Learning how to write a paragraph is an important first step to writing a successful paper, essay question, presentation, or report. But how do you handle the additional grading time? The following pages provide suggestions with tutorials.

But first, here are some suggestions to consider as you create your assignments.

• Create a Rubric: Carefully construct the instructions so that the content that is to be covered is clearly understood. Students can have concrete guidelines to use to guide their writing.
• Length: Keep the length of the paper to a reasonable length they can write and you can grade. Short papers with a clear list of content that is to be covered requires students to think carefully about what they need to include and how they have to write conserve their words to include all the information.
• Study Groups: Encourage students to use editing groups to edit each other’s papers. They can use a wiki, Google docs, or Blackboard to look at each other’s papers.
• Grammar Tools; Require that all drafts and writing be submitted from a word processing program and the students have used spell check. If the paper has not been put through spell check return it. Spell check and other grammar tools should be used like breathing. Microsoft Word can be purchased from the Help Desk at IT at a huge student discount and Open Office can be downloaded for free. Google Docs allows them to work from any computer that has an Internet connection.
• Electronic Submission: Require that all students submit their papers electronically through Blackboard. This time stamps the papers, allows students to turn it in without coming to class, and solves the question about contested papers having been turned in.

Use the following tutorial to learn about tools and teaching strategies that can help you manage writing projects.