GRADES 4 AND 5
Simplified PARCC SCORING RUBRIC FOR PROSE CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE
ITEMS (Revised July 29, 2014)***
Research Simulation Task and Literary Analysis Task
Construct Measured
Reading/
Comprehension of Key Ideas
and Details
Score Point 3
Score Point 2
COMPREHENSION/
ANALYSIS/EVIDENCE:
COMPREHENSION/
ANALYSIS/EVIDENCE:
COMPREHENSION/
ANALYSIS/EVIDENCE:



Full comprehension of
ideas stated explicitly and
inferentially
Accurate analysis
Effective textual evidence




DEVELOPMENT/ REASONING/
EVIDENCE:

Effective development of
the topic

Clear reasoning

Relevant, text- based
evidence
Writing/
Written Expression
Comprehension of ideas
stated explicitly and/or
inferentially
Mostly accurate analysis
Adequate textual evidence
DEVELOPMENT/ REASONING/
EVIDENCE:

Some development of the
topic

Some reasoning

Relevant, text-based
evidence
Score Point 0
COMPREHENSION/
ANALYSIS/EVIDENCE:
Limited comprehension of 
No comprehension of ideas
ideas stated explicitly

Inaccurate or no analysis
and/or inferentially
Little to no textual evidence

Minimally accurate
analysis

Limited textual evidence
DEVELOPMENT/ REASONING/
DEVELOPMENT/ REASONING/
EVIDENCE:
EVIDENCE:

Minimal development of

Undeveloped
the topic

Limited reasoning

Limited text-based
evidence
OR:
 is a developed, text-based
response with little or no
awareness of the prompt;
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Effective coherence,
clarity, and cohesion
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Coherence, clarity, and
cohesion
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Limited coherence, clarity,
and/or cohesion
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Lacks coherence, clarity,
and cohesion
USE OF LANGUAGE:

Uses language effectively
to clarify ideas, attending to
the norms and conventions
of the discipline.
USE OF LANGUAGE:
USE OF LANGUAGE:

Uses language to clarify

Uses language that
ideas, attending to the norms
demonstrates limited
and conventions of the
awareness of the norms of
discipline.
the discipline.
USE OF LANGUAGE:

Uses language that
demonstrates no clear
awareness of the norms
of the discipline.
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:




Writing/
Knowledge of Language and
Conventions
Score Point 1
Full command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:


Few minor errors in
mechanics, grammar, and
usage
Meaning is clear.
Some command of the
conventions of standard
English
Limited command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:

May have errors in

Errors in mechanics,
mechanics, grammar, and
grammar, and usage often
usage that occasionally
impede understanding.
impede understanding

Meaning is generally clear.
No command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:

Frequent and varied errors
in mechanics, grammar, and
usage impede
understanding.
GRADES 4 AND 5
Simplified PARCC SCORING RUBRIC FOR PROSE CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE
ITEMS (Revised July 29, 2014)***
Narrative Task
Construct Measured
Score Point 3
Score Point 2
DEVELOPMENT & USE OF
NARRATIVE ELEMENTS:
 Effectively developed with
narrative elements
USE OF LANGUAGE:
Uses language that
demonstrates limited
awareness of the norms of
the discipline.
USE OF LANGUAGE:
Uses language that
demonstrates no clear
awareness of the norms of
the discipline.
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:
COMMAND OF CONVENTIONS:



Full command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:


DEVELOPMENT & USE OF
NARRATIVE ELEMENTS:
 Undeveloped
USE OF LANGUAGE:
USE OF LANGUAGE:
Uses language effectively to
Uses language to clarify ideas,
clarify ideas, attending to the
attending to the norms and
norms and conventions of the
conventions of the discipline.
discipline.

NOTE:


DEVELOPMENT & USE OF
NARRATIVE ELEMENTS:
 Minimally developed with few
narrative elements
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Lacks coherence, clarity,
and cohesion

Writing/
Knowledge of Language
and Conventions
DEVELOPMENT & USE OF
NARRATIVE ELEMENTS:
 Developed with some
narrative elements
Score Point 0
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Limited coherence, clarity,
and/or cohesion
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Effective coherence,
clarity, and cohesion
Writing/
Written Expression
Score Point 1
Few minor errors in
mechanics, grammar, and
usage
Meaning is clear.
COHERENCE/ CLARITY:

Coherence, clarity, and
cohesion
Some command of the
conventions of standard
English
Limited command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:

May have errors in

Errors in mechanics,
mechanics, grammar, and
grammar, and usage often
usage that occasionally
impede understanding.
impede understanding

Meaning is generally clear.
No command of the
conventions of standard
English
MECHANICS/ CLARITY:

Frequent and varied errors
in mechanics, grammar, and
usage impede
understanding.
The reading dimension is not scored for elicited narrative stories.
Per the CCSS, narrative elements in grades 3-5 may include: establishing a situation, organizing a logical event sequence, describing scenes, objects or
people, developing characters personalities, and using dialogue as appropriate.
The elements of organization to be assessed are expressed in the grade-level standards W1-W3.
A response is considered unscoreable if it cannot be assigned a score based on the rubric criteria. For unscoreable student responses, one of the following
condition codes will be applied:
A=No response
B=Response is unintelligible or undecipherable
C=Response is not written in English
D=Off-topic
E=Refusal to respond
F=Don’t understand/know
***NOTE from Sarah Tantillo, Ed.D, LLC on 12-9-14: I modified these rubrics to make them more user-friendly while still preserving the content. PARCC noted when
releasing the originals on 7-29-14 that they are “subject to further refinement based on research and study.” Stay tuned!