Persuasive Letter

ENG 101 Rubric: Persuasive Letter

Points

0-1

Points

2

Points

3

Points

4

Points

5

Introduction  &  Thesis / Claim 20%

Define the problem/purpose for writing

Consideration of  audience : letter or otherwise intended  audience .

thesis / claim Statement

Limited introductory paragraph that accomplishes none of the following: effectively hooks the  reader , clearly defines a problematic behavior or belief, offers necessary background and contextual information, shows excellent awareness of the  audience , and delivers a strong  thesis / claim statement .

An undeveloped introductory paragraph that accomplishes few of the following:  effectively hooks the  reader , clearly defines a problematic behavior or belief, offers necessary background and contextual information, shows excellent awareness of the  audience , and delivers a strong  thesis / claim statement .

Moderately-developed introductory paragraph that accomplishes some of the following: effectively hooks the  reader , clearly defines a problematic behavior or belief, offers necessary background and contextual information, shows excellent awareness of the  audience , and delivers a strong  thesis / claim statement .

Well-developed introductory paragraph that accomplishes all but one of the following: effectively hooks the  reader , clearly defines a problematic behavior or belief, offers necessary background and contextual information, shows excellent awareness of the  audience , and delivers a strong  thesis / claim statement .

Exemplary introductory paragraph that accomplishes each of the following: effectively hooks the  reader , clearly defines a problematic behavior or belief, offers necessary background and contextual information, shows excellent awareness of the  audience , and delivers a strong  thesis / claim statement .

Main Body & Points of Support 20%

Body Paragraphs

Coherence/ Organization

Less than three main points, with poor or no development of ideas.  Transitional  phrases are not used or used ineffectively.  Organization  greatly hinders the argument.

Less than three main points, with poor development of ideas. Main points may be similar and or repetitious.  Transitional  phrases are not used or used ineffectively. The  organization  of the ideas deters from the writer’s point.

Three or more main points are discernible, but all three lack development. Main points are similar and/or repetitious.  Transitional  phrases are used, but require further attention. The essay is lacking a thoughtful  organization  of the main points.

Three or more main points are present but may lack detail and development in one or two.  Transitional  phrases are used somewhat effectively.  A thoughtful  organization  of the main points is evident.

Three or more main points are well-developed with supporting details.  Transitional  phrases are used effectively.  The  organization  of the main points enhances the essay.

Conclusion /Closing 20%

Summary  of main points of argument/essay Restatement of  thesis / claim .

Conclusion  is either severely limited or missing. The point of the essay is not clearly noted in the  conclusion . The  conclusion  dramatically undermines the argument.

Conclusion  is apparent but does not adequately  summarize  the main points. The argument  is weakened through the inadequacy of the  conclusion .

An ineffective  conclusion  that summarizes main topics, but is  repetitive –lacking depth and possibly deterring from the overall argument. 

An effective  conclusion  that revisits the main topics.  Some concluding ideas may lack strength or development.  Conclusion  may not enhance the argument.

An exemplary  conclusion  that revisits the  thesis / claim  and major  supporting points  without repeating previous sentences.

The  conclusion  clearly enhances the writer’s persuasive efforts by provoking the  reader  to think or feel after they have finished reading. 

Language  &  Style 13.4%

Sentence Structure  ( Grammar )

Word Choice /Vocabulary (redundancy,  repetition , awkwardness)

The writer has given very little or no apparent consideration to  language  and  style . Word choice is sloppy and/or incorrect.

The writer’s use of  language  and  style  diminishes the nature and strength of the essay. Writer’s  language / style  choices make the essay less cohesive and/or difficult to understand.

The writer’s use of  language  and  style , at times, deters from the overall argument. The writer’s  word choice  and  style  sometimes detracts from the overall message.

The writer’s use of  language  and  style  helps convey the author’s point(s). The writer almost always uses  language  and  style  as a tool to enhance the argument.

The writer’s use of  language  and  style  accentuates the nature of the essay. Writer wields  language  and  style  as a tool to enhance the argument.

Punctuation & Capitalization 13.3%

Comma  errors,  comma  splices,  apostrophe  errors, capitalization errors,  semicolon  errors,  colon  errors, typos/misspellings

Contains more than 6 different punctuation/capitalization errors.

The identical or similar errors may be repeated throughout. 

The errors help to significantly deter from the writer’s overall argument.

Contains many (more than 4)  different punctuation/capitalization errors. The identical or similar errors are repeated throughout.

The errors deter from the writer’s overall argument.

Contains more than 3 different punctuation/capitalization errors. The identical or similar errors may be repeated throughout. At times, the errors deter from the writer’s overall argument.

Contains 1-2 types of punctuation/capitalization errors, which may be repeated throughout the essay. The errors do not deter from the writer’s overall argument, but they serve as a distraction.

Contains either no punctuation/capitalization errors, or no more than 2 different errors with no  repetition , and/or the errors do not deter from the writer’s argument.

Attention to Directions/ Format of Essay using  MLA

13.3%

Heading

Original Title

1” Margins

Double-Spaced

Thesis / claim  or main point is underlined.

Minimum word count: 750 words

Doesn’t meet formatting and/or word count requirements, and as a result, the writing  is difficult to read or unreadable.

Meets very few formatting requirements, and those missing deter from the readability of the writing.

Meets some formatting requirements: the lack of appropriate formatting may lead to a lack of readability or to a distraction w