Paper Grading Rubric

POLISCI 208
Mass Media and American Politics

Introduction (25% Total, Up to 5 Each)

__ Is the introduction less than or equal to 15% of the papers total length?
__ Does the introduction frame the question as a problem? Does the student articulate a concrete,
concise claim as an answer to that problem?
__ Does the claim answer the question posed in the prompt?
__ Does the student provide reasons as support for his or her claim? Do these reasons mirror the
supporting arguments in the body of the paper?
__Does the student outline at the end of the introduction how the paper presents support and evidence
for the claim?

Body (50% Total, Up to 10 Each)

__ Does the second paragraph review literature and terms necessary for understanding the claim and
supporting arguments the student makes?
__ Does each paragraph have a topic sentence that clearly states both the particular argument the
paragraph advances as well as its relationship to the papers overall claim?
__ Does each paragraph mirror the outline in the introduction? Does each paragraph further the major
claim? Do any paragraphs appear to be filler?
__ Does the student offer sufficient evidence for each supporting argument? Is the evidence
appropriate? Does it prove what the student believes it proves? Is it reliable?
__ Does the student consider alternative claims to his or her own? Does the student respond adequately
to them? Does the conclusion restate the claim in a way that illustrates its broader importance? Does
the student end the paper by giving the reader a better understanding of the world?

Style (25%) (25% Total, Up to 5 Each)

__ Does the student cite sources using APA style?

__ Does the student offer a Works Cited in the APA style?

__ Does the student use concrete language, active voice, and concise sentences to argue his or her
claim?
__ Do any sentences or parts of sentences act as filler rather than as argumentation?
__ Does the student use terms efficiently, consistently, and in keeping with fellow scholars in the field
(except when explicitly departing from those scholars as part of the claim they wish to argue)?