LANG1402 Fall 2025
Assessment descriptors for Writing Task (WT) Part 2: Final Essay (10% on SU, 5% on CO) STUDENTS’ VERSION
Grade Level
Assessed CAfLs:
Substance (SU)
❖ Contextualize communication with relevant information (e.g., introduction and background) + Bring the central idea/ thesis toa close to echo the purpose of communication
❖ Define the central idea/ thesis
❖ Develop the central idea/ thesis and writer’s voice from a specific perspective or multiple perspectives if appropriate, incorporating citations and references to own research where appropriate
❖ Substantiate/ support claims
Coherence (CO)
❖ Organize ideas with a logical (i.e., systematic,easy-to-follow) and focused (i.e., no digression) development at:
o paragraph (development of ideas – the logic of the development, use of cohesive devices)
o Text/whole essay level (holistic coherence and cohesion, coherence between paragraphs including effective use of introduction and conclusion)
Excellent
Substance (SU)
• skillfully and fully contextualizes the communication, with an impactful and engaging introduction/ opening sentence(s).
• articulates a clear and well-defined centraltopic or thesis throughout the entire essay.
• provides substantial and convincing details for all ideas and fully discusses the issues ina sophisticated manner. Information from sources and references to survey research are integrated skillfully to develop the writer’s own ideas, and there are almost no citation errors.
• brings the central topic or thesis to a close in a sophisticated manner, consistent with the purpose of communication and making a strong impact.
Coherence (CO)
• skillfully organizes ideas with logical, focused,varied, and balanced development at both paragraph and text levels.
• skillfully uses paragraphing; all paragraphshave very clear central ideas and transitions between them are handled in a novel manner, appropriate for an academic essay.
• uses cohesive devices skillfully, making the communication flow naturally andin a reader-friendly way throughout.
Excellent/Good
Substance (SU)
• effectively and fully contextualizes the communication, with an engaging introduction/opening sentence(s).
• articulates a clear and well-defined central topic or thesis.
• provides highly effective supporting details for all ideas and discusses the issues in a sophisticated manner. Information from sources and references to survey research are integrated highly effectively to develop the writer’s own ideas, and there are almost no citation errors.
• effectively brings the central topic or thesis to a close to echo the purpose of communication.
Coherence (CO)
• effectively organizes ideas with logical (systematic, easy-to-follow), focused development at both paragraph and text levels.
• effectively uses paragraphing; all paragraphs have clear central ideas and transitions between them are handled in a sophisticated manner.
• uses cohesive devices highly effectively, making the communication flow effortlessly for the reader throughout.
Good
Substance (SU)
• effectively contextualizes the communication, e.g., with an introduction/ opening sentence(s) that give sufficient and appropriate orientation to the central topic of the essay.
• articulates a clear central topic or thesis.
• provides effective supporting details for all ideas and discusses the issues in depth, e.g.,by providing well-selected examples. Information from sources and references to survey research are integrated well and complement the writer’s own ideas. Any citation errors are minor and involve the mechanics of citing.
• effectively brings the central topic or thesis to a close, not simply by paraphrasing the central topic or thesis.
Coherence (CO)
• effectively organizes ideas with logical, focused development at both paragraph and text levels.
• effectively uses paragraphing; mostparagraphs have clear central ideas and transitions between them are handled effectively.
• uses cohesive devices effectively, making the communication flow easily for the reader.
Good/Satisfactory
Substance (SU)
• appropriately contextualizes the communication.
• articulates a central topic or thesis.
• provides accurate supporting details for most ideas and discusses most of the issues clearly and fully. Connections between information cited or references to survey research and the writer’s own ideas are clear. Citation is mainly accurate.
• closes the communication appropriately byrestating the central topic or thesis.
Coherence (CO)
• appropriately organizes ideas, in general.
• appropriately uses paragraphing; most paragraphs are unified and transitions between them are handled appropriately.
• uses a range of connectives accurately with almost no effort required by the reader to follow the writing.
Satisfactory
Substance (SU)
• appropriately contextualizes the communication, though perhaps with too much or too little development or some irrelevant information.
• articulates a central topic or thesis, though there may be some minor clarity issues.
• provides appropriate, supporting details for most ideas, though perhaps with some minor repetition or contradiction. Connections between information cited or references to survey research and the writer’s own ideas are generally clear, though the integration may be clumsy or unnatural. Citation is mainly accurate.
• closes the communication appropriately by restating the central topic or thesis, though perhaps clumsily or unnaturally.
Coherence (CO)
• appropriately organizes ideas most of the time.
• appropriately uses paragraphing; most paragraphs are unified.
• uses a range of connectives accurately, though sometimes ideas may be connected clumsily or unnaturally, making the flow of the writing awkward at times.
Satisfactory/Marginal
Substance (SU)
• may provide somewhat appropriate background information, though mechanically or superficially.
• thesis or central idea may not be immediately clear.
• ideas are developed, though with some repetition or contradiction. Connections between information cited or references to survey research and the writer’s own ideas may be somewhat unclear. Citation may be inaccurate.
• closes the communication somewhat appropriately by restating the central topic or thesis, though may not be very clear.
Coherence (CO)
• organizes ideas somewhat appropriately, but there may be some coherence or logic problems.
• somewhat appropriately uses paragraphing; though some paragraphs may not be unified.
• uses connectives somewhat accurately, though the connection between some ideas may not be immediately clear and require interpretation by the reader.
Marginal Pass
Substance (SU)
• may provide somewhat appropriate background information, though only superficially.
• thesis or central idea may be unclear.
• ideas are developed, though with noticeable repetition or contradiction. Connections between information cited or references to survey research (if any) and the writer’s own ideas may be unclear. Citation may be inaccurate.
• closes the communication somewhat appropriately by restating the central topic or thesis, though may not be clear.
Coherence (CO)
• organizes ideas somewhat appropriately, but there are noticeable coherence or logic problems.
• somewhat appropriately uses paragraphing; though some paragraphs are not unified and their purpose may be unclear.
• somewhat accurately uses connectives; though the connection between some ideas may not be clear and may cause confusion.
Fail
Substance (SU)
• the introduction and/ or the conclusion may be missing.
• thesis or central idea is unclear.
• there is a lack of appropriate detail. Develops ideas only minimally, and with a lot of repetition or contradiction. May not cite sources or refer to own survey research.
Coherence (CO)
• ideas do not really seem organized, causing a lot of confusion
• paragraphing may not be used
• connections between ideas are unclear.
Points to note:
a) It is acceptable to submit an essay within the allowed buffer (+/- 10%) of word limit without penalty (i.e. 720-880 words). Outside the allowed buffer: the essay will be marked down by one band across all assessed CAfLs. Word limit does NOT include the end-of-text reference list.
b) If the student fails to (i) cite at least two of the sources/reading materials provided for your topic and/or (ii) include a reference to the findings of your own research (i.e. the survey-interviews “SDL Task #3), the assessment will be marked down by one band across all assessed CAfLs.
c) An essay that is noticeably off-topic or incomplete will be graded with “Marginal Pass” across all assessed CAfLs.
d) It is the student’s responsibility to let the instructor know in advance if he/she has a problem or requires special consideration.
e) Late submissions, within 48 hours of the deadline, will be marked down by one band across all assessed CAfLs for the assessments. Assignments submitted later than 48 hours after the deadline will score ZERO.
f) Use of a specific citation style. will NOT be assessed.
g) Assignments with unacceptable and intentional plagiarism will score ZERO.
h) To uphold academic integrity and honesty, students are required to declare use of GenAI. Anyviolation of academic honesty policies may result in disciplinary action, up to and including failing the assignment or the course.