Revising, Editing, and Keyboarding

When the drafting is done, a few quiet minutes of cleanup can lift your essay a level. You are not rewriting — you are catching the small slips that pull a reader out of your argument. And because you type this essay on screen, a little comfort with the keyboard and the test’s tools makes those minutes go further.

Revising means improving clarity and flow, editing means fixing grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and keyboarding is simply typing on the test’s on-screen interface. A short, focused pass at the end catches the errors that a tired writer leaves behind.

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A Quick Revision Pass

With your last few minutes, reread your essay once, start to finish. First, revise for clarity: is your thesis easy to find? Does each paragraph stick to one point? Are there any sentences you have to read twice? Smooth those out. Then edit for correctness: look for missing words, wrong verb tenses, run-on sentences, and obvious spelling or punctuation mistakes. Reading slowly — almost mouthing the words — helps you hear errors your eyes skip. You will not have time to fix everything, so hunt the mistakes that most confuse a reader: a missing “not,” a sentence that never ends, a “their” that should be “there.” Perfect grammar is not required; clear, mostly-correct sentences are.

Typing on the Test Interface

You write the extended response in a plain text box on the computer. There is no automatic spell-check underlining your errors, so you cannot rely on the screen to catch mistakes for you. The box offers basic tools — you can cut, copy, and paste to move a sentence, and undo to reverse a change — but no fancy formatting. Practicing on a keyboard before test day pays off: the more comfortable you are typing, the more of your 45 minutes goes to thinking instead of hunting for keys. You do not need to be fast, just steady. If you type slowly, plan a little tighter so your ideas are clear before your fingers start, and keep sentences simple and direct.

Watch: A Short Video Lesson

Hull Uni Library gives a clear overview to go with this lesson:

A Routine for Cleanup

1. Reread the whole essay once at the end.
2. Revise for clarity — one point per paragraph, findable thesis.
3. Edit for grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
4. Use cut, copy, paste, and undo to fix the biggest problems first.

Practice

1. What is the difference between revising and editing?
2. What does keyboarding mean here?
3. What should you check first when revising for clarity?
4. Does the test’s text box catch your spelling for you?
5. Which errors should you fix first when time is short?
6. Why does practicing typing help before test day?

Answers

1. Revising improves clarity; editing fixes grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
2. Typing your essay on the test’s on-screen interface.
3. Whether the thesis is easy to find and each paragraph stays on one point.
4. No — there is no automatic spell-check.
5. The ones that most confuse a reader.
6. More of your time goes to thinking instead of hunting for keys.

Where This Fits in Your RLA Prep

This final pass completes the 45-minute essay plan and reinforces the clear voice from organization, tone, and transitions. See every topic on the Language Arts Prep Hub.

Recommended Prep Books

Keep building momentum with a full study guide and practice tests:

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