Resources for Faculty, Staff & Students
Faculty & Staff Support
Faculty, if you’d like a presentation to your class, please email the Writing & Tutoring Center at writingcenter@methodist.edu. Indicate content and desired dates (give us some options), and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Faculty and staff, we would be delighted to work with you on your writing projects and syllabi. WCONLINE is the online scheduling platform that our clients use to make appointments with writing consultants. Learn more on our General Information page, from registering for a WCONLINE account to setting up and making use of our four kinds of consultations: In-person, Online, eTutoring, and Walk-Ins.
Handouts
Essentials of College Writing
- From Brainstorming to Outlining
- Organizing Ideas & Outlining
- Thesis Statements
- Topic Sentences
- Integrating Source Material—Signal Phrases and Paraphrasing, Summarizing, & Quoting
- MEAL Plan—A Guide to Body/Evidence Paragraphs
- Transitional Expressions
- Checklist for Logical Fallacy
- Research Paper Workout Checklist
- Revising & Copyediting
- Reverse Outline
Citing Sources & Avoiding Plagiarism
Plagiarism vs. Using Sources Properly—Plagiarism occurs when proper credit is not given to the original author or creator. Sometimes, this can happen unintentionally, especially when reading, discussing, and writing about so many ideas. Learning to properly incorporate source material can help you steer clear of plagiarism. We have provided a few resources to help.
- APA In-text References & Sample References List
- APA Format: Running Header & Section Headings
- APA: Incorporate Research & Cite Sources
- MLA In-text References & Sample Works Cited List
- MLA: Incorporate Research & Cite Sources
- Turabian/Chicago Citations
- Guide to AMA Manual of Style
- AMA Style Sample Citations
- AMA: Incorporate Research & Cite Sources
- Citing Legal Sources
- Avoiding Plagiarism: Recognizing Common Knowledge & Integrating Source Material
- Self-Plagiarism
Some Types of Writing
- Writing a Summary
- Writing a Critique (Summary and Response)
- Writing a Literature Review
- Annotated Bibliographies with Samples
- Writing an Argument (Persuasive Paper)
- Writing a Position Paper
- Professional & Business Writing
Tips for Non-Native English Speakers
Grammar
- Dirty Dozen, Brief Descriptions with Examples (also, The DD & Handouts, Correlated)
- The Six Patterns for Simple Sentences
- Models for Joining Clauses and Phrases into Sentences
- Clauses & Complex Sentences
- Conjunctions
- Subject-Verb Agreement
- Personal Pronouns, Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement, & Vague or Unclear Pronoun References
- Misplaced & Dangling Modifiers
- Parallel Structure
- Verb Tenses
- Apostrophes
- Faulty Predication
- Comma Usage: A Short Guide
- That vs. Which, That vs. Who and Whom
Style & Documentation/Citation Requirements
- APA (American Psychological Association), 7th edition—Check out the BLOG.
- MLA (Modern Language Association), 8th edition
- Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition
- Purdue’s Online Writing Lab (OWL)—a vast and searchable writing resource
Grammar & Style
- Grammarphobia
This site offers weekly blog posts covering such topics as grammar, etymology (word origins), and usage. - GrammarCheck
This checker is pretty good at spotting grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors, and doesn’t require registration. - Purdue’s Online Writing Lab (OWL)
A vast and searchable writing resource - Elements of Style, by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White
This website offers an online version of the classic handbook Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White. Navigate the table of contents to access specific sections of the book.