Editing your work

It’s a good idea to allow enough time to edit and check your work before you submit it. You might do this at different points as you develop your draft writing, but you should definitely leave time before your submission date to go thoroughly over your final draft.

How do I edit my work?

When you edit your work, it’s useful to ask yourself a series of questions.

Questions to ask

Have I completed the task that I’ve been set?

Use the assignment brief to check that you’ve included everything that you’re expected to.

Is my work logically structured? Have I presented the ideas that make up the content in an order that will make it easy for my reader to follow?

Would my work be clearer if I:

a) … moved some of the content?

b) … removed some of the content?

c) … added some extra content?

d) … included the same information using fewer words?

e) … gave an example from my reading to support this idea?

Have I used clear signposting words and phrases to show how the ideas in my work are related? Have I used clear signposting words and phrases to show how my work is organised?

The Learning Enhancement Team offers academic writing resources that show you how you can use signposting in your written work.

Have I demonstrated critical analysis where I can? Have I discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence I’ve included? Have I shown how different ideas connect with each other (or not)? For further help with this, try the Critical Thinking section in the Using Sources page.

Further tips

To help you see your work from a fresh perspective, you could:

'Multiple pages' view in Word.

Change the view on your screen

This enables you to see all of your work, or a whole section of work, at once, rather than one page at a time. Looking at a section of your work in “one go” might make it easier to spot parts of your text that are out of place, very long paragraphs, or sentences that need to be integrated into a paragraph.

You will find the 'multiple Pages' option under 'view' in the top ribbon in Word.

Use highlighters

Use different coloured highlighters to identify themes: this will help you to check the structure is logical.

Print a copy of your work

Try working with a printed copy of your work, perhaps one section at a time.

Cut and paste

'Cut and paste' involves using scissors to cut up your text and move it around. Cut along section or paragraph boundaries and experiment with moving your text around. You might also cut into paragraphs to see what happens if you move or remove some of the sentences.

You can look back at earlier sections of First Assignment for ideas about how to create a logical structure in your work.

Need more help?

If you are unsure about how to edit your work, you can contact the Learning Enhancement Team by email or see the Learning Enhancement Team's webpages.

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