Grammar & Usage

All students enrolled in classes in the College of Applied Science and Technology are expected to exhibit proficiency in basic grammar skills. One of the major tasks of revising and polishing a paper or presentation is to correct errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, and usage. Even with years of training in this area, most writers will occasionally experience difficulty choosing the correct form or usage.

Many students erroneously assume that as long as their writing assignments contain the proper information, they have credibility. Wrong! A reader could justifiably question the technical competence of a person who displays poor writing skills. All writing must have correct grammar and usage if it is to be considered credible and noteworthy. Studies clearly reveal that those who write (and speak) well excel in the job market and they rise faster in their careers.

If you feel that you have a weak background in grammar, you are encouraged to discuss the situation with your instructor or faculty advisor. If they cannot offer appropriate assistance, they may suggest additional sources of help such as the ETSU Writing and Communication Center, tutoring, library resources, or other university services. A listing of these resources is included in the last section of this handbook.

Ten basic rules

The following is a brief review of ten fundamental language skills:

• Understand the subject matter yourself before trying to communicate it to others.
• Understand the nature of your audience and communicate with sincerity and authority; put yourself in the place of an interested reader or audience member.
• Choose a publication or presentation style appropriate to the subject and audience.
• Correct spelling, punctuation, and pronunciation DO matter.
• Carefully choose and place words to enhance communication and prevent confusion.
• Use parallel construction for compound elements, comparisons, and lists.
• Develop sentences that are clear, concise, and complete, containing both a subject and a verb.
• Ensure paragraphs are coherent and begin with a topic sentence.
• Begin all reports and presentations with a focused introduction, flow from one major idea to another in the body, and end with a meaningful summary or conclusion.
• Limit the number of major points you want to make to three or four.

Common errors in grammar

This section contains links to a web page containing a few of the more common errors and sub-standard usages that you should look for and correct during the editing process. Proper and improper examples are provided together with references to appropriate sections of The Blair Handbook (henceforth referred to simply as "Blair").

• Avoid the lack of subject-verb agreement.
• Avoid using double negatives
• Avoid the use of sentence fragments
• Avoid the use of run-on sentences
• Avoid confusing verb forms and tenses
• Avoid confusing pronoun case forms
• Avoid misplaced modifiers
• Avoid redundancy
• Avoid the use of slang, jargon, and clichés like the plague

Spelling and word choice

See Blair, sect. 50

Correct spelling and the use of a vocabulary appropriate to the situation in which the communication takes place is essential. Incorrect spelling or the use of inappropriate technical words (e.g., level for parallel) will make the communicator appear ignorant-the last thing you should want to do. The selection of inappropriate words may cloud or obscure the meaning you wish to convey.

Writers who use word processors and presentation software (and that should include just about everyone) should become proficient in the use of the applications' spell checkers, thesauri, and grammar checkers. Nonetheless, careful proof reading is still required, for spell checkers will not flag a correctly-spelled word used incorrectly (e.g., their or they're used for there) or some mis-typed words like from and form.

An up-to-date collegiate-level dictionary or thesaurus should be consulted as an aid to spelling, pronunciation, and meaning.

Use punctuation correctly to facilitate communication.

See Blair, sects. 43 through 49.)

Language to avoid

The following section deals with language conventions that are to be used to eliminate (a) stereotypes; (b) sexist language; and (c) biased language.  While the term "political correctness" springs to mind here, remember that the workplace is ethinically and culturally diverse where a single, unintentional slight could literally cost your company thousands of dollars in lost revenue.

Avoid stereotyping

See Blair, sect. 32a.

Generalizations based on race, gender, religion, ethnicity, age, physical attributes, and similar characteristics usually reflect the writer's biases and have a negative effect on credibility. When editing, look for sweeping generalizations in phrases such as like most college students. Never assume that any one member of a group has the same attributes as the group itself. Likewise, do not use unsupported qualitative statements; instead use quantitative values (e.g., 87% of ETSU freshmen).

Avoid sexist language

See Blair, sect. 32c.

Although one might argue ad infinitum whether the term man refers to the species homo sapiens (including both male and female variants) or refers only to the human male, non-sexist language should be used in technical writing.

Avoid use of he, she, and similar exclusive terms unless referring specifically to a female or male. Also avoid man, men, and similar exclusive terms.

Avoid gender-specific words

Use universal or gender neutral terms for occupations

Avoid biased language

See Blair, sect 2b.

Formal technical writings and presentations, including conclusions and recommendations, must be based upon fact. Facts give a body of work credibility. All facts must be documented to ensure that they can be later verified by a reader or an audience member.

However, in most of your writing and presentation assignments, you will be expected to form some type of inference (a conclusion based upon an accumulation of facts). Opinions (personal beliefs based upon emotion, faith, or myth) are rarely used in technical writing. In such cases, all inferences or opinions should be clearly identifiable; they should never be disguised as facts.

Within the context of your work, other people's inferences and opinions are to be considered as facts; they should be appropriately identified within the body of the work and in the reference or bibliography section. More information on correctly citing and referencing sources is contained in the next section. The consequences of not identifying other people's work and ideas are contained in the section dealing with plagiarism.

Descriptions

One of our expectations is that you develop the ability to present a clear, concise description of a simple system or process. In the first example, note how the use of different typefaces and special symbols make the description clearer.