E201 Assignment

Criteria for Evaluating Papers Podufaly Bauer

CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING PAPERS

Responsiveness – 20% A paper should respond to the specific terms and task of the assignment and be written

appropriately for your target audience and purpose. Additionally, any revision of the paper

should demonstrate that you have considered your peers’ and instructor’s comments, as well as

the other grading criteria described below. A paper that fails to meet all the terms of the

assignment will not receive a passing grade, regardless of whatever other positive features it

might exhibit.

Purpose/Thesis – 20% A paper should have a clear purpose: what you, as a writer, are trying to “do” in your paper or

why you are writing (to inform, to entertain, to persuade, etc.); this purpose should align with the

specific terms and tasks of the assignment. Your paper should be organized around a clear

conceptual center or thesis—i.e., a main idea or point that demonstrates your reason for writing

and that is developed and supported in the rest of your paper.

Organization/Unity – 20% A well-organized paper develops logically around the thesis: each point builds on the one before

it and clearly relates to the thesis. The paper should include transitions within and between

paragraphs to let the reader know where the essay is going and how the parts of the paper are

connected. Appropriate emphasis should be placed on each part of the paper so that central ideas

receive more attention and minor ones receive less. A unified paper excludes padding,

digressions, and anything else that is not relevant to the paper’s thesis/purpose. Every paragraph

should have a purpose and clearly relate to and support the paper’s thesis; likewise, every

sentence should help construct the meaning or point of a paragraph. Most body paragraphs will

need to begin with a clear, well-focused topic sentence that indicates to readers what the

paragraph is about.

Support/Development – 20% A well-developed paper effectively supports the thesis and is thorough enough to satisfy a

skeptical reader. Sufficient evidence should be provided to support the points being made, and

the evidence should be chosen and explained in a way that demonstrates the author’s recognition

of the intended audience, purpose, and thesis. Explanations should be clear and appropriately

detailed. Support/development also means that the author anticipates and addresses potential

questions, objections, or counterpoints that the intended audience might raise.

Presentation – 20% Writing with authority requires effective presentation and style. A paper that includes misspelled

words, punctuation or grammatical errors, unclear sentences, inappropriate diction, and incorrect

citations will do little to give the reader confidence in you or your work. Presentation covers

Standard Written English conventions: grammar, usage, punctuation, and spelling; it also covers

style, citation, and formatting conventions.