Assessing with Rubrics

Test graders will use a rubric to judge the quality of your writing for assessment. They typically provide a score of 0–4, 0–6, or even 0–8 for each category on the rubric, such as Focus, Organization, Evidence, Language, and Conventions. Then they add up these scores and divide by the number of categories to get the overall average score. By using the following rubrics to judge your own assessment writing, you can become aware of what testers are looking for and can improve your scores in the future.

Argument/Persuasive Rubric for High School Assessment Writing

This rubric uses a 0–4 scoring scheme: 4 is clear, thorough, and effective; 3 is adequate, with occasional issues; 2 is occasionally effective, with numerous issues; 1 is ineffective due to multiple issues; 0 is incomplete.

Score Point 4

Focus The writing is purposely focused and sustained:

• has a clear, focused claim
• strongly maintains the claim
• provides effective context for the claim
• clearly addresses opposing claims

Organization Clear, effective organizational structure creates completeness and unity:

• uses various effective transitional strategies
• logically progresses from beginning to ending
• has an introduction and a conclusion that connect to the audience and achieve the purpose
• strongly connects ideas

Evidence Sources, facts, and details thoroughly and convincingly support the writer’s claim in specific, relevant ways:

• smoothly integrates evidence from sources using specific, correct citations
• uses various effective elaborative techniques

Language Precise language clearly and effectively expresses ideas:

• uses specialized vocabulary that expresses the topic, connects with the audience, and achieves the purpose

Conventions Correct conventions make the writing clear:

• has well-formed sentences
• includes few if any usage errors
• has effective and consistent punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 3

Focus The writing is adequately focused and sustained:

• has a clear claim
• maintains the claim, with some loose association
• provides adequate context for the claim
• acknowledges an opposing claim

Organization Organizational structure creates a sense of completeness, with occasional loose associations:

• uses adequate transitional strategies
• adequately progresses from beginning to ending
• has an introduction and a conclusion that are adequate to the audience and purpose
• connects most ideas adequately

Evidence Sources, facts, and details provide adequate support for writer’s claim, with some specificity:

• integrates some evidence from sources, though citations may be nonspecific or flawed
• uses some adequate elaborative techniques

Language Language adequately expresses ideas, with occasional precision:

• uses some specialized vocabulary, which is generally appropriate to the topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Adequate conventions make the writing comprehensible:

• has few if any sentence errors
• has an occasional usage error
• has adequate punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 2

Focus The writing is somewhat focused and sustained:

• has an unclear claim
• unevenly maintains the claim
• provides little context for the claim
• does not acknowledge opposing claims
• has minor divergence

Organization Inconsistent organizational structure includes some superfluous ideas:

• inconsistently uses basic transitional strategies
• unevenly progresses from beginning to ending
• has a weak introduction and conclusion
• weakly connects ideas

Evidence Sources, facts, and details provide uneven support for the writer’s claim, achieving little depth:

• weakly integrates evidence from sources, with a few imprecise citations
• uses weak elaborative techniques

Language Simplistic language unevenly expresses ideas:

• uses generalized vocabulary that is sometimes inappropriate for the topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Uneven conventions make the writing unclear:

• inconsistently forms sentences
• has frequent usage errors
• has inconsistent punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 1

Focus The writing is unfocused and not sustained:

• has no clear claim
• is confusing or ambiguous
• provides no context
• has major divergence

Organization Little or no discernible organizational structure exists:

• has few or no transitional strategies
• does not clearly progress
• has no real introduction or conclusion
• jumbles ideas

Evidence Few if any sources, facts, or details support the writer’s claim:

• includes little or no evidence from sources, or has errant citations
• uses no elaborative techniques

Language Vague language creates confusion or fails to express ideas:

• uses minimal vocabulary, with little sense of topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Errors make the writing confusing:

• contains numerous sentence errors
• includes many usage errors
• includes many problems with punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 0

A category receives no credit when performance falls below the level indicated in score point 1.

Explanatory/Informative Rubric for High School Assessment Writing

This rubric uses a 0–4 scoring scheme: 4 is clear, thorough, and effective; 3 is adequate, with occasional issues; 2 is occasionally effective, with numerous issues; 1 is ineffective due to multiple issues; 0 is incomplete.

Score Point 4

Focus The writing is purposefully focused and sustained:

• has a clear position/opinion statement that is strongly maintained
• provides strong context for the position/opinion statement

Organization Clear and effective organization creates unity and completeness:

• uses various effective transitional strategies
• logically progresses from beginning to ending
• has an introduction and a conclusion that connect with the audience and achieve the purpose
• strongly connects ideas

Evidence Effective use of sources, facts, and details provides thorough, convincing support of the main idea, making it specific and relevant:

• provides concrete and comprehensive details
• smoothly integrates evidence from sources using effective citation
• effectively elaborates ideas

Language Precise language clearly and effectively expresses ideas:

• uses specialized vocabulary that expresses the topic, connects with the audience, and achieves the purpose

Conventions Correct conventions make the writing clear:

• has well-formed sentences
• includes few if any usage errors
• has effective and consistent punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 3

Focus The writing is adequately focused and sustained:

• has a controlling idea that is somewhat maintained, though some loose associations occur
• provides adequate context for the controlling idea

Organization Organization creates a sense of completeness, though some loose connections occur:

• has adequate transitional strategies
• adequately progresses from beginning to ending
• has an introduction and a conclusion that address the purpose
• adequately connects ideas

Evidence Adequate use of sources, facts, and details provides support for the main point:

• provides general or imprecise details
• integrates some evidence from sources, with adequate citation
• adequately elaborates ideas

Language Occasionally precise language adequately expresses ideas:

• uses some specialized vocabulary, which is generally appropriate to the topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Adequate conventions make the writing comprehensible:

• has few if any sentence errors
• has an occasional usage error
• has adequate punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 2

Focus The writing is unevenly focused and sustained:

• has a controlling idea but is insufficiently maintained
• presents the controlling idea with little or no context
• includes minor divergence

Organization Inconsistent organization includes some structural flaws:

• includes a few inconsistent transitional strategies
• unevenly progresses from beginning to ending
• has a weak introduction and conclusion
• weakly connects ideas

Evidence Partial use of sources, facts, and details provides uneven support for the main point:

• provides vague details
• weakly integrates evidence from sources, with uneven citations
• unevenly elaborates ideas

Language Simplistic language unevenly expresses ideas:

• uses generalized vocabulary that is sometimes inappropriate for the topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Uneven conventions make the writing unclear:

• inconsistently forms sentences
• has frequent usage errors
• has inconsistent punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 1

Focus The writing does not remain focused on the topic:

• has no real controlling idea
• is confusing or ambiguous
• diverges considerably

Organization Little or no organizational structure is discernible:

• has few if any transitional strategies
• seems to make little progress
• has no real introduction or conclusion
• includes disconnected, extraneous ideas

Evidence Few if any sources, facts, or details provide support for the main point:

• provides little detail
• uses little evidence from the sources, with absent or erroneous citation
• does not elaborate ideas

Language Vague, confusing language fails to express ideas:

• uses minimal vocabulary, with little sense of topic, audience, and purpose

Conventions Conventions errors make the writing confusing:

• contains numerous sentence errors
• includes many usage errors
• includes many problems with punctuation, capitalization, and spelling

Score Point 0

A category receives no credit when performance falls below the level indicated in score point 1.