What’s “Copy Edit the World” you ask? It’s an assignment designed to help you sharpen your proofreading and editing skills. Your task: To find and correct errors in published materials distributed to the public, including typos and errors in spelling, word use, grammar and AP style. Everything is fair game… from green sheets , brochures and restaurant menus to posters and signage.

You are required to find 25 points worth of Copy Edit the World errors for this class. Your first 10 points worth are due next Saturday, Feb. 23; the next 15 points worth are due Sat., March 16. Make sure you describe the error and how to fix it. See the link above, or the one on the Class Schedule page or the List of Assignments page, for the specifics of this assignment, including how many points the different kinds of errors are worth.

Once you start spotting errors, it can be hard to stop. When I spotted these (one banner, two typos…a “typo twofer”), I made my husband stop the car so I could take a photo. It was just too good to pass up.

Last semester, one Jour 61 student did me one better. She came up with a typo trifecta. You can check it out here.

To submit your AP style errors and other typos, you can photograph them and post them on your blog, or scan them in and post them. If you find errors online, you can describe the error and how to correct it in your blog post and include a link to the web page that has the error. Or take a screenshot and post it, then describe how to correct it in your blog post.

If none of these options will work for you, you can put your error-ridden print materials in an envelope and drop it by the JMC office (DBH 105); ask one of the JMC staff to put it in my mailbox. Or mail them to my attention at:

School of Journalism & Mass Communications
San José State University
One Washington Square
San José, CA 95192-0055