Notes for a Writing Self-Assessment

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	Notes for a Writing Self-Assessment Use these questions to find out what works in your writing, and what needs to be improved. You can use these questions to revise a draft in progress, or to take a look at a collection of your writing--a portfolio. The questions are broken down into five categories: Intentions Focus Development Organization Style & Mechanics. When answering the questions, look for both weaknesses and strengths. Be critical, but remember to give yourself credit for what's working well. This page of questions is also available as a worksheet (PDF) that you can print out. Assessing Intentions Why am I writing? Who are my readers? What key characteristics are important? What is my main point? What do I want readers to do/believe as a result of reading this? What general strategy am I taking? What role am I assuming? Assessing Writing Focus Where do I make central points or questions clear to readers? How is each section/paragraph related to the central point? Development Will readers understand/believe points or do I need additional definitions, evidence, or reasoning? Where might the readers raise questions or challenges? Have I addressed them? Organization What is the general pattern of organization? How are ideas grouped? At any point does the organization become unclear? Style and Mechanics Is the tone appropriate for my purpose/audience? What sentences seem most effective? What sentences could use most work? Are there persistent grammatical/mechanical problems or questions?
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