editing

While I was studying journalism, I worked as a newspaper copy editor for about a year. And I still have sharp eye for errors of grammar and style (what John Bean calls “low-order concerns”) in a piece of writing. Of course, good copy editors fix problems of organization and coherence and correct misinformation, as well. Copy editors, however, are not writing coaches.
Thankfully, my job as an English 1000 instructor does not consist of copy editing. I appreciate Bean for pointing this out. As I read chapter 14 of Bean’s book, I thought about how tedious it would be to copy edit 40 students’ papers. Yet, even though I don’t have to edit, I expect to find some aspects of writing comments on students’ papers arduous. I expect to find spelling, grammar, and style errors more annoying than some other instructors do. And I, like Bean, expect to have my own list of pet peeves for my students.
Nevertheless, based on Bean’s description of a writing coach, I think former copy editors bring applicable skills to the classroom, especially in terms of helping students edit their own work. I agree with Bean. If students learn grammar rules and the correct spelling of words, then they can improve their editing skills by finding and correcting their own mistakes. That’s how I learned to edit.
I plan to address grammar issues through comments on individual students’ papers. If the whole class seems to be struggling with a particular rule, I might consider reviewing that rule in class, giving the students an opportunity to ask questions.