Writing In The Digital Age: Resources and Tools of Trade

Writing In The Digital Age: Resources and Tools of Trade
Summary: Technology has changed the face of education in innumerable ways. As learners, we can only be grateful at how much times has changed. We can learn from a teacher thousands of miles away, and we can submit our overdue paper efficiently through email. It has also changed the way students come up with their school papers.

Writing In The Digital Age

Gone are the days when students type their essays using a typewriter or even writing it with pen and paper. It's all about word processing software that makes formatting and writing a 10-page composition easy. It's not just in the tools we use that writing a school paper has changed. It also makes the researching and the proofreading process fifty times more efficient.

Digital Age Academic Resources

Most writing should be backed up by extensive research. This is why students take time to learn how to properly cite their sources because they'll be using tons in every paper they write for school.

However, sometimes the problem lies in the difficulty of finding enough materials for their topic. Many students spend hours and hours pouring over books in their university library, and still end up lacking with sufficient materials to write a research paper. But with the internet, the whole world is their library and they only need to know the right websites to help them.

There are numerous websites where students can view and download materials they can procure for their school papers. Below are some of the most comprehensive databases.

  • Google Scholar
    Google created a special search engine that will limit your search on scholarly publications. Find all kinds of materials from academic journals to student researches to books to court opinions.
  • Scribd.com
    For a relatively small fee, you can gain access to all the books you need. It's not just books, too, because there are documents on academic topics. The materials on Scribd can also be downloaded in different formats.
  • Tuebl.ca
    From the latest young adult fiction to the copyright-free classics, Tuebl is the place to go if you're in need of a good ebook. It has an extensive library and they make researching for titles easy.
  • KnowFree.net
    The portal believes in the slogan, “Knowledge is free.” They offer a place for users to download not just books but also video training materials.
  • Open Access
    For books on the Humanities and Social Sciences, this website can give you the most comprehensive list of titles. They work directly with publishers so users are assured that the materials they'll find in the site are legit.
  • Project Gutenberg
    With only books released by bona fide publishers, Project Gutenberg offers a vast collection of epub and Kindle books. Audio books are also available here.
  • MemoWare
    Books found on MemoWare range from Engineering to Communications to Philosophy to Religion. You can browse either by category or through the search function.
  • Library Genesis Project
    It's a research heaven since the categories include geography, psychology, mass communication, linguistics, economics, etc.

Digital Age Tools: Grammar and Style Editors

Writing isn't over until you've proofread it countless of times. Though you must also take the time to proofread your own work, there are online tools that can help you polish your writing.

You may not be the sharpest of writing. Your words may not be as eloquent as Mark Twain's, but you must still put the emphasis in the correctness of your grammar. Here are some tools that can edit your mistakes for you:

  • LanguageTool
    This is one of the few grammar and spelling online checkers that allow you to run through any length of text. Users are given the options of choosing the modes of English you use, such as whether it's American or British English.
  • Bestessays.com
    For a more refined essay, you can leave it up to the experts to proofread your work for you. Most of the time, it's difficult to spot our own mistakes, and a fresh set of eyes can see what we often miss. The good thing about using a professional editing help is that they also do technical editing, meaning, it's not just syntax that they check but also the content.
  • Ginger Grammar Checker
    Though the number of words is limited when using this checker, it's still an easy-to-use tool that offers suggestions for mistakes. It even overlooks the use of tenses and prepositions.
  • Plagiarism Checker
    To be on the safe side, check your own work for duplicate content. You may know it for yourself that you're the one who wrote the paper. It's still better that you've thoroughly paraphrased your research.

The internet opens up a treasure trove of information that there's no more reason for a school paper to lack substance. The numerous writing tools for students are limitless. With all the resources available to a student, the only sensible thing left to do is to ace that essay.