Evaluation Criteria English 1A

**If the paper is failing in any one area or does not address the assignment, it will not receive a passing grade.

Essay Grade: ___ ___ ___ ___ Overall Grade: ___ ___ ___ ___

INTRO: ___ ___ ___ ___ Areas that NEED WORK are checked; areas that are well-done are denoted with stars.

___ ___ ___ ___ Attracts reader/generates interest in the topic

___ ___ ___ ___ Gives the reader thorough information about the topic, even if this requires several ¶s

___ ___ ___ ___ Does not mention the paper, writer (you), or reader (“in this paper,” “when I was researching”)

___ ___ ___ ___ Effectively narrows the topic to one that can be well-developed in approximately 1500 words

___ ___ ___ ___ Smoothly transitions from the general intro to the thesis (naturally rather than suddenly)

___ ___ ___ ___ Has a clear, narrow, strong thesis with only one claim that is directed to a particular audience

BODY: ___ ___ ___ ___ Areas that NEED WORK are checked; areas that are well-done are denoted with stars.

___ ___ ___ ___ All main points relate back to the thesis

___ ___ ___ ___ All explanations/examples/outside sources/reflection support the main point

___ ___ ___ ___ Writer demonstrates audience-awareness (content is audience-specific; tone is audience-friendly)

___ ___ ___ ___ Writer maintains a consistent view (doesn’t change or demonstrate uncertainty about his/her claim)

___ ___ ___ ___ Each main point gets its own ¶(s)

___ ___ ___ ___ Main points with more than one idea are separated into subpoints (1 idea per ¶)

___ ___ ___ ___ Topic sentences effectively identify the point and connect it to the thesis

___ ___ ___ ___ Connections between ideas are clear (topic sentences; transitions)

___ ___ ___ ___ Ideas follow one another logically from ¶ to ¶ (cause and effect, chronologically)

___ ___ ___ ___ Ideas follow one another logically within ¶s

___ ___ ___ ___ Writer has enough main points to substantiate thesis

___ ___ ___ ___ Main points are fully developed (explanations, specific examples, source material, reflection)

___ ___ ___ ___ Support is vivid and specific rather than general and vague

CONCLUSION: ___ ___ ___ ___ Areas that NEED WORK are checked; well-done areas are denoted with stars.

___ ___ ___ ___ The conclusion is a well-developed ¶ that doesn’t simply restate the main points

___ ___ ___ ___ The conclusion leaves the reader thinking

___ ___ ___ ___ The conclusion may leave the reader with something to ponder or do

STYLE: ___ ___ ___ ___ Areas that NEED WORK are checked; areas that are well-done are denoted with stars.

___ ___ ___ ___ Original ideas/engaging topic: The paper has purpose and isn’t revisiting common ideas

___ ___ ___ ___ The paper has an academic tone/the writer has a unique, interesting writing style

___ ___ ___ ___ The paper is not repetitive

___ ___ ___ ___ The writer demonstrates critical thinking (logical; no fallacies; can identify appeals and fallacies)

___ ___ ___ ___ Writer makes use of a variety of sentence patterns

___ ___ ___ ___ The writer demonstrates creativity

MLA: ___ ___ ___ ___ Areas that NEED WORK are checked; areas that are well-done are denoted with stars.

___ ___ ___ ___ First use of a source introduces it (author’s full name &/or the entire title, credibility, and a lead in)

___ ___ ___ ___ All subsequent uses of a source include a lead-in & a correct parenthetical citation: 1^rst word on WC

___ ___ ___ ___ Punctuation is correct (ellipses, colons, periods, and quotation marks)

___ ___ ___ ___ Writer begins and ends each ¶ with his/her own thoughts

___ ___ ___ ___ Layout of Works Cited page correctly follows MLA documentation guidelines

___ ___ ___ ___ Individual citations on the Works Cited page follow MLA documentation guidelines

___ ___ ___ ___ All sources used are cited; all cited sources are used; sources are credible; writer has enough sources

GRAMMATICAL ACCURACY (Errors per page): A: 1-2 B: 3-4 C: 5 D: 6 F: 7+

Diagnostic: Paper One: Midterm: Paper Two: