Download Areas we focus on in marking texts

Introduction to Academic Writing
English A1/HS1/T1, Fall 2011
Department of English
Uppsala University
Areas we focus on in marking texts
Problem area
Examples of specific problems
Markup used
Incoherent/illogical content
Unclear or confusing text
Irrelevant information
Content/Coherence
Redundant information
Underdeveloped idea
Problem with citation of sources
Problem with ordering of ideas
Problem with paragraphing
Lack of thesis statement
Lack of topic sentence
Structure/Cohesion
Lack of linking expressions
Lack of parallel structure
Repetitive language
Inconsistent usage
Unclear antecedent
Register-inappropriate language
Overly informal language
Register/Style
Inappropriate personal reference
Use of impersonal you
Use of contractions
Wrong word or phrase (e.g., wrong verb,
Vocabulary problems
wrong preposition, false friend)
Phrasing/
Vocabulary
Unidiomatic language (e.g., odd phrasing,
Phrasing problems
clumsy language, overuse of common words)
Subject-verb agreement error
Tense error
Inconsistent tense
Verbs
Simple vs. progressive error
Error in conditional form
Error in verb complementation (to vs. –ing)
Inappropriate existential form
Problem with definite article
Problem with indefinite article
Grammar
Nouns
Countable vs. uncountable error
Generic vs. specific error
Relative pronoun error
Wrong part of speech
Preposition + that
Other word classes
Adjective vs. adverb error
Unnecessary use of comparative
V2 word order
Word order
Adverbial placement error
Punctuation/sentence structure
Spelling
Formatting
Omissions
Sentence fragment
Run-on sentence
Comma splice
Other problem with commas
Apostrophe used for plural
Other problem with apostrophes
Question mark on declarative sentence
Problem with semicolons
Problem with colons
Problem with dashes
Problem with quotation marks
Problem with italics
Inconsistency in AmE vs. BrE spelling
Incorrect spelling of plural form
Compound written incorrectly
Problem with capitalization
(e.g., proper vs. common nouns)
Problem with hyphenation
(e.g., compound adjectives)
Homophone confusion (e.g., its/it’s,
to/too/two, there/their/they’re)
Sentence-initial numeral
Inappropriate font (or font size)
Problem with spacing or margins
Problem with title or headings
Lack of author information
Problem with paragraph formatting
Problem with footnotes
Incorrect formatting of references
Place where material is missing
Material that should be omitted
Notes:
1. While the categories shown here are used by all of the instructors for this course, different
instructors will use different conventions for marking up the categories. The markup conventions
shown at right are those of your instructor, so you should become familiar with them.
2. We recommend that, while you are writing your texts, you use this document as a checklist of areas
to think about and problems to avoid. This will help you improve the quality of your writing.