Rubric for Final Paper



Criterion

4

A-level qualities
(90–100)

3

B-level qualities
(80–89)

2

C-level qualities
(70–79)

1

F-level qualities
(below 70)



Score
Purpose Introduces and presents paper effectively and clearly; purpose is readily apparent to the reader Introduces and presents paper adequately; purpose is clear throughout the paper Introduces and presents paper somewhat effectively; writing has a purpose but may sometimes digress from it Introduces and presents paper poorly; purpose is generally unclear  
Development and content Develops paper as assigned covering all of the stated questions thoroughly in a coherent narrative; critiques Wood's ideas with great insight and shows a thoughtful, in-depth analysis of the Wood volume Develops paper as assigned covering all of the questions; offers a thoughtful critique of Wood's ideas and an adequate basic analysis of the Wood volume Does not fully develop paper as assigned, may fail address all questions or may do so in a disjointed or unsynthesized manner; analysis of the Wood volume is basic or general Paper is undeveloped and completely ignores or misunderstands course concepts or the Wood volume; paper does not relate to the assignment; analysis of the Wood volume is vague or there is no evidence that the writer has read it  
Makes appropriate and powerful connections with the readings in the course and effectively introduces more than one source of outside research Makes appropriate connections with the readings in the course and effectively introduces at least one source of outside research Makes somewhat vague connections with the readings in the course; introduces no sources of outside research or uses them incorrectly or ineffectively Makes little or no connection with the readings in the course and makes no attempt to bring in outside areas of research  
Provides a strong, balanced, and critical discussion of course concepts, effectively moving between these concepts and the Wood volume; connections are insightful Provides an effective discussion of course concepts, making connections between these concepts and the Wood volume Provides some discussion of course concepts, though the discussion may be vague and there may be little connection between the concepts and the Wood volume Does not include any coherent discussion of cousre concepts and reveals lack of understanding; comments are general or erroneous  
Documentation and support Ideas are supported effectively and the paper uses legitimate sources that are clearly attributed Ideas are generally supported and paper includes legitimate sources; attribution is mainly clear Although attribution is present, some sources included in the paper may be questionable; some statements are unsubstantiated and the source of some ideas is unclear Attribution is missing, or sources given are poorly chosen, or sources have not been used  
Organization Arranges ideas clearly and logically to support the purpose or argument; ideas flow smoothly and are effectively linked; reader can follow the line of reasoning Arranges ideas adequately to support the purpose or argument; links between ideas are generally clear; reader can follow the line of reasoning for the most part Arranges ideas adequately, in general, although ideas sometimes fail to make sense together; reader remains fairly clear about what writer intends Arranges ideas illogically; ideas frequently fail to make sense together; reader cannot identify a line of reasoning and becomes frustrated or loses interest  
Writing mechanics Writing demonstrates a sophisticated clarity, conciseness, and correctness Writing is accomplished in terms of clarity and conciseness and contains only a few errors Writing lacks clarity or conciseness and contains numerous errors Writing is unfocused, rambling, or contains serious errors  
APA format Uses APA format accurately and consistently Uses APA format with minor violations Reflects incomplete knowledge of APA format Does not use APA format  

Total:

  

Note: Criteria are evaluated on a 4-3-2-1-0 basis. Total rubric points are converted first to a letter grade and then to a numerical equivalent based on a 0–100 scale: 30–32 = A (93–100); 29 = A– (90–92); 28 = B+ (88–89); 23–27 = B (83–87); 22 = B– (80–82); 21 = C+ (78–79); 15–20 = C (73–77); 14 = C– (70–72); 7–13 = D (60–69); 0–6 = F (below 60).