Last draft

Criteria

Exemplary

Proficient

Intermediate

Emerging

Beginning

Criterion Score

Thesis

10 points

Provides a clear and developed thesis statement that presents the objective and focus for essay, revealing analytical stance.

9 points

Solid thesis statement that addresses most of the following: objective, focus, stance.

8 points

Thesis needs development to show connection between stance and essay’s focus.

7 points

Thesis statement only focuses on summary of story, not analysis.

0 points

Thesis statement is too broad or vaguely stated. Author has not clearly stated their position.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of Thesis,

/ 10

Development

10 points

Provides a thorough and detailed analysis that follows the thesis statement.

Fully discusses the connections between readings and presentation of ideas in the essay.

Meets or exceeds word count minimum of 750 words.

(Final draft is expected to be 1,000 words.)

9 points

Presents a solid analysis of a passage with analytical connections, but some could have been elaborated upon further.

Meets the minimum word requirement of 750 words.

8 points

Has a developing analysis, but connections between analysis and research in it could have been explored more.

Possibly relies too much on summary or goes off topic, in which the aims of analysis is not addressed.

Length is slightly below minimum requirement of 750 words.

7 points

Has a good start on analysis, but the direction shifts away from the objective.

The essay is too short and doesn’t explore analytical connections nearly enough.

0 points

The essay is focused on summary and/or response, not addressing the aims of analysis, regardless of meeting length requirement.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of Development,

/ 10

Structure

10 points

Excellent presentation of the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

Points flawlessly flow from one to the next. 

Strong use of transitional phrases to present a connected analytical thread throughout the essay.

9 points

Effective introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

Some points could have been organized better.

Makes use of transitional phrases between points.

8 points

Missing some structural elements or some aspects of the essay are disorganized.

Some revision could have made for a tighter flow.

Transitional phrases are there but needs some improvement.

7 points

Essay was hard to follow because of a lack of organization.

Essay elements are not clearly distinct from each other.

Transitional phrases are completely absent.

0 points

Essay completely lacks organization, affecting development and readability.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of Structure,

/ 10

Grammar and Style

5 points

Demonstrates an excellent observation of grammar and style.

Presents clear and correct writing, flawlessly polished.

Writing quality meets expectations of academic style and tone.

4 points

Writing is clear and polished, with very few grammatical or stylistic errors.

Most of the essay meets the expectations of academic style and tone.

3 points

Writing is clear and polished with some errors in grammar.

Attempts to include elements of academic style and tone, but writing also has conversational or colloquial elements.

2 points

Writing has significant errors and needs careful proofreading or other strategies to improve quality.

Elements of academic style and tone are absent.

0 points

Essay presents numerous grammatical and stylistic errors that affects readability.

Needs significant proofreading.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of Grammar and Style,

/ 5

MLA

5 points

Excellent observation of MLA elements in both document format and citations.

4 points

Strong observation of MLA elements in format and citation.

Some minor errors in formatting or citing.

3 points

Solid attempt at formatting document according to MLA guidelines.

Citations have some errors that shift away from an MLA approach.

2 points

Essay doesn’t follow MLA format consistently or completely.

Citations do not reflect MLA practice.

0 points

MLA format is mostly or completely absent from the essay.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of MLA,

/ 5

Research

10 points

Provides four excellent sources that are scholarly, derived from the Stafford Library.

9 points

Provides four good sources that are scholarly, derived from the Stafford Library.

Sources might not pertain to the topic as closely as needed.

8 points

Includes fewer than four sources from the Stafford library.

May include a second that is derived from other resources.

7 points

Includes one or two sources, but they might not be from the Stafford library.

The source’s credibility is in question.

0 points

Doesn’t provide sources or includes those that are not suitable for academic writing.

No submission or submission is plagiarized.

Score of Research,

/ 10

Files to submit

(0) file(s) to submit

After uploading, you must click Submit to complete the submission.

Comments

Paragraph