I. Definitions of Proofreading

II. Importance of Proofreading

III. Types of Errors

IV. Calls for proofreading research

V. Proofreading Methods

A. Hints

B. Methods

1. Teaching Methods

A. Indicating but not identifying error

B. Grading for proofreading

C. Motivation

D. Student established criteria (Bingham, 44)

E. Teacher-established criteria (Bingham, 44)

F. Socialized correction (Bingham, 44)

G. Use journals

2. Vocal Methods

A. Partner Method

B. Subvocalization

C. Read out loud

D. Tape Recorder

3. Repetition Methods

A. Time between writing and reading

B. Read document at least three times

C. Three step method

4. Visual Methods

A. Angle method

B. Read backwards

C. Use paper-bail/straightedge

D. Comparison method

E. Card method

VI. Why is proofreading so difficult? (Turns into Theory section later)

VII. Research on Proofreading

A. Word Composition Relates to Error Detection Studies

1. Holbrook study

2. Haber and Schindler study AE Reviewed.

3. Frith Study

4. Monk and Holme study

5. Jared, Rainy, and Levy study

6. Staples study

7. Ewart study

8. Healy 1981 study

9. Healy 1980 study

B. Personal Characteristics Relate to Proofreading Studies

1. Healy study 1976.

2. Gordy and Thorne study.

3. Levy 1983 Study

4. Wallace study

5. Singh and Dwivedi study

6. Weinstein

7. Stuart Study—AE Reviewed, but not combined.

C. Efficiency of Method

1. Efficiency of Method—Medium

A. Szul study

B. Shanahan and Holmquist study.

C. Dittmar Study. AE Reviewed.

D. Wong 1971

E. Joyner Study AE Reviewed

F. Harpster study

2. Efficiency of Methods—Influences

A. Bingham study—AE Reviewed but not incorporated.

Eaton’s Notes

C. Simon Study 1976 AE Reviewed.

3. Efficiency of Methods—Familiarity

A. Bradley and King study AE Reviewed.

B. Levy and Begin study

C. Daneman and Stainton study.

D. Levy, Di Persio, and Hollingshead

4. Efficiency of Methods—Teaching

A. Simon Study 1979

B. Bartholome study

C. Snyder Study—AE Reviewed.

D. Smith Method—AE Reviewed.

5. Efficiency of Methods—Single Methods

A. Riefer study AE Reviewed.

B. Nihei study –AE Reviewed fix bib entry

To Be Determined

Crosland study

I. Wong study

Wong 1973

Madraso, J.

VIII. Our Study

A. Methods

B. Analysis and Results

I. Definitions of Proofreading

“The checking through of one’s written work for the purpose of detecting and correcting errors that have been made”(Bingham 1).
Other definitions:
Definition we might need for the studies or introduction: Galley [lS1][lS1]Proof- a proof taken directly off of the type and read out loud by a ‘copy-holder’ to a proofreader who then makes corrections on the galley-slip. Then a ‘workman’ takes the galley-slip along with the galleys of type and makes the necessary corrections. The proof is then given to another proofreader who checks the corrected proof for errors that might have been introduced by the corrections made. The galley proof is then given to the author who then reviews the proof, marks more corrections, and answers any unresolved questions that the second proofreader had. It is then corrected and put into a book format for a final reading by the author before publication (Benbow 41-50). Randi's one sentence description: A [lS2]galley proof is a document that goes through a series of proofreaders, including the author, and revisions to be corrected and made ready for publication.
definition of proofreading “the process of reviewing a hardcopy or softcopy document to detect mechanical errors and indicate needed corrections”(Joyner 10).
-proofreading skill definition “the ability to recognize all types of errors in completed copy, such as misspelled words, omissions or additions of letters or words, and errors in numerical information”(Simon, 4)
“Proofreading involves comparing a new version with an older version of the same material and catching and marking the errors in the new version” (Smith, P., 1980, 5). For example, proofreaders can compare a handwritten draft with a typed draft or compare an author’s manuscript with printer’s proofs (Smith, P., 1980, 5). On occasion, a proofreader reads only the newer version, but doing this sort of proofreading should only happen when the older version is in a form that is difficult to compare, such as in shorthand or on a tape, or when the older form is lost (Smith, P., 1980, 5).
Proofreading is done only to material that has been typed up and should not need any changes except minor ones (Smith, P., 1980, 5). Material that has not been typed is the editor’s responsibility, not the proofreaders (Smith, P., 1980, 5).
The most important rules to proofreading are to catch the errors and to mark the errors so that the person who corrects them can understand what to correct (Smith, P., 1980, 5).
What a proofreader does
Insures the format is correct and has no deviations (Smith, P., 1987? 15).
Checks the technical quality of the document (Smith, P., 1987? 15).
Checks grammar and punctuation (Smith, P., 1987? 15).
Checks for style, facts, and math (Smith, P., 1987? 16).

How much authority a proofreader has
Proofreaders mark only the most basic or errors in some instances and other times may almost be editing. The employer decides (Smith, P., 1987? 16)

How proofreading and copy editing differ
Editors are concerned with the Author(Smith, P., 1987? s) (Smith, P., 1987? 17)
Proofreaders work with typesetters (Smith, P., 1987? 17).

Proofreading to Unify Irregularities

Irregularities can occur in a document where a person or a place may be called by different names or spellings, and it is the proofreader’s duty to correct these changes and make them uniform by using the appropriate reference materials, such as the style sheet and dictionary (Dobbs, 134-135). Numbers and capitalized words should also be subject to scrutiny (Dobbs, 135).

Selecting Uniform Words From a Dictionary

Dictionaries often give several different ways to spell a word, giving the printer the ability to choose among the various spellings (Dobbs, 135). Inconsistency in spellings makes the reading difficult, confusing, and distracting (Dobbs, 136).

Selecting Uniform Figures

It is necessary for all printed material from a company to be proofread in order to insure consistency, accuracy, and uniformity (Dobbs, 136).

II. Importance of Proofreading

A. anecdotal evidence

1. Cohen piece: Article discusses the importance of a good resume and cover letter when applying for jobs. Cohen advertised four editorial positions for his sports related magazine and received a variety of errors in the resumes and cover letters. One example: “Let’s get together and see if we a match.” Of the applicants with clean cover letters, they were asked to take a one hour long proofreading test. The test had 40 errors in spelling, punctuation, consistency, grammar and redundancy. Four of the five applicants scored below a twenty on the test. Applicants were also asked to identity names of twenty individuals with their fields. Four of five scored below six. Main Point of article: proofread for a good cover letter and resume when applying for a job.

2. Johnson piece: Johnson writes of the need to proofread catalogs to prevent “terrorism” by customers. (Johnson, 147). If a customer thinks he ordered a black widget at $9.99 and received a brown widget at $19.99, the customer may return the item, or become a “word-of-mouth terrorist” spreading the word about how unhappy he was with the product. (Johnson, p.147). Reviewing catalog text for accuracy can eliminate errors in SKU, price, color etc (Johnson, p.147). Proofreading should be customer-focused: simplifying shopping for the customer. (Johnson, p.148). Bring in an outsider to review the catalog for accessibility. (Johnson, p.148). Johnson offers five guidelines for minimizing the chance of printing an inaccurate catalog. The guidelines are the following:

Description should be accurate (Johnson, p.148)
Dimensions should be correct (Johnson, p.148)
Charts should be free of discrepancies (Johnson, p.149)
Colors shown should match what is really offered (Johnson, p.149)
State what’s included with the product (Johnson, p.149)
Tell the customer the product’s application: is it indoor/outdoor weather resistant etc (Johnson, p.149)
Use consistent terminology (Johnson, p.149)
Use a consistent style through the catalog (Johnson, p.149)

3. In the year 2000, James “Jay” E. Shelledy, editor of the Salt Lake Tribute employed four nonpaid readers who volunteered to scan his newspaper for mistakes. The readers already found mistakes daily in the paper, and being employed just formalized their effort. These editors proofread to catch mistakes that are otherwise missed because of pages being printed without proofreading and computer programs being less than ”world-perfect.” (Wolper, 2000) Employed nonpaid readers? World-perfect or word-perfect?

4. The author tells the story of Linda, an office manager for Bill, who owns his own business as a public surveyor. She sent out a letter to a client about an upcoming inspection; in the letter, she had accidentally left the “I” out of public surveyor as Bill’s title. The author emphasizes the level of embarrassment and damage a pressing timeline or basic lack of attention can cause. She also emphasizes that spell check would not catch this error, so we cannot always rely on the computer to do the editing for us (Eschweiler p. 36). Good example of a word-for-word substitution in proofreading, which isn’t caught by spell-checks.

5. In the author’s early days of job seeking, she sent out a resume with a cover letter than began “Dear Sir or Madman”. “What a surprise that I did not receive a call to interview with that company!” (Eschweiler p. 36)

6. She relates a recent incident when she was reviewing a market report a San Francisco real estate investment firm wrote for its clients who invest anywhere from $10 to $20 million. The report was beautifully designed and visually pleasing, but she found fifteen grammar/typo mistakes on the first page alone. She emphasized that an average reader would catch at least half those errors, and therefore presents the issue of the ethos documents create for a company (Eschweiler 37).

7. According to Shaughnessy, proofreading is important for the more obvious reason that ‘it enables the writer to correct himself’ [sic] and for the more subtle, and I think more significant reason that it frees the writer ‘from the inhibiting worry about being wrong’ (p. 85). The fear or worry about error is frequently enough to pressure vulnerable unskilled writers into increased error. Knowing they have the power to proofread and eliminate error, then, might help students to reduce error to begin with” (Davis p. 86)

8. Proofreading “reflects an organization’s commitment to quality” (Smith p. ix).

9. Increases credibility, image, organizational knowledge, work variety, career opportunities, and expert power (Smith p. 5)

10. For lifelong effectiveness one must learn to proofread his own work”(Bingham 4).

11. Bingham notes other researcher’s opinions that for children, ability to proofread relates “satisfaction with a job well done, pride in one’s self, and the ability to see improvement”(Bingham 11)

12. Proofreading is of value and importance when the material is read by others in order to keep ambiguity at a minimum. (Bingham 4)

13. “the ability to detect errors is an important component of office productivity and efficiency”(Joyner, 2)

14. -she notes embarrassment and “possible financial loss” as reasons to proofread well (Simon 1).

15. Careful proofreading saves time and typesetting/printing costs (Harman, p. 157)

16. “in a letter from Garrison to Lord Bryce, leaped to my horrified eye, ‘The incomparable poofreading of the Riverside Press.’” – Ferris Greenslet, Under the Bridge: An Autobiography (Harman, Houghton, Mifflin) – (Harman, p. 151)

17. When proofreading is done professionally, it is a skill that requires extensive training, practice, and knowledge of marks and publication process (Smith, P., 1980, 5). However, even those people who are not proofreaders may need to look over a document to check for errors, so it is important to know who to proofread (Smith, P., 1980, 5-6).

III. Types of Errors

notes that typographical errors that spell a word (called contextual errors by other authors?)—are often formed by omitting a letter to form another English word (your to you)—aren’t caught by the text-editing features in the word processors he is studying—a problem our students deal with today (Joyner 4). He calls these “word choice” errors (Joyner 9).

IV. Calls for proofreading research

“Although each method has advocates, almost none has any experimental support”(Riefer 776).
“Resulting from this concern [about errors] are many theories for the elimination of writing errors, but little is ever said in regard to the value of one technique in relation to another” (Bingham 1).
“Much research has been carried out in relation to particular types of errors and frequency of occurrence, while little has been attempted in the field of improving self-evaluation in the area of one’s own written work”(Bingham 1) and this thesis was written in 1966!

V. Proofreading Methods

A. Hints

(electronic) Increase document font to the largest size that allows the document to remain on the screen (Eschweiler, p. 37)
Use proofreading marks(Stoddard, p. 84)
Print a double-spaced copy and proofread the hard copy to ease the strain on eyes and prevent distraction (Smith p.12)
Rest eyes 30 seconds for every 10-15 minutes (Smith p. 12)
Make the dictionary your best friend(Turner 12-13).
After making a correction, reread the entire line (Butcher 63)
Dobb’s collection of hints
Unfold the copy and spread it flat on the desk (Dobbs, 66)
Make sure the page numbers are in order (Dobbs, 66)
Look over the first page for instructions (Dobbs, 67)
Sign your initials on the front page of the copy (Dobbs, 67)
Always use pen for copymarking, never pencil (Dobbs, 68)
Examine the title and headings for accuracy (Dobbs, 68)
Read the text searching for errors in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and divided words at the end of the lines (Dobbs, 68-70)
Do not rush—“accuracy is more important” (Dobbs, 71)
“A good proofreader should not have to consult the dictionary frequently in ordinary reading matter, for a knowledge of spelling is necessary and easily acquired.” (Dobbs, 72).
Proofread for no more than two hours at a time (Luey 159)
Pay special attention to error-prone areas: titles, headings, numbers, etc. (Luey 159)
Make sure all corrections are legible and complete (Luey 159)
Use a dictionary (Luey 159)
The proofreader should review their corrections (Smith, P., 1980, 69).
Know the job, and tailor your level of attention to it based on the type of job (Smith, P., 1980, 69).
Find out what you are expected to edit for and if there is a manual that should be followed (Smith, P., 1980, 69-70).
Tips and Cautions (Smith, P., 1980, 68-69).
read instructions before starting
check page numbers for order
don’t skip anything
take extra caution when starting to proofread or after a break, since many mistakes are missed this way
be extra careful with headlines, titles, first sentences
look for errors to be in groups
look at pages upside down and sideways
look for characters that belong in pairs, such as parenthesis
be careful with numbers
check sequences
check footnotes
check table of contents’ page number
use erasable pencil, not ink
do not clutter the proof, use multiple proofs instead
check recurring numbers, names, queries
check corrections for the introduction of new errors

B. Methods

1. Teaching Methods

A. Indicating but not identifying error

When teaching, Howard suggests returning documents with errors to students for proofreading. She suggests telling the student there is a spelling error, or a punctuation error, but not revealing the exact error. The student is then required to find the error and fix it before a passing grade is assigned (Howard 12).

B. Grading for proofreading

West suggests adding a grade to each assignment for proofreading.

C. Motivation

D. Student established criteria (Bingham, 44)

What the students identify should be done

E. Teacher-established criteria (Bingham, 44)

“a list of rules to which the class refers when they have completed a writing assignment of any type to be shared with others”(Bingham 13).

F. Socialized correction (Bingham, 44)

“singling out the error in a number of instances, discussing these examples, and correcting them”(Bingham 15). Students are taught about errors as a group, and then they go through their own papers individually

G. Use journals

“If I give my students exercises in subject-verb agreement…, I anchor my practice in the theory that error is in the text. If I assist my students in analyzing patterns of error in their own texts, I anchor my practice in the theory that error is in the writer” (Davis p. 89). She goes on to say that she prefers to focus her teaching on developing the skills of intuiting, consulting, and comprehending, anchoring her teaching in reading theory. She has her students keep dialectical journals that allow students to examine a text for its content first, then grammar. She chose this approach because she realized her students lacked background knowledge of language conventions, and were unable to consult or intuit in their journals (Davis pp. 89-90).

2. Vocal Methods

A. Partner Method

1. Have a partner read your document out loud to you—(AE note: this method incorporates proofs and regular documents). (Eschweiler, p. 38; West, page?) Howard (11-12) calls this the cooperative method. Errors become apparent when someone who is unfamiliar with the text reads it out loud. Check the proof against the original manuscript using the two person method. One person reads the manuscript out loud while the second person reads the proof (APA, 338). In both cases, limit changes to errors of fact (APA, 339).The most effective way to proofread first proofs is to use the two person method. One person reads the text while the one speaks (Chicago, 108) works best with numbers (Smith p. 9). Read aloud to partner checking copy (Butcher 61)

Benefits of this method

drawbacks of this method

time consuming (Eschweiler)

needs a partner

uses the time of two employees (Smith p. 9)

Two people, one reading aloud, the other checking copy, may be needed to verify this kind of data(Turner 12-13).
Proofreading with a partner is much more accurate for non-professionals (Smith, P., 1980, 64). One person reads aloud while the other follows along on a newer copy and makes the copyediting marks (Smith, P., 1980, 64).
When reading with a partner, you must indicate the following(Smith, P., 1980, 64).
every word that may be misspelled, including names
every punctuation mark
every paragraph and any other gap change in spacing
every capital letter or other change in type style, typeface, or type size
Shortcuts are possible with partners who work together (Smith, P., 1980, 64). The partner who marks needs to be good at spelling, looking not just at words, but at individual characters and pages as a whole (Smith, P., 1980, 65).
Partner – most frequently recommended; the copyholder reads the text, announcing each punctuation mark as well as word, while the author checks the copy (Harman, p. 156).