reflection

Excellent

Good

Needs Improvement

Poor

F

Overall Impression

Author directly addresses main question and adds new insight to the subject not provided in lectures, readings, or class discussions. The author has integrated much of the knowledge presented in class. He/She is able to synthesize this knowledge in new ways and relate it to a personal service experience.

Author competently addresses main question but does not add much new insight into the subject. That said, it is clear that the author has learned a great deal in class and is able to communicate this knowledge in the context of the service reflection assignment.

Author attempts to address main question but fails. The author has retained some information from the course but does not fully understand its meaning or context and cannot clearly convey it to others in the context of the service reflection assignment.

Essay does NOT address main question and it is obvious that author has not retained any information from the course.

P

L

A

G

I

A

R

I

S

M

Argument

Essay contains a clear argument or point of focus —i.e., lets the reader know exactly what the author is trying to communicate as relates to service operations.

An argument or point of focus is present, but reader must reconstruct it from the narrative provided to connect it to service operations.

Author attempts, but fails, to make an argument connecting the service reflection to service operations.

No attempt is made to articulate an argument or connect the content to service operations.

Evidence

Provides compelling and accurate evidence that convinces reader to accept the interpretation of the service reflection. The importance/relevance of all pieces of evidence is clearly stated. There are no gaps in reasoning—i.e., the reader does not need to assume anything or do additional research to understand the content.

Provides necessary evidence to convince reader of most aspects of the service reflection but not all. The importance/ relevance of some evidence presented may not be totally clear. Reader must make a few mental leaps or do some additional research to fully accept all the content..

Not enough evidence is provided to support author’s discussion of the service reflection, or evidence is incomplete, incorrect, or oversimplified. Information from lectures and readings is not effectively used.

Either no evidence is provided, or there are numerous factual mistakes, omissions or oversimplifications. There is little or no mention of information from lectures and readings.

Excellent

Good

Needs Improvement

Poor

F

Organization

Reflection references all the criteria outlined by the professor. Introduction lays out main argument and gives an outline of what the reader can expect in the essay. The conclusion brings everything together, acknowledges any potential unknown aspects of the service reflection and is complete.

Reflection contains an intro, main body, and conclusion. The introduction lays out the main argument but gives the reader little idea of what to expect in the essay. The conclusion nicely summarizes the main argument and evidence but does not move beyond what has already been presented in the paper.

Reflection contains an intro, main body, and conclusion. The introduction gives the reader an idea of what to expect in the paper but does not effectively lay out the service experience. It may reference some of the criteria provided but is never fully explained. The conclusion does little more than restate the problematic introduction.

Essay has no clear organizational pattern.

Clarity and Style

All sentences are grammatically correct and clearly written. No words are misused or unnecessarily fancy. Technical terms are always explained. All information is accurate and up-to-date. Paper has been spell-checked AND proofread (ideally by you and somebody else) and contains no errors.

All sentences are grammatically correct and clearly written. An occasional word is misused or unnecessarily fancy. Technical terms are usually, but not always, explained. All information is accurate and up-to-date. Paper has been spell-checked AND proofread, and contains no more than a few minor errors, which do not adversely affect the reader’s ability to understand the essay.

A few sentences are grammatically incorrect or not clearly written. Several words are misused. Technical terms are rarely explained. Not all information is accurate and up-to-date. Paper has been spell-checked AND proofread but still contains several errors. Reader’s ability to understand essay may be compromised by these errors.

Paper is full of grammatical errors and bad writing. Several words are misused. Technical terms are rarely explained. Not all information is accurate and up-to-date. Paper has not been spell-checked or proofread, and contains numerous errors. Reader has a difficult time understanding essay because of errors.