, record yourself on
your phone. Or, have a friend read your paper aloud to you. If you are taking a test, read
quietly to yourself. It’s easier to hear mistakes than it is to see them because it’s harder to
say mistakes than it is to see them.
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Read your essay backward. If reading aloud isn't your style, try reading your essay
from the bottom up, starting with the last sentence of the last paragraph and working your
way backward. This allows you take away the context of the sentences and look at each
word and phrase individually. And, this way, your eyes are working as fast as your brain.
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Don't forget to proofread your changes.
Developed by Annie Greenhoe
The work associated with this page is licensed under Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License. You
may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you attribute the author as well as the Portland State University-Intensive
English Language Program.