Good grammar and punctuation is crucial for successful academic writing as it helps you communicate your ideas clearly and precisely. Four common writing errors that students make are outlined below.
Missing Commas
Commas are used to break up a list, when beginning a sentence with a linking word or phrase, or to separate groups of words in a sentence.
Professional knowledge refers to the theory, research and experience that guide practice.
Moreover, active listening is useful when dealing with clients and co-workers.
When a project is being considered, the scope of the project must be clarified.
Misplaced Apostrophes
Apostrophes are used to show possession. If the ‘owner’ plural, put the apostrophe after the ‘s’:
The employee’s safety is a priority. (singular - one employee)
The employees’ safety is a priority. (plural - more than one employee)
Apostrophes should not be used for plurals:
the two employees who attended (not employee's)
several key theories (not theory's)
Run-on Sentences
A run-on sentence occurs when two or more sentences are brought together with no punctuation in between or incorrect punctuation.
Target marketing means focusing your marketing efforts on specific groups of consumers, this makes the approach more effective and efficient.
Eliminate run on sentences by separating the sentences with a full stop or semi-colon (;). Alternatively, use a comma followed by a conjunction; for example, this could be changed to which in the example above.
Confused Words
Words that sound alike or nearly alike but have different meanings often cause writers trouble, such as affect/effect, apart/a part and then/than. These websites can help you determine which is the correct word to use and provide strategies for remembering the differences.