writting religion

REL 2040: Great Books: The Bible and Western Culture

Fall 2013

Dr. Peter Bekins

Grading Rubric

The following analytic rubric should guide your writing:

1. Argument 40 pts total

Is there a clear thesis?

Does the essay stay on topic?

Are there relevant examples and supporting evidence?

2. Organization 30 pts total

Is there an obvious introduction and conclusion?

Are the paragraphs well-formed and correctly divided?

Are there clear transitions between paragraphs?

3. Language 30 pts total

Are sentences complete and properly punctuated?

Are there obvious spelling or grammatical mistakes?

Is the style appropriate for an academic essay?

An excellent essay presents a thoughtful, nuanced, well-supported argument. It shows evidence of high

order thinking such as self-reflection, critical evaluation of ideas, and anticipation of counter-arguments.

The structure is easy to follow with clear transitions and precise summary statements. There are no

misspelled words or grammatical mistakes, and each word or phrase is well-chosen.

An average paper has a good main idea but it has not yet been fully developed. The arguments are

supported with some evidence, but there are holes in the logic. Many ideas are simply stated with little

critical evaluation or analysis. The essay may wander off topic and pargraphs are too long or divided in

awkward places. There are a number of spelling or grammatical mistakes and some sentences may be

confusing.

A poor paper does not have a clear thesis and shows little evidence of original thought. It either lacks

supporting examples or the evidence cited is irrelevant. There is no obvious structure or organization.

Paragraphs consistently lack topic sentences and the flow-of-thought often wanders. Spelling and

grammar is sloppy and sentence structure is often confusing.