: You are to write a 1,400-word research paper (minimum) that adheres to the steps and guidance below.

Category

15 points

11 points

7 points

3 points

Points for section

Topics and research question

· You select a high-quality topic from the book.

· You develop a quality sociological research question.

· Your research question is short, clear, and to the point.

· Your research question is bolded centered and typed at the top of your paper.

· You develop a satisfactory research question.

· Your research question is not as clear or concise as possible

· You select a poor topic from the book

· You develop a minimally adequate research question

· Your research question is not written clearly and/or is confusing or awkward

· Your research question is stated but is not bolded and/or it is not at the top of the paper

· Your topic is not sociological and/or is not from our book

· You never state a clear or intentional research question

· Your research question is uninterpretable

The use of scholarly peer-reviewed journal articles

· You use a minimum of 4 journal articles

· All 4 of your journal articles are from peer-reviewed journals

· All 4 of your articles are from the Fisher College library databases

· All 4 of your articles are used and cited in the text of the paper

· All 4 of your articles are included in the reference page

· 1 of your articles is academic in nature but not peer-reviewed

· 1 of your articles was obtained from a source other than the Fisher College Library databases

· 1 of your articles is not cited in the text of the paper

· 2 of your sources are academic in nature but not peer-reviewed

· 2 of your sources were obtained from a source other than the Fisher College Library databases

· 2 of your sources were not cited in the text of the paper

· All but one of your articles cited in text are included in the reference page

· You use 3 or fewer journal articles

· 3 or more of your sources are academic in nature but not peer-reviewed

· 3 or more of your sources were obtained from a source other than the Fisher College Library databases

· 3 or more of your sources were not cited in the text of the paper

· All but two of your articles listed in the reference page are cited in text are

Points for this section X3

Quality of writing

· High-quality writing

· Few if any spelling mistakes per page

· Few if any grammar mistakes per page

· Proper sentence structure

· Proper paragraph structure and proper use of paraphs

· The paper is easy to read

· All points are clear

· Average quality of writing

· Several spelling mistakes per page

· Several grammar mistakes per page

· Some sentence structure issues

· Paragraphs are used regularly, weaknesses are present

· Some points need clarification

· Some parts of the paper are confusing

· Overall the main points are apparent

· Most of the paper was relatively easy to read

· Slightly below average quality of writing

· many spelling mistakes per page

· many grammar mistakes per page

· Sentence structure issues are fairly common

· Paragraphs are occasionally used

· Paragraph use is fairly ineffective

· Many points are hard to follow and need clarifying

· Parts of this paper are not very readable

· Below college-level writing is apparent.

· Numerous spelling mistakes per page

· Numerous grammar mistakes per page

· A total or significant lack of paragraph use

· Most points are hard to follow and need clarifying

· Much or most of this paper is not readable

Points for this section X2

APA and citations

· All direct quotes are cited in text correctly in APA

· All paraphrasing is cited correctly in APA

· The last page of the paper is an accurate reference age in APA that is nearly perfect

· The sources cited in the text matches the sources listed in the reference page and vice versa

· All articles in the APA reference page are correctly cited in the text of the paper

· All direct quotes are cited in APA however, some mistakes are made

· All paraphrasing is cited in APA, however, some mistakes are made.

· Your APA reference page has some mistakes, but it is effective

· All direct quotes are cited in text in APA, however, multiple/serious mistakes are made

· All paraphrasing is cited in APA, however, multiple/serious mistakes are made.

· One source cited in the text does not match the sources listed in the reference page and vice versa

· Your APA reference page has many mistakes but is generally comprehendible

· One or more direct quotes is not cited in the text

· If paraphrasing is not cited in the text

· If in-text citing is attempted but it is ineffective or if it does not resemble a reasonable attempt at APA

· Two or more sources cited in the text do not match the sources listed in the reference page and vice versa

Points for this section X2

Answering your research question

· Everything you write is clearly focused on answering your research question

· Your quotes clearly and directly relate to the answer to your research question

· You explain how your quotes specifically answer your research question

· Your paraphrasing clearly and directly relates to the answer to your research question

· You explain how your paraphrasing specifically answers your research question

· Your analytical voice is consistently present when answering your research question

· Most of what you write is clearly focused on answering your research question

· Your quotes generally answer your research question

· You provide a basic explanation of how your quotes answer your research question

· Your paraphrasing generally answers your research question

· You provide a basic explanation of how your paraphrasing answers your research question

· You introduce your analytical voice or rely on phrasing such as, “this answers my research question…”

· Some of what you write is and some of what you write is not clearly focused on answering your research question

· Some of our quotes answer your research question and some do not

· The explanation of how your quotes answer your research question is ineffective or not included

· The explanation of how your paraphrasing answer your research question is ineffective or not included

· Your analytical voice is weak

· Most of what you write does not effectively answer your research question

· Your quotes do not effectively answer your research question

· Your paraphrasing does not effectively answer your research questions

· You do not attempt an explanation of how your quotes answer your research question

· You do not attempt an explanation of how your paraphrasing answer your research question

· You do not attempt the use of your analytical voice

Points for this section X3

Formatting

· Proper paragraphs are used

· The same font is used throughout the entire paper

· A “traditional” font such as 12pt Times New Roman or 10pt Arial is used throughout the entire paper

· The paper is double-spaced

· One-inch margins are used on all sides

· Proper paragraphs are used

· The same font is used throughout the entire paper

· A professional looking but non-traditional font is used throughout the entire paper

· The paper is double-spaced

· One-inch margins are used on all sides

· Proper paragraphs are not used

· The same font is not used throughout the entire paper

· An irregular font is used throughout the paper

· The paper is not double-spaced

· All sides do not have one-inch margins

· The paper is one long paragraph or an undefined “blob” of words

· Multiple fonts are used throughout the paper

· A very irregular font is used throughout the paper.

· The entire paper is single spaced

· Effective margins are not set

Points for this section

Paper length

· 1,400 or more words

· 1,300 – 1,399 words

· 1,100 – 1,299 words

· 1,099 – 801 words

Points for this section