____________________________ESSAY SCORING GUIDE

A Excellent D Problematic
 Complete heading  Missing Heading elements
 Creative title  Boring title
 Highlighting  Not highlighted
 Typed in 12 point font and double-spaced,  Illegible/difficult to read
stapled, with a cover sheet  Too many mechanical errors
 Intro paragraph is well-rounded with the (run-ons, fragments, spelling, contractions,
thesis and some background apostrophes, commas, verb-tense agreement,
 Topic sentences are good leads into the pronoun agreement)
paragraphs  Uses past tense instead of literary present
 Excellent concrete detail; correct and skillful tense
use of transitions and lead-ins; usually direct  Does not follow the format (ration, word
quotations counts, sentence layout)
 Insightful commentary  CD problems: weak CD, factual errors,
 Finds connections problems with MLA citation format, problems
 Organization is clear and logical with TLCD, no lead-in, weak lead-in
 Very few, if any, mechanical errors  CM problems: weak CM, not commentary,
 Powerful vocabulary mainly plot summary or restatement of CD, CM
 Excellent sentence variety doesn’t fit the CD, generic CM
 Repeats little/not at all  Chunk doesn’t fit TS (not coherent)
 TURNED IN EXACTLY ON TIME  Filler
B Good  Organization is unclear
 Simple vocabulary and word choice, odd word
 Intro paragraph is mostly just the thesis
choice, slang, wrong word, awkward
statement
 Little sentence variety
 Good concrete detail; correct use of
transitions and lead-ins  Repeats are a bigger problem than with the “C”
paper
 Good commentary, but less so than an “A”
 Uses Words to Avoid including: you, your,
 Organization is clear, but not as skillfully done
yours, would, should, could, may, might, I, me,
as “A” papers
we, our, my, very, really, thing in a literature
 Some mechanical errors may be present, more
paper
than “A” papers
 Missing pieces of the process, if a process paper
 Good vocabulary
 Above-average sentence variety
 Repeats little
C Adequate F Fails to Meet Standards
 Follows format (ratio, word counts, sentence  Turned in over 24 hours late
layout)  Not student’s original work
 Intro paragraph is just the thesis statement
 Acceptable CD; generic CD or good CD but no
lead-ins
 Obvious/superficial/irrelevant/ or generic
commentary
 Organization is present
 More mechanical errors than a “B” paper
 Average vocabulary or some odd word choices
 Limited sentence variety
 Repeats are a problem

Peer Edited by: _____________________ Student Name:____________________________