200 Total Score Name Section

______200 Total Score Name Section

Research Project Rubric

_____/25 R ESEARCH P ROCESS AND MLA F ORMATTING The form and presentation of the text adheres to the guidelines of the Modern Language Association. The writer demonstrates an understanding of research writing process and conventions.

_____/5 Heading and page numbers are located and spaced properly □ Cover page heading information is improperly formatted.

_____/5 Title is specific and indicates the content/direction of the paper.

_____/5 Works Cited is arranged according to MLA guidelines. □ Works Cited is not alphabetically arranged □ Entries missing required information

_____/10 Paper adheres to MLA guidelines. Ex. Spacing

_____/60 D EVELOPMENT CONTENT: The paper is clear and focused. It holds the reader’s attention. Relevant anecdotes and details enrich the central theme.

_____/5 Materials reflect appropriate quality and quantity of sources. _____/5 Writing demonstrates writer’s knowledge, perceptions, and understanding of researched material. _____/5 Information is based on investigation of a topic and goes beyond common knowledge. _____/5 Details provide the reader with important information going beyond obvious or predictable claims. _____/5 Accurate details support the main ideas. _____/5 Writing demonstrates selection of significant materials to show support of claims. _____/10 Common Content Problems: □ Topic is too broad for a short paper. □ Paper tries to cover too many issues; no focused, reasoned argument is developed. □ Too much dot-com material. Make use of more quality, scholarly information. □ Sources are not used effectively. □ Sources are not developed beyond a superficial level. □ Content is primarily information that falls under a general umbrella of the topic. □ Sources tend to be repetitive of fact-based information.

ORGANIZATION: Organization enhances and showcases the central theme or idea of the paper. The order, structure, or presentation of information is compelling and moves the reader through the text.

_____/5 Thesis statement (introduction) has a clear focus that reflects the paper’s purpose, content, and order. It draws the reader into the paper.

_____/10 Pacing is well controlled: the writer knows when to slow down and elaborate and when to pick up the pace and move on. □ Paper is very choppy and hard to follow □ Paper is repetitive, too many paragraphs contain similar information _____/5 A satisfying conclusion leaves the reader with a sense of closure and resolution. Common Organization Problems: □ Little evidence of organization is present. Write as if the topic is important. □ Content of paragraphs show two or three topics, but no unifying statement or transition to show how they relate. Makes paper seem choppy and disorganized. □ Similar ideas need to be grouped, rather than repeated in separate sections. _____/30 R ESEARCH W RITING S KILLS Text reflects an academic / research rhetorical situation.

_____/5 Writer uses sources to support points. _____/5 Writer uses a variety of sources without an over-reliance on one source. _____/5 Text demonstrates synthesis of writer’s ideas with documented sources. _____/5 Paraphrased ideas include appropriate attribution and documentation. _____/10 Documentation is clearly linked to Works Cited and Documentation is accurate. Common Writing Skill Problems: □ Quotes are not anchored, but stand alone as unincorporated sentences. □ Statistics should always be documented. □ Documentation is attempted, but is not consistent throughout the paper. □ Documentation is incorrectly formatted; making is difficult or impossible to check sources for accuracy. □ Documentation is insufficient to check sources for accuracy. □ Significant portions of text are word-for-word from sources without quotation marks, which is plagiarism, even with a provided citation. □ Lack of clear/skillful documentation makes it clear writer borrowed too heavily from sources without indicating writer did so. □ Writer provides little or no synthesis of multiple sources within paragraphs. □ Synthesis occurs at paper level only, indicative of cutting and pasting research together. _____/20 S TYLE (Paragraph and Sentence Structure)

WORD CHOICE: Words convey the intended message in a precise, interesting, and natural way. The words are powerful and engaging.

_____/10 Words should be specific and accurate. It should be easy to understand just what the writer means.

SENTENCE FLUENCY: Writing has an easy flow, rhythm, and cadence. Sentences are well built with strong and varied structure that invites expressive oral reading.

_____/5 Sentences are constructed in a way that underscores and enhances meaning. _____/5 Writing had cadence; the writer has thought about sound of words, as well as meaning. Common Style Problems: □ Writer sounds too much like sources; material has not been assimilated into writer’s voice. □ Writer lapses occasionally into generic word choice. □ Writer does not maintain a “scholarly” authoritative tone. □ Writer does not demonstrate familiarity with vocabulary of topic or academic discourse. □ Writer has not engaged in sufficient revision to produce sophisticated sentence structures appropriate to academic discourse.

_____/30 C ONVENTIONS The writer demonstrates a good grasp of standard writing conventions (spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar, usage) and uses conventions effectively to enhance readability. Errors tend to be so few that just minor touch-ups would make this piece ready for publication.

_____/10 Spelling and punctuation □ Spelling is generally correct. □ No contractions. □ Numbers are correctly used. □ Homophones are in correct form □ Plurals and possessives are used correctly. □ Sentence punctuations are accurate.

_____/5 Capitalization is consistent and uppercases all first words, initials, proper names and adjectives, and follows formal title rules. _____/5 Fragments and/or run-ons are not used. _____/5 Pronouns are not ambiguous and personal pronouns are avoided. _____/5 Verb tense is consistent.

STRONG A: Impressive This was an original and complex topic, which you’ve handled well. You demonstrate good time 185-200 = A management in class and you demonstrate a good understanding of research writing. You will probably not have any difficulty meeting the demands of a college writing program. 171-184 = B 155-170 = C STILL AN A: Good Basics 139-154 = D This is a solid first paper. You managed time well and demonstrated an understanding of attribution, documentation, and synthesis. If you re-visit this topic in college, you should rework the thesis and add depth to your content. You may also have some minor mechanical errors that take away from the ethos as an expert. You will probably have no difficulty adjusting to college writing assignments.

LOWER A; SOLID B: Don’t Be Disappointed You demonstrate good time management and worked well independently, both of which are important skills for college. You did many or most things well in this project. You demonstrated understanding of attribution, documentation, and synthesis. You may need to spend more time in the initial stages of researching in order to better focus your argument, develop your sources more in depth, and allow more time for revision in order to create the voice for academic discourse. You will probably adjust well to college writing assignments.

MID-RANGE B-C-D: See individual problem boxes in each section of the rubric to focus on the specific problems you had in this paper. Re-analyze your time management and organizational skills. If you invest the needed time and organization at each of the various stages in the research writing process you will probably adjust to college writing.

LOW D / FAILING PAPERS: See individual problem boxes in each section of the rubric to focus on the specific problems you had in this paper. You have most likely not met the requirements of the paper or not provided me the means to evaluate your paper. This does not mean you are not able to succeed in a college writing scenario. This experience should teach you to make better time management choices in the future, and write a draft early enough so you can conference with your instructor. You need to allow enough time for the instructor to make suggestions that you will be able to use. Don’t be ashamed or reluctant to ask for help. The reason help exists is because a number of people have trouble getting ideas from their brains into clear college-level prose. You are not alone! Everyone needs help at some point, and each of us must take the personal responsibility for getting help in a timely manner. With the use of these services, good planning, time management, and organization, you should adapt to college writing in time.

_____/35 Paper R EQUIRED P IECES Assigned Check point dates) _____/5 Cited materials (hard copies of sources) _____/5 Note Cards _____/5 Rough draft of reference page _____/5 Rough draft of interlinear (in text) Citation page _____/15 3 copies of peer edited rough draft (5 pts each)

****A scaled percentage based on paper length determined by the teacher will be deducted if assignment length is not met.