Grading Rubric for Summary Papers in Abnormal Psychology – Fall 2009
Each summary paper is worth 25 points. I tend to grade these papers in a holistic manner (rather
than assigning particular point values for particular sections) but I am looking for 3 general
things in an “A” paper, listed below:
1. A thorough summary of the details of the article itself that provides sufficient
information to show that you have read the article and fully digested the facts contained therein.
The summary need not include every bit of information in the article but it should provide an
overview of what the main points of the article were, what the primary arguments were that the
author(s) were trying to make, the main findings or claims of the article, and the primary
conclusions drawn from the article.
2. A thoughtful critique of the article from your perspective. This critique should go
beyond just stating your opinion of whether you thought the article was well written, easy to
understand, interesting or boring, etc. It should attempt to wrestle with the main substantive
points of the article and show that you are thinking about those points and trying to make sense
of them. Do you agree with what the authors have argued for in this article? Did the authors
open your eyes to new ways of viewing an issue and if so in what ways did they open your eyes?
Did you find serious flaws in the arguments the author was trying to make or in the research
presented in the article? These are the kinds of critiques I would like to see in your paper.
3. Finally, your paper should be reasonably well written, free of major grammatical
errors, and certainly proofread, to avoid obvious spelling, typographical, punctuation, or
paragraphing errors. Papers that are riddled with these kinds of errors are very hard to read, the
errors become distracting for me to correct (I cannot help but correct them; call that my OCD!),
and this will lower your grade on the paper.
Here are some criteria I will consider when determine the points I will assign for your paper:
23-25 point range – This is a generally well done paper. It is well written, free of major
grammatical or typographical errors, and contains both a complete summary and a thoughtful
critique of the article that goes beyond merely stating your personal reaction to reading the
article.
20-22 point range – This paper is acceptable but has some particular problem with it. Either it
has some moderate writing problems (many grammatical, spelling, or typographical errors; not
well proof-read) or the critique of the article is not particularly well developed or thoughtful. Or,
perhaps the summary could have been more fully elaborated. Nonetheless, the major elements of
the paper are there; they are just not that well developed.
17-19 point range – This paper has some serious problems to it but has some redeeming
qualities as well. It may contain a very interesting critique of the article but a completely
inadequate summary; or, it may be very poorly written but clearly an attempt has been made to
summarize and critique the article. If you get a grade in this range, you should come see me to
find out how you can improve your score on future papers.
16 or below - These papers are clearly inadequate and the student has not completed the
assignment as requested. If you don’t understand why you got a grade such as this on your
paper, you must come see me to improve your performance on future papers.