Top Four Spelling / Grammar Issues in Student Writing

Of course, you should be using a spell-checker for your writing. However, spell-checkers miss plenty of important errors, so you still need to print the thing and proofread it for errors. The rules of grammar and style can seem overwhelming at times, so I've tried to distill my usual objections to student papers in four simple points. Incidentally, grammar checkers are wrong as often as they are right, so use them with caution.

Comical graph of the three words their, there, and they're.

1. Word Mix-Ups: These are the most common grammar problems in student papers. For a much more complete list, see Paul Hensel's page on the subject.

Its vs. It's: Use it's only to replace the phrase "it is." Do not use "it's" to indicate possession, like you usually use apostrophes.
There vs. They're vs. Their: There is a place. Their means "of them" and indicates possession. They're is used only to replace the phrase "they are."
Affect vs. Effect: Affect is a verb, so you can affect something. Effect is a noun, not a verb. You cannot "effect" something. Example: A problem that affects us all does so because each of us will feel its effects.
Two vs. Too vs. To: Two is the number after one. Too means "very." To is a preposition used to indicate direction or intent.
Due vs. Do: Do is a verb, something you can do. Due means "because of" or "something that is owed."

2. Sentence Fragments: Your sentence must contain a subject, a verb, and (usually) a direct object. Check out the Purdue Online Writing Lab's page on the topic.

3. Agreement in Number/Tense: If your subject is plural, your verb should be of the plural form. If your subject is singular, your verb should be singular as well. For example:

She goes to class. They go to class. Most people do this instinctively, so it is rarely a problem.
Any one of the articles is available.
Each of the nations is seeking its own national interest.

It is the last two sentences that usually cause problems. The subject is one, which is singular, so the verb must also be singular: is instead of are. The phrase "of the articles" is not the subject of the sentence. It merely modifies the word one. In general, watch out for prepositional phrases like this, as they can cause you to forget that your subject was singular.

Don't be this guy:

Example of disagreemet in number

Note that agreement in tense is also required, so avoid statements like, "Jeff is writing a web page on common writing errors for his students, so he wasn't paying attention when Katharine walked up behind him and knocked him out with a frozen leg of lamb." The first underlined verb should be changed to "was writing" -- or the second, third, and fourth underlined verbs should be changed to "isn't," "walks," and "knocks."

4. Punctuation: These are the three most common cases.

Picture of a man refreshing his understanding of grammar in a grade-school classroom

A. Apostrophe Misuse. Apostrophes are used for two and only two purposes. They can indicate possession or they can indicate contraction. Put them after the full word (and add an s afterward if the word is singular). Thus, the following examples of incorrect and correct usage:

The 1990's were a decade of change. SHOULD BE: The 1990s were a decade of change.
Nations frequently sign FTA's. SHOULD BE: Nations frequently sign FTAs.
A nations power cant make other nations respect it. SHOULD BE: A nation's power can't make other nations respect it.
State's leaders may resort to war to increase their own popularity. SHOULD BE: States' leaders may resort to war to increase their own popularity.

B. Comma Abuse, especially the "comma splice." Some people seem to think of commas as the salt and pepper of writing, to be sprinkled liberally across the page for flavor. This really annoys me. Commas do not indicate a "pause" in a sentence. Instead, they are used to set parts of a sentence off from the rest. A wonderful little summary of basic comma usage is available on the UNC Writing Center's page. Pay special attention to the dreaded "comma splice" (Rule 3), for I absolutely loathe run-on sentences.

"Let's eat Grandpa" versus "Let's eat, Grandpa." Punchline: Commas -- they save lives.

C. Capitalization Problems. You should capitalize the first word of every sentence, all proper nouns (named people, places, or things), all letters in an acronym (a multiple-word abbreviation), titles preceding names, and when called for in a system of citation. Note that while political entities, parties, and other proper nouns are capitalized, ideologies are not (unless they contain proper names). So it is correct to write: socialism, communism, American Socialist Party, Chinese Communist Party, liberal, conservative, Liberal Party (of the United Kingdom), Democrats, democracy, conservatism, republic, Republican, etc.

Two more observations: In Britain, they only capitalize the first letter of an acronym, so NATO (proper American English) is written Nato (proper UK English). You should write in American English: NATO, POTUS, ANZUS, SCOTUS, etc. You may also encounter writers that capitalize apparently random nouns in the middle of a sentence, as in the Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Today, we would write this same sentence with only two capitalized words: "We" and (optionally, depending on one's beliefs) "Creator." Grammar has changed. When people do this today, they are either trying to copy or mock the style of earlier English. Unless you have a specific reason for doing this, don't do it.

Statement on Inclusive Language

Non-Inclusive Language: This isn't about being "politically correct," but rather about being precise in your writing. Using "man" to represent all people is imprecise, because it can also mean "adult males." Similarly, using "he" to refer to someone whose gender is unknown also creates a double meaning that you may not intend. In general, try to substitute terms like "person" for "man," "humanity" for "mankind," etc. It is simply more precise and communicates your meaning more clearly if your audience can distinguish between a sentence that refers to males only and one that refers to all people. Surprisingly, the idea that "he" means everyone is actually a fairly recent invention, dating back little more than 100 years, and now seems to be going out of style again. Carolyn Jacobson summarizes this issue well. What follows is from one of her (no longer available) web pages:

"Man"

By the 18th century, the modern, narrow sense of man was firmly established as the predominant one. When Edmund Burke, writing of the French Revolution, used men in the old, inclusive way, he took pains to spell out his meaning: "Such a deplorable havoc is made in the minds of men (both sexes) in France. . . ." Thomas Jefferson did not make the same distinction in declaring that "all men are created equal" and "governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." In a time when women, having no vote, could neither give nor withhold consent, Jefferson had to be using the word men in its principal sense of "males," and it probably never occurred to him that anyone would think otherwise. Looking at modern dictionaries indicate that the definition that links "man" with males is the predominant one. Studies of college students and school children indicate that even when the broad definitions of "man" and "men" are taught, they tend to conjure up images of male people only. We would never use the sentence "A girl grows up to be a man," because we assume the narrower definition of the word man. The examples below seem disconcerting precisely for this reason:

* "Development of the Uterus in Rats, Guinea Pigs, and Men" (title of a research report)
* "The Pap test, which has greatly reduced mortality from uterine cancer, is a boon to mankind."
Even when authors insist that "man" is a general term of all humans, they can lapse into meaning it as a term for only males:
* "As for man, he is no different from the rest. His back aches, he ruptures easily, his women have difficulties in childbirth . . . "
...
Once you've started to recognize the problems that can arise with using "man" as a generic pronoun, how can you prevent confusion? One way is by substituting "human," "humankind," "people," or another word that does not involve any specific gender.

The Pronoun Problem

The first grammars of modern English were written in the 16th and 17th centuries....The grammars of this period contain no indication that masculine pronouns were sex-inclusive when used in general references. Instead these pronouns reflected the reality of male cultural dominance and the male-centered world view that resulted. "He" started to be used as a generic pronoun by grammarians who were trying to change a long-established tradition of using "they" as a singular pronoun. In 1850 an Act of Parliament gave official sanction to the recently invented concept of the "generic" he. In the language used in acts of Parliament, the new law said, "words importing the masculine gender shall be deemed and taken to include females." Although similar language in contracts and other legal documents subsequently helped reinforce this grammatical edict in all English-speaking countries, it was often conveniently ignored. In 1879, for example, a move to admit female physicians to the all-male Massachusetts Medical Society was effectively blocked on the grounds that the society's by-laws describing membership used the pronoun he.

Just as "man" is not truly generic in the 1990s, "he" is not a true generic pronoun. Studies have confirmed that most people understand "he" to refer to men only.... To push the point further, check out this sentence: "The average American needs the small routines of getting ready for work. As he shaves or blow-dries his hair or pulls on his panty hose, he is easing himself by small stages into the demands of the day." The first image that comes to mind is a transvestite, not the average American woman. As a result of the fact that "he" is read by many as a masculine pronoun, many people, especially women, have come to feel that the generic pronouns excludes women. This means that more and more people find the use of such a pronoun problematic.

Solving the Pronoun Problem

They as a Singular--Most people, when writing and speaking informally, rely on singular they as a matter of course: "If you love someone, set them free" (Sting). If you pay attention to your own speech, you'll probably catch yourself using the same construction yourself. "It's enough to drive anyone out of their senses" (George Bernard Shaw). "I shouldn't like to punish anyone, even if they'd done me wrong" (George Eliot). Some people are annoyed by the incorrect grammar that this solution necessitates, but this construction is used more and more frequently.

He or She--Despite the charge of clumsiness, double-pronoun constructions have made a comeback: "To be black in this country is simply too pervasive an experience for any writer to omit from her or his work," wrote Samuel R. Delany. Overuse of this solution can be awkward, however.

Pluralizing--A writer can often recast material in the plural. For instance, instead of "As he advances in his program, the medical student has increasing opportunities for clinical work," try "As they advance in their program, medical students have increasing opportunities for clinical work."

Eliminating Pronouns--Avoid having to use pronouns at all; instead of "a first grader can feed and dress himself," you could write, "a first grader can eat and get dressed without assistance."