RESEARCH PAPER: PEER REVIEW 2

PART I: Peer Review

Exchange papers with your partner and write "Reviewed by ______" at the top, inserting your name in the blank. Please mark errors, weak transitions, fragments, and particularly strong sections. Pay careful attention to quote mechanics (the use of a signal phrase, block quote techniques, citations, quotes within quotes, and punctuation placement). The write a page-long note that does the following:

• Discuss the subject and thesis, outlining what you think the overall argument is, where it is best stated, and how well the paper supports it. If the thesis is weak or non-existent, you need to say so now.
• Discuss the use of evidence to support the claim: does the paper read like an argument (which is the goal of the assignment) or only an informational-only paper (which is not enough for this assignment)? Are unquoted facts and/or paraphrases cited (as they should be)? Are quotes being analyzed and used to support the writer's argument, or do they just sit there? What sections work particularly well to use evidence and which areas need work?
• Discuss the mechanics of working with sources: the citations, the signal phrases, etc. What issues should they work on?
• What about the format? Discuss what they need to fix.
• Offer three suggestions to improve the paper.

PART II: Self-Review

To prepare for your final draft (due on Wednesday), please complete the following checklist to make sure your paper will not lose points for minor errors:

• Use CONTROL-F to search for the word "this" and make sure a noun follows immediately after it.
• Use CONTROL-F to search for the word "thing" and substitute a more specific noun in its place.
• Use CONTROL-F to search for the word "you" and rewrite the sentence to avoid using "you."
• Use CONTROL-F to search for the word "I" and seriously consider removing the phrase that contains "I" in it, particularly if it is in a phrase like "I think" or "I believe."
• Use CONTROL-F to search for each hyphen (-). If the hyphen is supposed to represent a dash, make sure there are two hyphens to recreate the length of a dash.
• Use CONTROL-F to search for each colon (:) and make sure that a complete sentence falls before the colon.
• Use CONTROL-F to search for each semi-colon (;) and make sure that a complete sentence falls before and after the semi-colon.
• Use CONTROL-F and search for each quotation mark. Verify that each quote has a signal phrase that is properly punctuated, that each quote has a parenthetical citation, that each citation is placed in the proper position with the punctuating, and that there is adequate discussion of each quote.
• Check that each block quote is two tab widths from the left margin and does not have quotation marks around it (see the handbook on page 406 for a discussion).
• If a quote has another quote inside it, make sure the quote-within-a-quote is in single quotation marks.
• Verify that each transition between paragraphs occurs at the start of each paragraph, not at the end of a paragraph.
• Verify that your conclusion ties together the core ideas of the paper, not just one or two.
• Make sure the phrase "In conclusion" does not appear in the paper.
• Visually compare your paper to the sample MLA paper and make sure the spacing and layout is correct.
• Check each works cited entry and make sure that sources from Lexis-Nexis, Proquest, JSTOR, and EBESCO Host follow the guidelines for "a work from a service such as INFOTRAC" (page 433 of the handbook).
• Make sure every item on the works cited page is referenced in the paper.
• Make sure every item on the works cited page is double-spaced and uses a hanging indent.
• Check to make sure your font is 12 point Times New Roman.
• Check to make sure your first page has a page number on it and all the required information for the information block. Make sure the page number has your last name in it and is in the proper font.
• Make sure your title is centered, properly capitalized, and does not use quotes, bold, italics, or size change to set it off.