Department of English
In the grading of outcomes-assessment essays, instructors follow the grading standards, criteria, and guidelines set forth by the College of Arts & Sciences, the English Department, and the World Literature Program. In the grading of outcomes-assessment final exams, instructors observe the distinctions defined in the program's document Grading of Essays and Other Written Work and fill out a grading sheet for each essay. The completed sheet is attached to the front of the essay and submitted to the World Literature director at the end of each semester.
CONTENT
Grade:_______
Does the essay have a clearly defined thesis statement? Is the essay developed around concepts and does the student support his/her argumentation with textual evidence? Is the essay original and does it go beyond class discussion? Does it evince the student's ability to use literary terminology and to synthesize the material covered during the semester? Does the student contextualize the discussion historically and is the student able to discuss issues across literary movements, cultures, and gender?
REASONING, ORGANIZATION, & DEVELOPMENT
Grade:_______
Is the essay coherently and consistently argued? Does the student have well developed paragraphs arguing one idea well substantiated with appropriate textual evidence? Is there consistency between the thesis statement and the conclusion? Does the student show evidence of classifying, identifying and arranging information in logical order? Do the paragraphs have logical connectors and do the controlling ideas of all paragraphs contribute to the proposed thesis? Does the student draw inferences and analyze quotations and connect them to the topic under discussion?
LANGUAGE, FORM, AND STYLE
Grade:_______
Is the essay written in clear, direct, lucid formal language and an unobtrusive, elegant style? Is the essay well written and does it evince mastery of writing mechanics and grammar? Is the essay formatted, written, and documented according to MLA or APA? Does the essay demonstrate command, understanding, and precise use of technical and literary terminology and concepts? Is the essay written in the appropriate style?
CRITICAL THINKING
Grade:_______
Does the student show evidence of analytical and problem solving skills? Does he/she draw reasonable inferences from the text read? Does he/she synthesize and integrate information and ideas into his/her argumentation of the thesis statement well? Does the student show evidence of creative, holistic, and independent thinking? Does the student discern facts from fiction? Does the student present an autonomous interpretation of the text(s) read or is it a mere rehashing of information accumulated during the semester? Does the student show knowledge of the texts and arrange this information in a causal manner so as to prove the thesis statement?
Overall grade____________
