Governor Perry

Writing

Characteristic

Performance Descriptions

Performance Level

Follows Directions

4= responds fully and appropriately to the assignment in timely fashion

3= responds reasonably well to assignment in timely fashion

2= responds acceptably to assignment in timely fashion

1= some significant failure to respond to assignment, or untimely

0= wholly fails to respond to assignment, and/or untimely

Thesis

4= easily identifiable, clear and concise, insightful, and appropriate for assignment

3= identifiable, clear, and appropriate

2= somewhat difficult to identify, unclear, and/or slightly inappropriate for assignment

1= very difficult to identify, unclear, and/or inappropriate for assignment

0= unidentifiably, unclear, and/or wholly inappropriate for assignment

Use of Evidence

4= appropriate source information (typically primary) used to support thesis and buttress all arguments made in essay, excellent integration of quoted/paraphrased material into writing.

3= appropriate source information used to support thesis and to buttress most arguments, good integration of sources into writing

2= sometimes weak use of source information (excessively secondary), inadequately supports thesis and/or sub-arguments, weak integration of quoted/paraphrased material into writing

1= very weak use of source information (excessively secondary), fails to support thesis and/or sub-arguments, very weak integration of material into writing

0= wholly failures to use sources appropriately

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

4= all ideas progress logically from an identifiable thesis, compelling justifications are offered to support thesis, counter-arguments are anticipated and addressed, appropriate connections are made to outside material

3= thesis is generally supported by logically compelling assertions and appropriate connections

2= insufficient support for some arguments, assertions are vague or lack focus, support offered is sometimes irrelevant, tangential or repetitive

1= lacks support for arguments, unfocused, uses irrelevant information to support thesis

0= wholly fails to related evidence to thesis statement

Organization

4= coherent and clear, all paragraphs support thesis statement, each paragraph supports its topic sentence, excellent transitions

3= mostly coherent, generally supports thesis, good transitions

2= often lacks coherence, mixed support for thesis, transitions often missing or weak

1= incoherent, lacks support for thesis, transitions weak and often missing

0= wholly incoherent, unsupportive of thesis and lacking in transitions

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

4= excellent command of language, proper use of grammar/writing conventions, few to no misspelled words, correct word choice, excellent variety and complexity of sentence structure, uses proper citation format

3= good command of language, generally proper use of grammar/writing conventions, minimal misspelled words, largely good word choice, some variety and complexity in sentence structure, generally uses proper citation format

2= generally proper use of grammar/writing conventions, but with simple sentences generally lacking variety/complexity in structure, acceptable citation format

1= weak use of language, poor grammar, and numerous mechanical errors undermine coherence, weak citation format

0= extremely weak use of language/poor grammar, and pervasive errors seriously undermine coherence, improper citation format

Grade and Additional Comments:

Follows Directions:

· responds fully and appropriately to the assignment in timely fashion

Thesis

· easily identifiable, clear and concise, insightful, and appropriate for assignment

Use of Evidence

· appropriate source information (typically primary) used to support thesis and buttress all arguments made in essay, excellent integration of quoted/paraphrased material into writing.

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

· all ideas progress logically from an identifiable thesis, compelling justifications are offered to support thesis, counter-arguments are anticipated and addressed, appropriate connections are made to outside material

Organization

· coherent and clear, all paragraphs support thesis statement, each paragraph supports its topic sentence, excellent transitions

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

· excellent command of language, proper use of grammar/writing conventions, few to no misspelled words, correct word choice, excellent variety and complexity of sentence structure, uses proper citation format

Follows Directions

· responds reasonably well to assignment in timely fashion

Thesis

· identifiable, clear, and appropriate

Use of Evidence

· appropriate source information used to support thesis and to buttress most arguments, good integration of sources into writing

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

· thesis is generally supported by logically compelling assertions and appropriate connections

Organization

· mostly coherent, generally supports thesis, good transitions

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

· good command of language, generally proper use of grammar/writing conventions, minimal misspelled words, largely good word choice, some variety and complexity in sentence structure, generally uses proper citation format

Follows Directions

· responds acceptably to assignment in a timely fashion

Thesis

· somewhat difficult to identify, unclear, and/or slightly inappropriate for assignment

Use of Evidence

· sometimes weak use of source information (excessively secondary), inadequately supports thesis and/or sub-arguments, weak integration of quoted/paraphrased material into writing

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

· insufficient support for some arguments, assertions are vague or lack focus, support offered is sometimes irrelevant, tangential or repetitive

Organization

· often lacks coherence, mixed support for thesis, transitions often missing or weak

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

· generally proper use of grammar/writing conventions, but with simple sentences generally lacking variety/complexity in structure, acceptable citation format

Follows Directions

· some significant failure to respond to assignment or untimely

Thesis

· very difficult to identify, unclear, and/or inappropriate for assignment

Use of Evidence

· very weak use of source information (excessively secondary), fails to support thesis and/or sub-arguments, very weak integration of material into writing

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

· lacks support for arguments, unfocused, uses irrelevant information to support thesis

Organization

· incoherent, lacks support for thesis, transitions weak and often missing

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

· weak use of language, poor grammar, and numerous mechanical errors undermine coherence, weak citation format

Follows Directions

· wholly fails to respond to assignment given, and/or untimely

Thesis

· unidentifiably, unclear, and/or wholly inappropriate for assignment

Use of Evidence

· wholly failures to use sources appropriately

Analysis, Logic and Argumentation

· wholly fails to related evidence to thesis statement

Organization

· wholly incoherent, unsupportive of thesis and lacking in transitions

Mechanics (Grammar, Spelling, Language Usage, Sentence Structure, Citation Format)

· extremely weak use of language/poor grammar, and pervasive errors seriously undermine coherence, improper citation format