This page sets forth Professor O’Hara’s homework marking code and can send you for advice (click on the blue "take me there now" hyperlinks) on certain writing problems, including verb tenses and indefinite pronouns, that account for most of the errors found on student papers. Remember, most of your homework, and all of your exams and papers, are graded on three components--writing, clarity and substance. Grammatical and clear writing is a prerequisite for conveying your substantive knowledge in essay form. Neither your teachers nor your employers are going to grade your work highly if your logic is obscured by lousy writing.

CODING (including grading component to which code relates)

SSS = SHORTER SIMPLER SENTENCES! (Relates to clarity grading component.)

When a sentence runs on, and raises many issues along the way, the reader gets lost. If your sentence goes more than ten words, be suspicious. If your sentence goes more than fifteen words, be paranoid. Blast apart sentences with twenty or more words, one or more "ands," and three or more commas. While the foregoing rules are not absolute, short-simple sentences almost always communicate better than long-complex sentences. I will correct for long-complexity on your homework.

DNA = DOES NOT ADD (DNA relates to the clarity grading component.)

When I write DNA above a section of your work that I have crossed out, the sentence almost always communicates better with the material removed. One careful EDIT by the student can eliminate most DNA’s before work is submitted. As we progress through the term, students should get better at spotting DNA’s in advance.

VT = VERB TENSE (VT relates to the grammar grading component.) Take me to that page now!

A major verb tense problem relates to subject-verb agreement, which is discussed on the following pages. Other verb tense problems relate to consistency of verb tenses in a sentence or paragraph. For example, a story told about the past should stay in the past tense; a story about the present should stay in the present tense. Verb tense problems are VERY FUNDAMENTAL. Unless corrected, these fundamental problems will negatively effect you at school and/or work.

PV = PASSIVE VOICE (PV relates to the grammar and clarity grading components.)

"The ball was thrown by the boy" is the passive voice way of saying "The boy threw the ball." Passive voice problems are more likely when the writer scatter-shoots his/her thoughts onto paper. Thus, in the sentence above, ball is just as likely as boy to get on the paper first. If ball starts the sentence, the passive voice is inevitable. So, try always process your thoughts on to paper in this sequence: (1) who or what is doing the action, (2) what is the action, (3) who or what is the action affecting. "The boy threw the ball."

THI = THERE IS and variants (Relates to clarity) Discussed on hyperlinked page. Take me to that page now!

PP = PARAGRAPHING (Relates to clarity) A paragraph is an envelope in which you discuss a single idea. When you start talking about the next idea, start a new paragraph. Any paragraph that runs a half page or more is a red flag. Break up long paragraphs so each idea has its own envelope. More paragraphs are almost always better than fewer.

IP = Impersonal Pronouns (Clarity/Grammar) Discussed on hyperlinked page. Take me to that page now!

By the way, a great WebSite, run by the Webster folks, is full of grammar advice, tests you can take, and examples of rotten writing to avoid. The site is big, and I am only sending you to the main gate. After you get there, you will have to explore on your own. Click here to go to Webster's.

E-Mail Address: patohara@bellatlantic.net