Mastering Punctuation (TOEFL, IELTS, TOEIC, business)

This course covers every topic related to punctuation in English. A large portion of the course focuses on the comma, while other sections deal with citations and quoting. Minor details such as dates and addresses are included.

The section on the comma shows the student how sentence structure determines how and when commas are used. The various kinds of dependent clauses and phrases requiring or not requiring commas are discussed. In the second section, the instructor shows how the comma, parentheses, brackets, and periods are used in both APA and MLA styles. This section is not meant to be a comprehensive review of the APA/MLA. The final section covers the context and style options for both semi-colons and colons so that the writer can be a more effective communicator and not rely solely on commas and periods. In this same section, the question mark, exclamation point, and hyphens are covered.

At the end of nearly each section, an exercise is included that not only tests understanding of that lesson's material but also the previous content. When relevant, the instructor shows the differences between informal writing and formal writing and how certain punctuation marks differ depending on this level of formality.