In-class essay exams will be graded according to several criteria, which have been adapted from the CUNY Proficiency Examination Task 1 Scoring Guide. To make it possible for you to best prepare and to assure that you understand clearly the basis for grading, I have listed the criteria below. The second criterion will be given double weight because the central purpose of the exam is to assess your command of the substantive material in the course. (Also, I cannot use one of the CPE criteria because it presumes students will have the text in front of them, while examinations in this course are closed-book.) I will assign a score on a 4.0 scale for each category, with A = 4.0, B = 3.0,...F = 0. The scores will then be converted into conventional letter grades, with 16 = A, 15 = A-, 14 = A-/B+, and so on.

(1) Organization that produces a focused response to the question: The essay should include an introduction that states the main claim(s) or point(s) of your essay and previews the essay itself, a main body structured to respond to the question as posed (i.e., that follows the order of the question), and a conclusion. Further, the essay should feature suitable paragraph divisions and topic sentences, with coherent connections among the parts of the essay and to the question itself. Only material relevant to the question should be included.

(2) Completeness and accuracy: The essay should respond to all parts of the question, demonstrate full understanding of the arguments of any authors under discussion, and offer specific examples as appropriate to substantiate points. You are responsible for identifying correctly names, dates, and events relevant to the essay. (Remember that this component of the grade is given double weight.)

(3) Clear and effective communication: The essay should communicate ideas clearly, using a vocabulary appropriate for the course and the discipline; grammatical conventions should be used. The distinction between your voice and the author(s) under discussion should be clear. I do not penalize spelling errors on in-class tests unless they obscure the meaning of a sentence.