Sociology research paper

NAME _____________________________________

Unacceptable Below Expectations Meets Expectations Exceeds Expectations 0 1-2 3-4 5

Title No title is included.

Title does not describe what proposal is about, shows an opinion, is same as research question, or is otherwise inappropriate.

Title is succinct and describes what the proposal is about.

Title meets expectations and is innovative or clever.

2

Abstract No abstract is included. Abstract is too short or too long. Does not include the required elements.

Abtract is about 200 words and includes all three required elements: project’s purpose, what you will do in your project, and what you hope to gain from your project.

Abstract meets expectations, and is written in a compelling way, without grammatical or spelling errors.

3

Problem Statement No problem statement is included.

Problem statement is much too short or too long. Does not include the required elements.

Problem statement is about 2 pages long. It uses statistics, examples, news articles, or other ways to show importance of topic. Citations to the research literature are minimal. Problem is a social problem that can be addressed or understood better through research. Argument summarized in students' own words.

Problem statement meets expectations and is written in a clear and compelling way, without grammatical or spelling errors. Uses multiple sources of information well to make a convincing argument.

4

Literature Review No literature review is included.

Literature review is much too short or too long. It uses direct quotes from source material, does not include enough or the right kinds of sources. Is written in the style of annotated bibliography.

Literature review is about 3 pages long. It explains what research has been conducted on this topic and why your angle on the issue is warranted. Four or more published articles or published books are cited. (more is better). Wikipedia is not cited. Direct quotations are not used. Findings summarize in student's own words.

Literature review meets expectations and is written in a clear and compelling way, without grammatical or spelling errors. More than four sources are cited. Student organizes literature review by some topic area and not a study by study description.

4

Research Questions No research questions are included or they are not in question format.

Research questions are in question format. Section is much too long or too short. Little or no description is provided.

Research questions are in question format and section is 1-2 pages long. Includes explanatory information about why questions were selected and how they will add to the literature, why they will help to address the problem, and how they will help to inform policy or practice on the topic.

Research questions section meets expectations and also discusses operationalization of key concepts, is written in a clear and compelling way, without grammatical or spelling errors. Links back to problem statement and literature review.

4

Reference List and Citations No reference list is included.

Reference list citation format is haphazard or not all citations are listed.

All citations are included in reference list and citation format is not ASA.

All citations are included in reference list, citation format is ASA and there are in-text citations.

3

TOTAL SCORE

LETTER GRADE

LATE PAPER ADJUSTED LETTER GRADE (ONE LETTER GRADE OFF)

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