Open School BC Editorial Style Guide

Purpose of the Open School BC Editorial Style Guide

This guide has been developed to ensure consistency and quality in written communications.

It is a set of default conventions that should be followed in all writing, editing and proofreading activities, unless variations have been specified for the project.

This guide is meant to supplement certain standard references.

Reference materials

General

Though the guides are not identical, every effort has been made to align the conventions in this document with the Province of British Columbia’s Web Style Guide. Additional reference materials are listed below.

Refer to The Chicago Manual of Style (University of Chicago) for detailed information, but follow the Open School BC Editorial Style Guide where the styles differ.

News writing

For any news writing such as press releases managed by Open School BC, consult the Canadian Press Stylebook: A Guide for Writing and Editing (most recent edition) and the Canadian Press Caps and Spelling.

Trades resources

For trades resources, please reference this guide for usage and grammar, and the Best Practices for Authoring Trades Resources (available from your OSBC project manager) for titling and other considerations for pre-production content.

Writing for the web

The B.C. Government Style Guide has a useful section on writing for the web: Writing for the web is different than writing for print. Content must be audience-focused, scannable and accessible across all devices.

For accessibility, follow the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) standards. They also have a Writing for Web Accessibility guide to help you get started.

Hyphenation and usage

For hyphenation and usage, follow the Canadian Oxford Dictionary and the Spelling Checklist found at the end of this guide. For further reference, refer to The Chicago Manual of Style.

Metric usage

Use metric (SI) measures rather than imperial—except in trades publications, where both are given.

Spelling

For spelling, follow the first entry in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, which is considered the preferred Canadian spelling of a word. The exceptions and common problem words are described in this guide in the Spelling Checklist.

Ensure that the word processor you are using (such as MS Word) has the default dictionary set to Canadian English. The MS Word spellchecking and grammar checking functions provide a good baseline reference.

Abbreviations

Academic degrees

The Canadian Oxford Dictionary uses periods with abbreviations for academic degrees, with the exception of MD.

Abbreviation	Term
B.A.	Bachelor of Arts
M.A.	Master of Arts
B.Sc.	Bachelor of Science
Ph.D.	Doctor of Philosophy

Imperial measure

The Canadian Oxford Dictionary uses periods with imperial abbreviations. If using imperial measurements is necessary, use either the abbreviation or spell out the full word of the unit in question (for example, pounds, feet). Use straight quotation marks forinch " and foot ' symbols. In diagrams, abbreviations may be used.

Abbreviation	Term
lb.	pound
in.	inch
qt.	quart
yd.	yard

In text

In general text, avoid the use of i.e. and e.g..

Instead of	Use
i.e.	in other words
e.g.	for example, such as

Avoid using non-standard abbreviations in general text unless you have first provided the full term, normally with the shortened form in parentheses. (For example, the names of agencies, unions and associations are often abbreviated after one spelled-out use.)

Donald Smith drove the symbolic last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) at Craigellachie, British Columbia. The CPR connected Canada from Nova Scotia to B.C.

Metric measures

Never use periods with metric symbols. Use metric (SI) measures rather than imperial. For information on metric usage, refer to the Canadian Metric Practice Guide or the Metric Editorial Handbook (Canadian Standards Association).

Abbreviation	Term
cm	centimetre
m	metre
km	kilometre
L	litre

Pages

Use the full word for page or pages for page references in text. The abbreviations p. or pp. are fine in parenthetical references.

Plurals

To form the plural of an acronym, just add an s.

Instead of	Use
NGO's	NGOs
URL's	URLs

Provinces/territories

For the provinces and territories of Canada, do not abbreviate using periods unless the province or territory includes more than one word. See the B.C. Government Web Style Guide for more information.

Note: the use of periods in the abbreviations for provinces may vary, depending on the project and client preferences.

Abbreviation	Province
AB	Alberta
B.C.	British Columbia
MB	Manitoba
N.B.	New Brunswick
N.L.	Newfoundland and Labrador
N.T.	Northwest Territories
N.S.	Nova Scotia
NU	Nunavut
ON	Ontario
QC	Québec
P.E.I.	Prince Edward Island
SK	Saskatchewan
YT	Yukon

Punctuation

Generally follow the punctuation used with abbreviations in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary.

Social titles

Abbreviate all social titles, whether with full name or with surname only. Most French abbreviations do not have periods at the end. Consult the Canadian Oxford Dictionary when in doubt.

Abbreviation	Term	Usage
Mr.	Mister	Man
Ms.	No long form	Woman, married or unmarried
Mrs.	Missus	Married woman
Miss	Mistress	Unmarried woman
M.	Monsieur	Man (French), note period is used
Mme	Madame	Woman (French)
Mlle	Mademoiselle	Traditional alternative for unmarried woman (French)

Time

Use the following abbreviations of terms related to time. Hours without the minute time are written numerically with no zeros or colon. Include a space after the number. Do not use periods or capitalize am or pm. Use noon and midnight instead of 12 pm or 12 am.

Abbreviations for time periods like BCE and CE are not italicized.

See the B.C. Government Web Style Guide for more information.

Abbreviation	Example
am	5 am, 7:30 am
pm	6 pm, 8:20 pm
BC	55 BC, the second century BC
AD	AD 410, the first century AD

Acronyms

Using articles with acronyms

An: When an acronym is spoken out loud letter by letter and it sounds as though the first letter begins with a vowel, or if the acronym is said like a word and starts with a vowel, precede it with an.

I have an F-O-I-P-P-A question.

Pronounced letter by letter, F-O-I-P-P-A, with a starting eff sound.

An EARP is an Environmental Assessment and Review Process.

Pronounced as one word, urp, starting with a vowel sound.

A: When an acronym is spoken out loud letter by letter and it sounds as though the first letter begins with a consonant, or if the acronym is said like a word and starts with a consonant, precede it with a.

I'm attending a YMCA class.

Pronounced letter by letter, Y-M-C-A, with a starting why sound.

I have a FOIPPA question

Pronounced as one word, foy-pah, starting with a consonant sound.

Citing sources

The following are general guidelines; cite sources based on project-specific conventions. For example, some courses follow the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). Similarly, other courses follow Modern Languages Association (MLA) style.

Note: with the eigth edition of the MLA citation style, you have freedom to create references that meet the needs of your audience, without strict punctuation formula or requirement to state the medium or location of publication.

Bibliographies and reference lists

If it is necessary to use a bibliography or reference list, do so in the following ways unless your course development team is consistently using another style throughout the course materials. In all cases, the first line of a citation is left-aligned and all other lines in the citation are indented.

Note: the second line indentation may not always be visible on a responsive web page, depending on browser window size.

Article

For an article in a periodical, provide the following:

Author
Article title
Periodical name
Volume number (sometimes issue number)
Date
Pages on which the article appears
URL or Digital Object Identifier (DOI), if available

(APA 7) Choules, K. (2007). Social Change Education: Context Matters. Adult Education Quarterly, 57(2), 159–176. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741713606293912

(MLA 8) Choules, Kathryn. “Social Change Education: Context Matters.” Adult Education Quarterly, vol. 57, no. 2, Feb. 2007, pp. 159–176, 10.1177/0741713606293912. Accessed 10 Oct. 2019.

Book

For a book, provide the following:

Names of the author(s), editor(s), or institutions(s) responsible for the writing of the book
Full title of the book, including the subtitle (if any)
Series title (if any) and the volume or number in the series
Total number of volumes (of a multi-volume work)
Edition (if not the first edition)
City of publication
Publisher’s name
Date of publication
URL or Digital Object Identifier (DOI), if available

(APA 7) Mccarten, J. (2018). The Canadian Press caps and spelling. The Canadian Press.

(MLA 8) Mccarten, James. The Canadian Press Caps and Spelling. Toronto, On, The Canadian Press, 2018.‌

Citing electronic sources

Works on the web are cited in the same way as printed works. Note that with MLA Style (used for humanities), there is a movement with the 8th edition to cite only the most relevant information regardless of medium, so that a work’s city of publication is not needed, and the medium of publication is eliminated.

For more information, visit the relevant web pages:

Course textbooks

Provide full publication information for assigned textbooks for a course (in the Course Overview or equivalent document).

Required textbook: Torres, Hazel O., and Ann Erlich. Modern Dental Assisting. 3rd ed. W.B. Saunders, 1985.

Following display quotations

Without bibliography

The citation should include author, title, place of publication, publisher, date, and page number.

Nothing happened. Nothing! Nothing! as she leant her head against Mrs. Ramsay’s knee. And yet, she knew knowledge and wisdom were stored up in Mrs. Ramsay’s heart. How then, she had asked herself, did one know one thing or another thing about people, sealed as they were? (Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse. Harcourt, Brace & World, 1955, p. 79)

With bibliography

If there is a bibliography or reference list at the end of the unit, the following form of citation is adequate:

Following poetry quotations

In print, citations following centred poetry or display quotations are placed two lines below the last line of the quotation and are aligned flush right with the longest line.

Jewels in joy designed
To ravish the sensuous mind
Lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind

Thomas Hardy, “The Convergence of Twain”

Footnotes

Avoid using footnotes for citations.

In running with text

Subsequent references to the textbook may be abbreviated. Use one of the following shortened forms of citation consistently throughout any one course.

(Torres and Ehrlich, p. 121), (Modern Dental Assisting, p. 121)

Without bibliography

Where few citations are required, full publication information may be placed in parentheses.

The em space, as F. Howard Collins describes it, is “the square of the body of any size of type” (Authors and Printers Dictionary, 11th ed., London: Oxford University Press, 1979, p. 128).

In his Authors and Printers Dictionary, F. Howard Collis gives useful definitions of the em space (11th ed., London: Oxford University Press, 1979, p. 128) and other typographical terms.

With bibliography

Under the following conditions, list the cited works in full in a bibliography or reference list at the end of the unit.

When the name of the author is used in the sentence:

In his summary of research findings, Blake (1980) concluded that much research produces only “folk knowledge”; that is, the results are no more than common sense.

When the author’s name is not used in the sentence:

One study (Blake 1980) found that much of what passes for research actually produces only “folk knowledge.”

When a specific page or other division of the cited work follows the date:

One study (Blake 1980, p. 89) found that much of what passes for research actually produces only “folk knowledge.”

Capitalization

Academic subjects

Do not capitalize academic subjects unless they are languages.

French, mathematics, science

Agencies

Capitalize the names of companies, ministries, commissions, and so forth, when used in full. Do not capitalize the short form.

The Ministry of Education and Child Care, The Labour Relations Board

The ministry is reviewing the Graduation Program.

Course and education program titles

Capitalize the names of specific courses.

Mathematics 10

Capitalize grade designations when they refer to a specific year. The year is represented as an Arabic numeral.

Grade 1, Kindergarten, grades 2–4

Do not capitalize general references to levels within the education system, but do capitalize the names of specific programs.

The primary years but the Primary Program

Headings

Use sentence case for all headings, capitalizing only the first word and any proper nouns.

In headings and titles, do not capitalize:

Coordinating conjunctions such as but and or
Prepositions, such as except, toward and at (unless the conjunction or preposition is the first or last word)
The to in infinitives

If a hyphenated word is part of a heading, capitalize only the first part of the word.

Post-secondary institutions

Use and instead of an ampersand & in headings, unless the ampersand is part of a name, such as A&W.

Legislation

Full names of acts are capitalized, but not italicized. See the B.C. Government web style guide for more information.

Titles

Use title case for titles of works, such as books, journals, articles, and OSBC publications.

For title case, capitalize:

The first and last words
Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions
The second word in a hyphenated compound if it has equal force with the first word or is a proper noun or proper adjective

Seventeenth-Century Literature but Make-up Artists

Title of a person

Do not capitalize titles following a personal name or used alone in place of it, unless an official title is being used.

Example	Usage
Minister of Education Mary Jack has suggested that a reform is due.	Official title preceding name
Mary Jack, the minister of education, has suggested that a reform is due.	Title set off by commas
The minister recently attended a Communications Branch meeting.	Occupational title used alone
Sincerely, Mary Jack, Minister of Education	Official title

Glossary items

Only capitalize glossary words if they are proper nouns. If there are proper nouns in the glossary list, you can tell because they are capitalized.

When providing a definition for a glossary term, use complete sentences to model proper grammar. If a glossary definition is more than one sentence, parallel structure is being used from the first sentence onward.

Maquinna: Maquinna was the powerful Nuu-chah-nulth chief of the Mowachaht people of Yuquot, who negotiated and traded with both the Spanish and British at the time of initial European contact.
trend: A trend is an event or sequence of events that move in a certain direction over a long period of time.

Inclusive language

Diversity

Open School BC documents are written for and about a diverse group of people. Documents should reflect this diversity.

The English language changes over time, and social changes have brought about modifications in how we use pronouns. Our efforts to be sensitive and aware may result in wording that sounds "wrong" to our ear, given usage has been based on a traditional gender binary of he and she. Sometimes this is a necessary part of adjusting our world view. If a phrase seriously interrupts the flow of writing, however, the section should be reworked to avoid the problem.

Gender-neutral language

Use gender-neutral language wherever possible.

Instead of	Try
chairman	moderator, convenor, chairperson
man	human, humankind, people

Do not use he, his, or him when the gender of the antecedent (the word for which a pronoun stands) is indefinite. Instead, pluralize your subject.

Instead of	The teacher should select materials that meet the needs of his students.
Try	Teachers should select materials that meet the needs of their students.

Preferred language for groups

It is often necessary to refer to a group of people based on some characteristic shared by members of the group. When doing so, be certain to check that you are using the term preferred by the group and approved by the project manager.

Indigenous peoples

The term Indigenous peoples includes First Nations, Inuit and Métis people in Canada. Increasingly, the term Indigenous is replacing Aboriginal. This may stem from use of the term Indigenous in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The term Aboriginal is found in Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. Section 25 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms uses the lower-case aboriginal. It’s possible that the term gained more widespread use during the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples from 1992-1996.

Both terms are always used as adjectives.

Aboriginal communities; Indigenous world view

A First Nation is a community of Indigenous people who identify as a distinct cultural group. It identifies one of the three populations of Indigenous peoples within Canada, the other two being Métis and Inuit. No definition of the term First Nation exists in Canadian law.

An Indigenous person might say she is First Nations.

First Nations spellings may vary in English, and in some cases diacritic characters may be included.

Gitksan, Gitxsan and Gitxsan may all be considered appropriate.

The Indian Act defined who could be called Indian in the eyes of Canadian law. People who were recognized as Indian by the Indian Act were, and still are, called Status Indians. Status Indians have a registry number and a status card. Another term that means Status Indian is Registered Indian.

For more information, see Elements of Indigenous Style: A Guide for Writing By and About Indigenous Peoples by Gregory Younging (Brush Education, Inc.). and the B.C. Government's Writing Guide for Indigenous Content.

Pronoun agreement

Pronouns have traditionally agreed with their antecedents in gender and number, which used to pose a problem for constructions in which the gender was unknown.

Lucy whipped the football away; she enjoys a good laugh at another’s expense.

Lucy is singular, so we used the singular female pronoun, she.

Linus, Franklin and Charlie Brown took their sleds to the hill when it snowed.

Since multiple people are the subject, we use the plural form of the possessive pronoun, their.

These constructions are still correct, and may still be used. But by this rule, if your antecedent is indefinite (such as anybody or someone), your pronoun still needs to agree with it in gender and number. This forces you to use a gender-specific pronoun when the antecedent is singular. Where gender is not known, it is most appropriate to use they/their as the gender-neutral singular pronoun.

Instead of	If anyone turns in his test early, he may spend the rest of his time reading.
Try	If anyone turns in their test early, they may spend the rest of their time reading.

The singular they/their and gendered pronoun use

Many people have substituted the plural they and their for the singular he or she in informal writing in the past.

People also use they and them as their own gender-neutral singular personal pronouns. Given the discussion about gender identity in our time, organizations responsible for language use are voting to adopt they or their for the singular he or she, and this is suitable for informal and formal writing alike.

Italics

[sic]

Italicize the word sic in [sic]. However, note that we do not italicize certain Latin abbreviations, such as ibid or pm.

Course titles

Italicize complete Open School BC course titles referred to in text.

Welcome to Open School BC’s Science 10 course.

Foreign terms

Italicize foreign-language words that you think would be unfamiliar to your intended audience.

Several English words related to belief are derived from credo, which is Latin for “I believe”.

Genus/species names

Italicize the scientific (Latin) name of a plant or animal.

Note that the genus name is capitalized, whereas the species name is lower case.

the genus Smilodan, the species hartiee, Homo sapiens

Key terms

On first use, italicize key terms, technical terms, philosophical terms, and other instances of denotation. For example, boldface type is often selected for web use (because italic/oblique type is less legible online) and for new terms, especially ones that are defined in the course glossary. If a word is hyperlinked, it doesn't need any additional emphasis added.

The word creed comes from Latin.

Begin using the philosophy of caring that is characteristic of the caring curriculum.

Symbols for physical quantities

Italicize quantity symbols to distinguish from SI unit symbols, which are never italicized. Refer to the Canadian Metric Practice Guide for a complete list of quantity symbols.

Abbreviation	Term	Type
m	mass	quantity
m	metre	SI unit
V	volume	quantity
V	volt	SI unit

Note: subject matter experts are responsible for following standard usage in their field. In science and math, for example, subject matter experts are expected to adhere to standard usage for variables and vectors, using a notation system accepted by the development team.

Titles

Italicize the titles of books, journals, plays, separately published poems, long musical compositions, paintings, and films.

Variables

Italicize letters (including Greek letters) used as mathematical variables. Use boldface for vectors. Do not italicize abbreviations such as log, tan, cos, sec, scs, and sin.

y = 2a cos

p (λ) = det(λI–A)

Numbers

Decimals

Place a zero to the left of a decimal if there is no other digit there.

700 g = 0.7 kg

Metric usage

Use metric measures (rather than imperial measures) wherever possible, unless both are expected.

Money

Use a comma as the triad separator in monetary numbers of at least four digits. Use a decimal point before the cents.

£3,000 and $10,000.54

In French, the usage is different. For example, the dollar sign appears last, and a comma is used to separate dollars and cents. There are spaces around the cents (after the comma and before the dollar sign.

3, 95 $

No apostrophe

Do not use apostrophes when referring to years or other numerals in the plural.

ten 5s, the 1980s

Spelled out

The general rule for numbers (in any text that is not scientific or statistical) is to spell out numbers up to and including nine, and to use figures for 10 and above. The major exceptions are year numbers and numbers referring to parts of a book. Spell out numbers when they're the first word in a sentence, but avoid this usage if possible.

56 BC, AD 1988, Figure 34 on page 12, pages 99 to 150, nine students

However, it may be less awkward to use figures if there are many numbers together.

The winning numbers in the lottery were 92, 79, 61, 53, 37, 20, and 12.

Note: your usage may be different if your course or resource is following a different style such as APA or MLA.

Triad separator

Except for monetary numbers, use a non-breaking space as the triad separator in numbers of at least five digits. (When possible, a thin space is visually preferable.) The triads—groups of three figures—are counted on each side of the decimal.

10 000 km, 3000 km, 39 601.341

Note: the exception is that a space is used in four-digit numbers when they appear in a column with numbers of at least five digits. The project manager may also permit commas as triad separators if required by the project.

Punctuation

Comma

Place a comma before the concluding conjunction in a series of items. This is done for the sake of clarity, because and is sometimes used to create a single concept noun.

My favourite foods include pizza, spaghetti, and macaroni and cheese.

The curtains are available in red, green, and yellow.

When a comma appears at the end of a quotation, place it before the closing quotation marks.

Ellipses

Use an ellipsis of three periods to indicate an omission from a text or quotation. Put spaces before and after the periods, but not between. If the ellipsis comes immediately after a complete sentence, put that sentence's final punctuation before the ellipsis, with no space between the two.

Note: in web work, use the appropriate html character   to avoid a line break in the middle of your ellipsis.

The following table outlines various uses for ellipses.

Omission	Example
A word or words within a sentence	Hamlet asked whether it was “nobler … to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles.”
The remainder of the quoted sentence	“There comes a tide…”
The beginning of the next sentence	“What’s become of man’s great extent and proportion, when himself shrinks … to a handful of dust?… What’s become of his soaring thoughts, when himself brings himself … to the grave?”
One or more sentences or paragraphs	“I am fundamentally an optimist.… Part of being optimistic is keeping one's head pointed toward the sun, one's feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.”

Em dashes

Any variation of the em dash should be changed to an em dash — (the long dash). Where possible, avoid using the em dash; write shorter sentences or use commas instead. Do not include spaces on either side of the em dash.

Instead of		Use
-	space hyphen space	—	em dash
--	space hyphen hyphen space	—	em dash
--	hyphen hyphen	—	em dash

The pies—meat and fruit—were cheap.

En dashes

Any hyphen intended to mean to should be changed to an en dash, which is longer than a hyphen but shorter than an em dash. Do not include spaces on either side of the en dashes.

The 2020–21 annual report outlines our strategic goals.

To denote a range of numbers, dates or time, use the word “to” instead of an en dash, if space allows.

Read pages 99 to 150.

Hyphens

Use regular hyphens for all hyphenated words, and in phone numbers. See the B.C. Government Web Style Guide for more examples of hyphenated words.

250-888-6734, co-operate, re-sign

Period

When a period appears at the end of quotation, place it before closing quotation marks (except after a single letter enclosed by quotation marks).

The instructor said, “Please read the next section.”

A flaw in this multiple-choice quiz is that the correct answer is usually “c”.

Possessives

To form the possessive of singular nouns, include an s after an apostrophe. Exceptions include Jesus’, Moses’, and other (subjective) instances where the omission of the final s makes sense.

Burns’s poems, Ulysses’ wife

Quotation marks

Always use double quotation marks except for quotations within quotations, when single marks enclosed by double marks should be used.

The instructor said, “Please read the section titled ‘Punctuation.’”

For in-text references, use quotation marks for journal articles, short stories, short poems, and unpublished theses.

For individual instructions for placement of end punctuation with quotation marks, also check the period and semicolon and colon sections. Also look at the Quotations section.

Question mark/exclamation point inside quotations

Place question marks and exclamation marks inside the quotation if they are part of the quotation and outside if they are part of the main sentence.

The nurse approached her bedside and quietly asked, “How are you feeling today?”

The question mark is part of the quotation.

Did she say, “I want to come, too”?

The question mark is part of the main sentence.

“May I come too?” she asked.

The question mark is part of the main sentence.

“I want to come too!” he said.

The exclamation point is part of the main sentence.

Semicolon and colon

As per CP Style, semicolons are used to separate statements too closely related to stand as separate sentences or to separate phrases that contain commas.

"I never read a book before reviewing it; it prejudices a man so." —Sidney Smith

For plain language writing, it is preferable to rewrite the content to avoid semicolons.

When a semicolon or colon appears at the end of a quotation or parenthetical comment, place the semicolon after the closing quotation marks, parenthesis, or bracket.

He said, “Read the next two major tragedies for tomorrow”; in other words, we had to read Hamlet and Othello that night.

Study Hamlet and Othello (the next two major tragedies); be prepared to analyze the protagonists’ tragic flaws.

Normally use an initial lower case letter for the element introduced by a colon. Use a capital only if the element is a formal statement, a quotation, more than one sentence, or an item in a displayed list.

URLs

In print work, underline URLs (uniform resource locators, also known as web addresses). There is no need to include http:// or https:// in the display text, as modern browsers add this by default when typing out a URL. Do include other expressions such as ftp:// and always include the full address in the hyperlink for interactive or web documents.

For further information on estimating your future pension, refer to
mpp.pensionsbc.ca/get-a-pension-estimate

In print work, avoid breaking a URL at the end of a line. If you must break a URL, break the URL after a slash or equal sign.

Note: adding line breaks or spaces to a URL may cause live hyperlinks to break.

For further information on citing electronic sources using APA formatting,
consult the OWL at Purdue website, at owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/
resource/560/10/

For more details, check the B.C. Government Style Guide entry on using hyperlinks in web content.

Quotations

Block quotations

Generally use block quotation format for quoted matter of about eight lines or more. Indent the block quotation, and do not place it within quotation marks.

Poetry

Treat poetry of at least two lines as a block quotation.

For print products, when lines of poetry are too long for the column width, indent run-over lines.

Quotation marks

Within the body of the material, enclose “run-in quotations” within double quotation marks.

Siemens (2008) cites Conole, de Laat, Dillon, and Darby (2006, p.5) whose research indicates that students “...use learning technologies in surprisingly sophisticated ways for ‘finding and synthesizing information and integrating across multiple fields of data.’”

Use single quotation marks only to indicate a quotation that falls within a quotation.

The instructor said, “Please read the section titled ‘Punctuation.’”

For in-text references, use quotation marks for journal articles, short stories, short poems, and unpublished theses.

Wording

Ensure that quotations correspond exactly to their originals in wording, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.

Spacing

Degree signs

In reference to temperature, do not use a space between the degree sign and C or F.

100°C, 200°F

Initials

Insert a space between the initials of a proper name.

H. R. MacMillan Planetarium

Metric symbols

Insert a non-breaking space between numerals and metric symbols to ensure that they stay together as a visual unit.

2.5 cm, 54 g, 50 km/h

Vertical Lists

Lists may be run in to the text or set vertically (outline style). Short, simple lists are usually better run in, especially if the introduction and the items form a complete grammatical sentence. If your list is long or contains multiple levels, it should be set vertically. All items in a list must be constructed of parallel items—either all fragments, or all complete sentences. They should be introduced by a complete sentence, followed by a colon.

Always capitalize the first word of a list item. Don’t use punctuation at the end of listed items, even if they’re full sentences.

Write a brief explanation for each of the terms or names below:

Natural history
Plato
Natural selection
Homeostasis

If the items are numbered, a period follows the numeral and each item begins with a capital letter. Numbers should only be used when sequence is important.

Make sure your meeting is successful by following these steps:

Set up the room before the meeting starts
Greet each participant as they arrive
Introduce the items to be discussed

If items in a vertical list with no bullets or numbers run over a line, the second and subsequent lines use hanging indentation. In a numbered or bulleted list, runover lines are aligned with the first word following the numeral or bullet.

Appendix A: Style checklist

Please ensure that you are following the Open School BC Editorial Style Guide. If you need to make changes in response to this style checklist, you will generally be able to use your computer program’s “Replace” function.

Appendix B: Spelling checklist

Here is a guide to the OSBC preference for some frequently used words. Some of the spellings represent the Canadian Oxford Dictionary first choice, some do not.

The editor should develop a specific spelling checklist for long documents or a series of documents.

A

Aboriginal (consider as an equivalent to European, African, and so on)
Act (legislation)
acknowledgment (not acknowledgement)
addendum, addenda
adviser (not advisor)
affect (v., most often meaning “to influence”)
ageing (UK spelling), aging (US spelling, and used in CP Style)
air fare, airplane
all right (not alright)
am, pm (not a.m., p.m.)
among (not amongst)
analog (when referring to meters)
analyze
Anglophone
appendix, appendices
archeology
artifact
artwork, but art boards
audiotape, audiobook, but audio cassette
audio-visual materials (not A/V materials)
authorized materials (a specific category of learning resources), provincially authorized materials

B

barcode (n. and v.)
B.C. (the province)
behaviour, behavioural
benefit, benefited, benefiting
best before date
biased
bicultural, bilateral, bilingual
big house
birth rate
blackline masters
boldface type
budgeted, budgeting
bus, buses, busing
by-election, by-law, by-product

C

calibre
caliper
catalogue
centre
CD-ROM
chairperson
changeable
changeroom
checklist, but check mark
cheque
child care, but child-care centres
classmate, classroom, but class work
co-education, co-exist, co-author, co-worker
colour, colourful, colouring, but coloration, colorific
co-operation, co-operative, co-ordinate, co-ordinator
counsel, counselled
countertop
criterion, criteria
criterion-referenced evaluations
cross braces, but cross-bracing
cross-contamination
crosscut (v. and adj.)
cross-reference, cross-curricular, but cross section
cueing (to give a signal), see also queue
cut-out (n.)

D

data bank, data file, data processing, but database
daycare, but adult day care centres
decision making (n.), decision-making (adj.)
defence, but defensible
dependant (n.), dependent (adj.), dependence
dialogue
disk (for computers)
disc (record, compact disc)
dispatch (not despatch)
double insulated (hyphenated only when it appears before the noun: double-insulated saw, but the saw is double insulated)
draft (of men, money, documents), draught (of air, ale)
drop out (v.), but dropout (n.)
dying (cease to live)
dyeing (colour)

E

ebook (not e-book or eBook), but e-reader
economize
effect (as a noun, means “result”, less commonly used as a verb to mean “bring about or get done”)
e-learning (not eLearning or elearning)
email
encyclopedia
enrol, enrolment, but enrolled
ensure (make sure), insure (cover loss)
erratum, errata
ex officio
expel, expelled
extra-curricular

F

familiarize
fall (the season), (not Fall)
far-fetched
fast-food restaurant
favour, favourite
fax (short for facsimile transmission)
feedback
fetus
fibre
fibreglass
field-testing
filmmaker, filmstrip
first-hand (adv. or adj.)
First Nations
flash cards
flavour
focus, focusses, focussed, focussing (v.)
focus, focuses (n.)
foodborne
food-grade (adj.)
forever
forego (to go before or to relinquish)
format, formatted, formatting
formula, formulae
Francophone
fulfil, fulfilment, but fulfilled, fulfilling
fullness
full time, a full-time job, working full time
fundraising

G

galvanize
gambol, gambolled, gambolling (the movement), but gamble (the game)
gas, gases (n.), but gassed, gassing (v.)
generalize
glamour, but glamorous
godfather, godmother
goodbye
grades 11 and 12 (not grades 11/12)
gram (not gramme)
grandchild, grandmother
grey
ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI)
guardrail

H

hacksaw
hairnet
half-hour, but half an hour
halfway
handmade
handsaw
hands-on activities
handwashing
harass
harbour
hard drive (computer equipment)
hard hat
hardware
harmonize
headgear
health-care (adj.), health care (n.)
hearing-impaired students, but the hearing impaired
heatsink
higher-risk (adj.)
HIV/AIDS
homemade
homemaker, homemaking
home page (two words)
homework
honour, honourable, but honorary, honorific
hot holding
humour, humoured, but humorous, humorist
hypnotize
hypothesis (n.), hypotheses (pl.)
hypothesize (v.)

I

idealize
impact (n.) (Do not use “impact” as a verb when “affect” means the same thing.)
imperial (measure)
improvise
immovable
index, indices
Indigenous
Indo-Canadian
in-service (adj.)
initial, initialled, initialling
input (n.) (v.)
inquire, inquiry (not enquire, enquiry)
install, instalment
instil, instilled, instilling
interministry, interprovincial, interschool
Internet
intranet
Inuit
irreconcilable

J

jeopardize
jeweller, jewelry
jig saw
job site
judgment, judging

K

keyword
know-how
knowledgable

L

labelling
labour, labouring, but laborious
labour force, labour market
lawcourt, lawgiver, lawsuit
layout, layoff
learning-disabled students, but the learning disabled
left-handed (adj.)
legalize
libel, libelled, libellous
licence (n.), but license (v.)
life cycle, life jacket, but lifestyle, lifetime
lifelong
life-size (adj.)
likeable
litre (not liter)
liveable
lockout (n.), but lock out (v.)
loophole
lopsided
lower-risk (adj.)
lunch hour (for the break in the school day, not noonhour)

M

make-believe
makeshift
make-up (n.), but make up (v.)
malleable
manageable
manoeuvre, manoeuvred, manoeuvring
mark-down, mark-up (n.), but mark down, mark up (v.)
marketplace
marshal, marshalled, marshalling
marvellous
maximize
meagre
meanwhile (adv.)
measure, measurable
medieval
medium, media (as in communication)
medium, mediums (in spiritualism)
memorandum, memoranda
memorize
mesmerize
metal-cutting blade (referring to a blade that cuts metal, not necessarily a blade that is made of metal)
metalwork
meter (measuring device)
metre (unit of measure)
Métis
microcomputer, microelectronics, microtechnology
microorganism
midday, midnight, midsummer, midway, midwinter
middle age, but middle-aged (adj.)
midrail
mileage
milestone
minibus, minicomputer
minimize
mistakable
model, modelled, modelling
mother tongue
Montréal (with accent)
mould (v. and n.) (to shape, the fuzzy growth, the type of soil)
movable
multicultural, multinational, multiracial, but multi-year
multigrade
multi-layered
multimedia
multi-purpose
multi-strand
multi-view

N

nation-wide
needle-nose pliers
neighbour, neighbourhood
never-ending, never-failing
nevermore
nevertheless
newborn, newcomer
newton (the unit of measurement, l.c.)
newscaster, newsletter, newspaper, newsworthy
nightfall, nightgown
night school
non-aggression, non-conducting, non-magnetic, non-metal, non-resident, non-traditional, non-verbal
nonetheless
no one
northbound
northeast, northwest
notebook, notepaper, noteworthy
noticeable
notice-board
nowhere
nursery rhyme, nursery school

O

odour, odourless
offbeat, offhand, offset, offshoot, offspring, but off-centre, off-day, off-key, off-season
offence, but offensive
offstage
oncoming
one-sided
ongoing
online, offline
on/off switch
on-site, off-site
optimize
orthopedic
outdoors
out of date (predicate adj.), but out-of-date (attributive adj.)
outpatient, outwit, but out-talk
overact, overactive, overanxious, overconfident, overcrowd, overemphasize, overrate
overall

P

paging
panic, panicked, panicky
parallelled
paralyze
parameter
part-time (adj. or adv.)
pascal (the unit of measurement, l.c.)
pay phone
payoff (n.), but pay off (v.)
payroll
peaceable
pedagogy, pedagogical
pediatric
peer group, peer pressure
pen pal
perceive, perceivable
percent
perimeter
pH of (not pH level of)
phenomenon, phenomena
phoney
photocopy
pleasurable
plough (not plow)
poultry (is distinguished from &ldquo,meat&rdquo, for example, meat and poultry)
postcard, postmark, postscript, postdate
postdoctoral, postgraduate, postsecondary
post office
practice (n.), but practise (v.)
prearrange, preconceive, predetermine, preschool, but pre-elect, pre-eminent, pre-empt
précis
precut
premise
pre-set
pretense
preventive (not preventative)
pre-rinse
primeval
printout (n.), but print out (v.)
program (not programme)
problem solving (n.), but problem-solving (adj.)
propel, propelled
prophecy (n.), but prophesy (v.)
protester
provincially prescribed learning outcomes
psi (pounds per square inch)

Q

queue, queuing (people in line, not cue)
Quebec (official English name of the province as per federal government), Québec (B.C. government style)

R

racket (both the loud noise and sports racket)
recommended materials (a specific category of learning resources), provincially recommended learning resources
radioactive
rancour, but rancorous
Readers Theatre
readout (n.), but read out (v.)
ready-to-eat
realize
real-time (n. and adj.) (for computers)
recount (to narrate), but re-count (to count again)
re-edit, re-educate, re-elect, re-emerge, re-enforce, but reinstate
reflection
removable
repel, repelled
replaceable
reproducible
resource-based learning
resume (v.)
résumé (n.)
revel, revelled, reveller
revise
rigour, but rigorous
rival, rivalled
role play (n.), but role-play (v.)
rpm (no need to spell out)

S

saleable
sandpaper
sanitize
savory (n., the herb)
savour (v.), savoury (adj. appetizing)
scale ruler (not rule)
sceptic, sceptical
schoolbook, schoolboy, schoolgirl, schoolroom, schoolteacher, but school bus, school day, school-leaver
scrutinize
self-assessment, but peer assessment
self-conscious (all self- words are hyphenated), but unselfconscious
semi-annual, semi-official, but semicircle, semiconscious, semidetached, semifinal
serviceable
set-up (n.)
shareholder
sheath (n.), but sheathe (v.)
shelf life
short circuit (n.), but short-circuit (v.)
shy, shyer, shyest
signal, signalled, signalling
single-use (adj.)
sizeable
skilful
snowball, snowfall, snowflake, snowstorm, but snow-blind, snow-bound, snow-white
student (general term, preferred to child or learner)
socio-cultural, socio-economic, socio-linguistic, but sociological, sociology, sociopath
software
solid state circuits
solvable
sombre
sound track, sound waves
southbound
southeast, southwest
spacecraft, spaceship, spacesuit, but space vehicle, space walk
spatial
spearhead
specialty
specialize
sport (n.), sports (pl. n., adj.)
spotlight
springtime (not Springtime)
stakeholder
standstill
stepmother, stepdaughter, stepsister
still life, still lifes (a type of painting)
stockholder
stopoff, stopover (n.)
storable
storey (division of a building)
storybook, storyteller, storytelling
storyline, storyboard
straightedge
straightforward
stupor
stylize
subcommittee, subdivide, subheading, subsection, subtitle
summertime
superannuation, superhuman, superpower, supersensitive, but super-ego
supersede
surmise
surplus
swivel, swivelled

T

tape-record (v.) tape-recorder (n.), but tape recording (n.)
target, targeted
teacher-librarian
teamwork
teenage, teenager
teleprinter, teletype
televise
telex
test tube
textbook
theatre
three Rs
timbre (tone)
timeline
timetable
tire
title page
today, tomorrow, tonight
toll-free (adj. or adv.)
tonne, but metric ton
tool box
toward
traceable
trademark
trade name
tradespeople
tranquil, tranquillity, tranquillize
transatlantic, transcontinental
translator
travel, travelled, traveller
tremor
trolley
troubleshooting
T-square
tumour
turning point
turnout, turnover (n.)
turntable
two-sink
typeface, typescript, typesetting, typewriter

U

unchristian, but un-American, un-English
unco-operative, unco-ordinated (use a hyphen when two identical vowels are adjacent)
under way
underachieve, underdevelop, underestimate
unionize
unisex
unlicensed
unmanageable
unmistakable
unparalleled
unrivalled
unselfconscious
unserviceable
unshakeable
untraceable
update
upgrade
upper case (n. and predicate adj.), but upper-case (attributive adj.)
up-to-date (attributive adj.)
upward (adj.)
upwards (as in more than)
U.S. (United States)
usable
utilize

V

valour, but valorous
vandalize
vaporize, vaporization, vapour, but vaporous
versus, (abbreviation vs.)
vice-chair, vice-chairperson, vice-president
videotape, but video cassette, video game, video recorder, video clip
viewfinder
viewpoint
vigour, but vigorous
visor
visually impaired students, the visually impaired
visuals (n.)

W

wage earner
watercolour (the paint or type of painting)
web (do not capitalize unless formal World Wide Web)
weblink
web page
website
well-being, well-wisher
well-known, well-defined, well-balanced
westbound
wildlife
willful, willfully
winterize
withhold
woollen
word processing
workbench
workbook, workday, workload, workplace, worksheet, workshop, but work force, work site
workday
world view
World Wide Web
worldwide
worshipper
worthwhile
wrongdoing

X

X-ray

Y

yearlong (adj.)
year-round (adj. or adv.)

About this guide

This document has been adapted with permission from the Open Learning Agency Editorial Style Guide, 2000, 3rd edition.

Thanks are extended to the many other members of the Open School BC community who have contributed to the development of this guide.

Revised, April 2022

Open School BC
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Victoria, BC V8V 2P8
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.