In papers, reports, and writing assignments written out of class, students should attend to the following five evaluation criteria

– Overall use of the assignment: Address the assignment completely and adhere to the assignment purpose. Include all requested features. Provide breadth and depth appropriate to the assignment and to graduate-level work.

 

– Research and examples: Conduct good research and/or review of materials. Read and

review course materials related to the assignment. Make sure that any library/literature research and any field research assigned is suitably extensive and intensive and that the fruits of these research efforts are well represented in the paper in terms both of quality and quantity. Include examples to illustrate points.

 

– Analysis: Be analytical. Where appropriate, integrate course materials (“course materials” encompasses lectures and discussions in addition to readings) into the discussion of topics and into the seeking and critiquing of conclusions. Include judgments and reflections from the viewpoint of the student, with adequate illumination and justification to support those observations.

 

– Presentation: Adhere to all specifications, including those related to page setup and layout, referencing and citation form, and documentation of field work such as interviews and observations. Produce a paper that is clean and well presented in appearance.

 

– Writing: Write at an advanced level appropriate to graduate-level college course. Sentences and paragraphs should be coherently connected. Spelling, organization, and punctuation should be good, particularly in written work that is executed out of class. Expression should be clear. Superior work is compelling as well as correct.

 

On in-class or monitored writing (e.g., test and quiz short-answer responses), evaluations emphasize:

– adherence to the assigned question or request;

– correctness and completeness of the response; and

– quality of the writing.