Get your keyboards and pens ready, Turnitin-ers. Yesterday, September 24th, marked National Punctuation Day - a day for throwing punctuation into the spotlight, and subsequently, hurling its misuse under the bus.
Our in-house writers spend many a moment scrutinizing their spelling, punctuation, and grammar to ensure that they all get along swimmingly. This all-important triad is the cornerstone of every great piece of writing, from an effective essay to the famous works of literature we read and reread time and time again.
Punctuation saves lives!While the small addition of a punctuation mark in the right place may seem trivial, many have noted the significance of a correctly-placed apostrophe or comma. And what better a time than National Punctuation Day to remember its value in writing.
By losing sight of proper punctuation, your paper could quickly lose meaning as well as marks; however, in understanding how two similar sentences are structured to communicate very different messages, this can swiftly result in an improved grade and a far more reliable similarity score.
“Let’s cook, Grandma” and “Let's cook Grandma” could be the difference between being eager to cook with Grandma and unintentionally throwing her in the oven. Oops!
Ready to produce a well-punctuated piece of work? Take a look at our quick and dirty tips in honor of National Punctuation Day…
Cite it rightCorrect citation is at the core of Turnitin’s efforts to combat plagiarism and boost academic integrity in student writing. You may be interested in the connection between punctuation and citation...
Did you know that without correct referencing, it's impossible for your instructor to distinguish your original writing from your quotations? Likewise, Feedback Studio won’t be able to exclude quotations from your Similarity Report either; this is likely to result in a higher-than-expected similarity score.
By wrapping quotation marks around your quotes, this instantly defines them within your paper and can provide a far more reliable similarity score, which can be particularly helpful when submitting a qualitative study containing lots of evidentiary quotes.
Why not inquire about quote exclusions with your instructor before submitting? Send them our guidance if they're unfamiliar with how to activate this in their account.
A paragraph without a period makes it increasingly difficult to decipher where one sentence ends and another begins and can quickly confuse your reader; we call this the run-on sentence. It might surprise you that this is the most common punctuation faux pas.
Apostrophes can be equally as mind-boggling. While some are used to show possession, others omit letters to produce a contraction. And as a very general rule, they shouldn't be used for pluralization. Phew... are you still with us?
Feedback Studio’s e-rater grammar feedback technology, developed by ETS®, automatically checks papers for grammar, usage, mechanics, style and spelling errors right at the point of submission. We’re proud to offer this instant feedback to students studying at a broad range of academic levels.
Have a chat with your Turnitin instructor if you’d like to learn more about this useful tool.
Ready to submit?It’s time to break into the realms of high marks, reliable Similarity Reports, and happy instructor feedback.
Before hitting “Submit”, ask yourself the following:
- Are my periods in the right places?
- Have I used my commas correctly?
- Are all of my misplaced apostrophes now history?
- Have I cited with quotation marks?
For National Punctuation Day (and every other day), our goal is to promote efficient use of punctuation to help you exceed as a student and advance into your chosen career.
Why not dedicate some time to ensuring your periods, commas, and apostrophes are correctly distributed? Great punctuation makes an even better grade.
Perfect your punctuation and submit to Feedback Studio with confidence.