Revision
What does "revision" mean? Well, think of it this way:
RE + VISION
(re = again) + (vision = seeing or conceiving)
Thus a "revision" of an assignment is not simply just doing it over again, but
looking at it differently. "Vision" is linked to "envision," which means
"to picture to oneself." Thus when you revise you gain a new "vision" of
what your work could be.
But . . .
revision is only the first step (even though perhaps the most important one). Once you have "re-visioned" your assignment, you task it to
RE + WRITE
it, which does NOT mean to simply retype it. To rewrite means to literally "write it again" -- only this time through your "re-vision" -- making the work totally NEW.
Parts of the REWRITING process are PROOFREADING and EDITING.
- PROOFREADING = reading your "proof" (written document draft)
for mistakes, errors of grammar, spelling, and punctuation -- all the piddly
things which distract readers from your content.
- EDITING = taking the material before you and looking for what can be cut out
. . . or what needs to be added.
So, what you finally end up with is not just the same assignment you turned in
before only with a few mistakes corrected. Instead, you wind up with an utterly
new piece of work -- even if still recognizeable from its original form.
Return to Handouts Contents
Return to homepage