Online Writing Lab
The Online Writing Lab (OWL) provides students the opportunity to have their papers reviewed via asynchronous online submission. OWL can be used as an alternative to, or in combination with, 1:1 tutoring. A professional tutor reads and reviews a student's paper, returning it with advice on argumentation, content development, organization, grammar, punctuation, citation styles and more.
Assignments are returned in three to four days. To have time to use the tutor’s feedback in the revision and proofreading process, consider submitting the paper to OWL at least one week prior to the assignment due date. Students should submit their papers to only one OWL reviewer at a time. Multiple drafts may be submitted, only if there is appreciable improvement between drafts and sufficient time before the assignment deadline.
Prepare to supply your instructor’s name, course number, assignment deadline, any guidelines, instructions, or rubrics, and your desired areas of focus that will help the tutor give you valuable feedback.
What You Can Expect from OWL Feedback
OWL will:
- Focus on your strengths: e.g., how well the paper fulfills the assignment criteria and grading rubric.
- Provide an analysis of and advice on your desired areas of feedback, which could include format, content, argumentation (thesis development), organization and structure, sentence & paragraph structure, and syntax and style.
- Include models (examples) of effective sentences.
- Provide global suggestions on how to develop the paper.
What You Should Not Expect from OWL Feedback
OWL will not:
- Completely rewrite or correct the paper for you. Instead, the feedback will enable you to reflect and use the detailed comments to revise and improve your paper.
- Copy edit your paper. While the OWL reviewer will help you recognize patterns of grammatical or punctuation errors, it is the student’s responsibility to use the tutor’s feedback to complete the revision and proofreading process.
Helpful tip: The OWL is a convenient alternative to, but not a substitution for, a session with a professional or peer tutor. Feel free to work on the same assignment in a 1-on-1 writing tutoring session. Make an appointment through the PASS Portal.