This is an example of a rubric that might be used to assess student writing holistically.

(Rubric reprinted with the permission of the Fairfax County PALS Program)

1 - Does Not Meet Expectations
Task Completion:	Minimal completion of the task and/or content undeveloped
Comprehensibility:	Text barely comprehensible
Level of Discourse:	List of discrete sentences, some repetitive; few cohesive devices
Vocabulary:	Inadequate and/or inaccurate use of vocabulary
Language Control:	Emerging use of basic language structures
2 - Almost Meets Expectations
Task Completion:	Partial completion of the task; ideas somewhat developed
Comprehensibility:	Text mostly comprehensible, requiring interpretation on the part of the reader
Level of Discourse:
Vocabulary:	Somewhat inadequate and/or inaccurate use of vocabulary and too basic for this level
Language Control:	Emerging control of basic language structures
3 - Meets Expectations
Task Completion:	Completion of the task; ideas adequately developed
Comprehensibility:	Text comprehensible, requiring minimal interpretation on the part of the reader
Level of Discourse:	Emerging paragraph-length discourse; variety of cohesive devices
Vocabulary:	Adequate and accurate use of vocabulary for this level
Language Control:	Control of basic language structures
4 - Exceeds Expectations
Task Completion:	Superior completion of the task; ideas well-developed and well-organized
Comprehensibility:	Text readily comprehensible, requiring no interpretation on the part of the reader
Level of Discourse:	Paragraph-length discourse; variety of cohesive devices
Vocabulary:	Rich use of vocabulary with some idiomatic expressions
Language Control:	Control of basic language structures with occasional use of advanced structure

A holistic rubric is different from an analytic rubric. An analytic rubric breaks the writing task down into smaller components and evaluates each independently.

This is an example of an analytic rubric.

(Rubric reprinted with the permission of the Fairfax County PALS Program)

Task Completion

• 1 -- Minimal completion of the task and/or content undeveloped
• 2 -- Partial completion of the task; ideas somewhat developed
• 3 -- Completion of the task; ideas adequately developed
• 4 -- Superior completion of the task; ideas well-developed and well-organized

Comprehensibility

• 1 -- Text barely comprehensible
• 2 -- Text mostly comprehensible, requiring interpretation on the part of the reader
• 3 -- Text comprehensible, requiring minimal interpretation on the part of the reader
• 4 -- Text readily comprehensible, requiring no interpretation on the part of the reader

Level of Discourse

• 1 -- Lists of discrete sentences, some repetitive; few cohesive devices
• 2 -- Variety of discrete sentences; some cohesive devices
• 3 -- Emerging paragraph-length discourse; variety of cohesive devices
• 4 -- Paragraph-length discourse; variety of cohesive devices

Vocabulary

1 --	Inadequate and/or inaccurate use of vocabulary.
2-3 --	Somewhat inadequate and/or inaccurate use of vocabulary and too basic for this level.
4-5 --	Adequate and accurate use of vocabulary for this level.
6 --	Rich use of vocabulary, with some idiomatic expressions.

Language Control

1 --	Emerging use of basic language structures.
2-3 --	Emerging control of basic language structures.
4-5 --	Control of basic language structures.
6 --	Control of basic language structures with occasional use of advanced language structures.

Both styles of evaluation have their advantages and disadvantages. Many think that holistic evaluation can be done more rapidly than analytic evaluation, and, therefore, is a handy tool for an overloaded teacher. Others feel that analytic evaluation is much more helpful to student writers because it specifies exactly where a student needs to focus when revising. Most also feel that it depends on where in the writing process the writer is: a holistic rubric might be most useful in evaluating a final draft, while an analytic rubric might be best used during the steps before a final draft is written.

• What do you think? Which kind of rubric do you use at different points in the processes of writing? Share your thoughts on Channel-Talk.

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