Rubric – Freshman English
100 Essays are especially sophisticated in their argument, thorough in their development, or particularly impressive in their control of language. Essays in this range are completely free of mechanical, content, or spelling errors.
95 Effective Essays effectively defend, challenge, or qualify the writing prompt. The evidence and explanations used are appropriate and convincing. The prose demonstrates a consistent ability to control a wide range of the elements of effective writing and is essentially flawless.
90 Essays provide a more complete explanation, more thorough development, or a more mature prose style. The frequent citations are properly formatted. Occasional errors that do not detract from the quality of the essay are acceptable.
85 Adequate Essays adequately defend, challenge, or qualify the writing prompt. The evidence and explanations used are appropriate and sufficient. The writer does cite the text, and the format for citation is correct, but not as frequently or appropriately as an “A” paper. The writing may contain lapses in diction or syntax, but generally the prose is clear.
80 Essays defend, challenge, or qualify the writing prompt. The evidence or explanations used may be uneven, inconsistent, or limited. The writing may contain lapses in diction or syntax, but it usually conveys the student’s ideas. Alternately, the essay may be excellent, but there is little or no documentation of references to the text.
75 Inadequate Essays inadequately defend, challenge, or qualify the writing prompt. The evidence, citation or explanations used may be inappropriate, insufficient, or less convincing. The prose generally conveys the student’s ideas but may be less consistent in controlling the elements of effective writing. The paper displays frequent mistakes that detract from the comprehension of the essay.
70 Essays demonstrate less success in defending, challenging, or qualifying the writing prompt. The essays may show less maturity in control of writing. There are few or no citations, and the errors preclude full understanding of the writer’s intent.
65 Little Success Essays demonstrate little success in defending, challenging, or qualifying the writing prompt. These essays may misunderstand the prompt or substitute a simpler task by responding to the prompt tangentially with unrelated, inaccurate, or inappropriate explanation. The prose often demonstrates consistent weaknesses in writing, such as grammatical problems, a lack of development or organization, or a lack of control.
60 Essays are undeveloped, especially simplistic in their explanation and argument, or weak in their control of language. This typically reflects perfunctory effort.
0 Indicates an off-topic response that receives no credit, such as one that merely repeats the prompt. Alternately, indicates a blank response or one that is completely off topic.
