Essay Assessment (Advanced)

Student Name_____________________________ Form of Assessment:     Self     Peer     Instructor       Peer Responder        Name______________ 

Indicator

1—Beginning

2—Developing

3—Skilled

4--Exemplary

Score

Thesis

Does not appear to have a thesis

Thesis is clearly stated but may not be in an appropriate place in the essay.  Thesis has one or two of the thesis characteristics (narrow, specific, worthwhile, arguable)

Thesis is clearly stated in an appropriate place  in the essay and has at least two thesis characteristics (narrow, specific, worthwhile, arguable)

Thesis is clearly stated in an appropriate place in the essay and is narrow, specific, worthwhile, and arguable

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Unity

None or few of the body paragraphs relate to a clearly established main idea (thesis)

Some of the body paragraphs relate to a clearly established main idea (thesis) while other paragraphs are unrelated

Many but not all of the body paragraphs relate to a clearly established main idea (thesis)

All of the body paragraphs relate to a clearly established main idea (thesis)

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Development

Development in the body paragraphs does not rely on specific detail, relevant examples, or valid evidence

Some of the body paragraphs rely on specific detail, relevant examples, and valid evidence

Many but not all of the body paragraphs rely on specific detail, relevant examples, and valid evidence

Development in every body paragraph relies on specific detail, relevant examples, and valid evidence

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Organization

There is no logical organization and transitions are not used

A portion of the essay is logically organized and there is some use of transitions though they may not be effective

The essay is logically organized though there may be some gaps in the overall organization; transitions are used frequently but not always effectively

The entire essay is logically organized and makes effective use of transitions

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Title and Opening

The essay does not have a title, does not clearly establish an opening and does  not prepare the reader for the content of the essay

The essay has a basic title, establishes an opening and provides some minimal information to prepare the reader for the content of the essay

The essay has an effective title, the opening uses an attention-catching technique and provides most of the needed information to prepare the reader for the content of the essay

The title and opening very effectively capture the reader’s attention and very effectively prepare the reader for the content of the essay

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Closing

The essay does not have a clear closing and/or raises new ideas in the closing

The closing of the essay may not clearly link back to the thesis, but does give a general feeling of closure to the essay’s ideas; a related but new idea might be introduced

The closing of the essay makes a general link to the thesis, gives a very general feeling of completion of the essay’s ideas, and does not introduce any new ideas

The closing of the essay very effectively links to the thesis, completes the ideas of the essay, and does not introduce any new ideas

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Grammar, Mechanics, Spelling

There are numerous mistakes with grammar, mechanics, and spelling which interfere with the essay’s meaning and overall readability

There are some major mistakes with grammar, mechanics, and spelling and some of those mistakes may interfere with clear meaning and overall readability

There are some mistakes with grammar, mechanics, and spelling but none which interfere with clear meaning and overall readability

There are few or no mistakes with grammar, mechanics, and spelling

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Audience Awareness

The essay does not address audience questions or concerns, does not use language appropriate to the audience, and does not reflect careful proofreading

The essay leaves audience with only a few questions, may use some language not appropriate to the audience, and has some obvious uncorrected proofreading errors

The essay addresses audience questions and concerns, uses language appropriate to the audience, and contains few uncorrected proofreading errors

The essay leaves the audience feeling informed and satisfied, uses appropriate and sophisticated language, and has no uncorrected proofreading errors

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Source Use:

Relevance

The relevance of the source to the student discussion is not clearly explained or evident

The relevance of the source to the student discussion is minimally explained

The relevance of the source to the student discussion is well-explained and clear connections are made

The source is used in a way that it’s clearly relevant; connections are fully explained and help illuminate the student discussion

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Source Use:

Correctness

Presentation and documentation of source, summaries, and quotations is incomplete and  contains many errors

Presentation and documentation of source, summaries, and quotations may not be complete and contains some errors

Presentation and documentation of source, summaries, and quotations is largely complete and may have some minimal errors

Presentation and documentation of source, summaries, and quotations is complete and correct

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Polished Paper Grade__________________

From Gail Robinson's English 098 Essay Assessment document