English Composition 1
Evaluation and Grading Criteria for Discussion Assignments
I evaluate and grade each student's posted comments to discussion assignments, and the grades count toward the "miscellaneous assignments" portion of the final course grade.
This page explains the evaluation and grading criteria for discussion assignments: it should help you understand the rationale for the grades you receive on the discussion assignments and should also help you understand how to keep those grades high (and how to raise your grades on future discussion assignments).
There are four evaluation criteria for discussion assignments, each explained below.
- How well you
contribute insights to the discussion
The more insightful and helpful your comments, the higher the grades. In general, each comment should be at least as long as a short paragraph (five or six sentences), with longer and more insightful comments raising the grade. Comments should be clear, well supported with specific details, and relevant to the discussion assignment. Comments should reflect careful and thoughtful consideration of the subject of the discussion.
If you want to raise your grades on discussion assignments, consider posting longer and better-developed comments.
- How many comments you post to the discussion
Each discussion assignment has a required minimum number of comments that you need to post to the discussion. The grade is substantially lowered for anyone who does not post at least this minimum number of comments. If your comments are well-developed, well-supported, and insightful, you can earn high grades by posting only the required minimum number of comments. However, I recommend posting more than the required minimum number of comments. Posting more than the required minimum helps you earn higher grades on the discussion assignments.
If you want to raise your grades on discussion assignments, consider posting more comments. - When and how often
you post comments to the discussion
You should post your first few comments early and should return to the discussion forum every day or two to post additional comments. This approach will help you become involved in the discussion. Grades are reduced if all or most comments are posted during just one visit to the discussion forum, and the grade will be substantially lowered if a student posts most or all of his or her comments on the due date. Posting all comments on the due date does not give other students a reasonable chance to read and respond to the comments and indicates that the student posting the comments has not been much involved in the discussion.
If you want to raise your grades on discussion assignments, consider posting your comments earlier and more frequently during different visits to the discussion forum. - How well you
interact with other class members during the discussion
These are discussion assignments, meaning that you should read all postings to a discussion assignment and should respond to some of them. Your own comments should show an awareness of what has been and is being discussed by other members of the class. As you respond, go beyond simply saying, "I agree" or "I disagree," and do more than repeat the ideas in the comments you are responding to. Add your insights to the topic, expanding on it with your own perspective and, if possible, with new supporting evidence. In addition, responses to comments posted by other class members should be polite and constructive; you can disagree, but respect the rights of other class members to express their points of view.
If you want to raise your grades on discussion assignments, consider reading and thinking more carefully about the comments posted by other class members, replying to more of the comments with well-developed, thoughtful, and respectful responses.
Note as well that a grade of "C" (70%-79%) indicates "satisfactory" work on an assignment. A grade of "C" indicates that a student has added some insights to the discussion, has posted the required minimum number of comments, has posted the comments during different visits to the discussion forum, and has responded to some of the earlier postings. A grade of "B" (meaning "good") and a grade of "A" (meaning "excellent") indicate that a student has gone beyond the "satisfactory" level in one or more of the areas explained above.
Again, these grading criteria above should help you understand the grades you earn on discussion assignments and should help you keep those grades high. If you have questions about why you earned a particular grade, first review this page carefully. If you do not have a good sense of the rationale for your grade, of course feel free to contact me.