English 60 Requirements for FEE

A. Length—Each essay will be a minimum of 250 words.
B. Content—Each essay will respond to the assigned topic, contain a clear thesis statement or idea, and develop the topic with paragraphs using topic sentences, examples and support.
C. Organization—Each essay will be organized around a thesis statement, use transitions be coherent, and contain a clear conclusion.
D. Sentences—Each essay will contain a variety of sentence patterns and avoid primer prose. Additionally the essay will avoid awkward or ambiguous constructions (diction); wordiness and repetition; fragments, comma splices, and run-ons; and shifts in mood, number, tense, and person.
E. Usage and Mechanics—Each essay will display an understanding of standard English usage; be free of errors which interfere with meaning; and have few errors in verb forms, agreement, punctuation, apostrophe, reference, spelling, or capitalization.

Rubric for scoring the English 60/ESL 2 Final Essay Exam

6. High Pass (95)
o provides a clear, direct response to the assigned topic
o is well organized
o is virtually free of sentence-level errors
o demonstrates above-average control of mechanics and diction

5. Pass (85)
o provides a clear response to the assigned topic
o is well organized, but may show less sophistication on paragraph structure and development
o is mostly free if sentence-level errors
o demonstrates average control of mechanics and diction

4. Low Pass (73)
o responds to the assigned topic
o is reasonably organized (it may be inconsistent, but the writer retains control of the essay’s organization)
o is relatively free of sentence-level errors
o demonstrates acceptable control of mechanics and diction