The evaluation of essay exams will strive to maintain the spirit of academic rigor and integrity. To hand out inflated grades does a disservice to the student, the institution and the community. Essays will be evaluated by the following criteria:
- An appropriate and reasoned discussion of the specifics of a topic.
- The quality of organization within a presentation.
- Accuracy and detail in information.
- The ability to combine a variety of appropriate sources in a topic discussion. Sources will usually include the course text, lecture notes, in-class video and course handouts.
- Strength of analysis.
- Originality in presentation and thought.
An essay that receives an "A" will reflect excellence in all of the above categories. It will be well organized, with a strong thesis and presentation, and will provide accurate, appropriate and eclectic information, along with a strong analysis of the relationships among historical events, trends and outcomes.
An essay that receives a "B" will be good in all of the above categories, but may lack strength in detail, analysis, presentation or originality.
An essay that receives a "C" will reflect a good knowledge of the topic, but will lack good detail and may include informational and analytical errors. It may also feature a lack of good organization, analysis and originality.
An essay that receives a "D", while containing a measure of accurate and reasonable information, will generally reflect a poor understanding of the specifics of a topic and will usually also contain inaccurate, inadequate or inappropriate information.
An essay that receives an "F" will fail to appropriately address the specifics of a topic and will reflect little knowledge of course information.