Basic types of sources: · case studies/examples/prior events · statistics and surveys · scholarly/expert opinion and explanation · reviews, evaluations, definition arguments It is generally best to use a variety of source types—this shows diversity in research. Which type(s) of sources might best help support and add logic to your explanation of each criterion (with good reasoning) you present in support of your thesis? Evaluation Argument A B C D Very strong Strong Average Somewhat Weak Weak Introduction: has a hook and is engaging? Sets up context? Evaluation is of something specific, not a broad issue or category? Target audience awareness Clear and direct qualitative thesis statement near the beginning? Clear and focused criteria near the beginning? Structure/organization, focus/clarity: stays on topic and follows criteria? Support/explanation: avoids summary? Depth and specific examples and details? Logical? Quotations sandwiched appropriately and cited properly using MLA format? Individual thinking is evident? Doesn’t rely on sources too much? Voice/tone: distinctive? Engaging? Consistent? Appropriate for audience? Counterarguments: considers other viewpoints and handles them appropriately? Conclusion: engaging? Wraps things up clearly? Mechanics (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc.) are sound? Works cited pages is done correctly? Estimated Grade: Evaluation Argument A B C D Very strong Strong Average Somewhat Weak Weak Introduction: has a hook and is engaging? Sets up context? Evaluation is of something specific, not a broad issue or category? Target audience awareness Clear and direct qualitative thesis statement near the beginning? Clear and focused criteria near the beginning? Structure/organization, focus/clarity: stays on topic and follows criteria? Support/explanation: avoids summary? Depth and specific examples and details? Logical? Quotations sandwiched appropriately and cited properly using MLA format? Individual thinking is evident? Doesn’t rely on sources too much? Voice/tone: distinctive? Engaging? Consistent? Appropriate for audience? Counterarguments: considers other viewpoints and handles them appropriately? Conclusion: engaging? Wraps things up clearly? Mechanics (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc.) are sound? Works cited pages is done correctly? Estimated Grade: Evaluation Argument Paper Guidelines (minimum of 4 full pages) Corresponding Reading: Chapter on evaluation arguments in Good Reasons, along with the chapter on MLA format. Overview: The general assignment is to evaluate something (film, restaurant, appliance, program, policy, a law . . . ?) by applying certain criteria (aesthetic/artistic, practical, functional, societal, intellectual, moral, etc.). This co ...

1. Basic types of sources:
· case studies/examples/prior events
· statistics and surveys
· scholarly/expert opinion and explanation
· reviews, evaluations, definition arguments
It is generally best to use a variety of source types—this shows
diversity in research.
Which type(s) of sources might best help support and add logic
to your explanation of each criterion (with good reasoning) you
present in support of your thesis?
Evaluation Argument
A B C
D
Very strong
Strong
Average
Somewhat Weak
Weak

2. Introduction: has a hook and is engaging? Sets up context?
Evaluation is of something specific, not a broad issue or
category?
Target audience awareness
Clear and direct qualitative thesis statement near the beginning?
Clear and focused criteria near the beginning?
Structure/organization, focus/clarity: stays on topic and follows
criteria?
Support/explanation: avoids summary? Depth and specific
examples and details? Logical? Quotations sandwiched
appropriately and cited properly using MLA format? Individual

3. thinking is evident? Doesn’t rely on sources too much?
Voice/tone: distinctive? Engaging? Consistent? Appropriate for
audience?
Counterarguments: considers other viewpoints and handles them
appropriately?
Conclusion: engaging? Wraps things up clearly?
Mechanics (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc.) are
sound? Works cited pages is done correctly?
Estimated Grade:
Evaluation Argument

4. A B C
D
Very strong
Strong
Average
Somewhat Weak
Weak
Introduction: has a hook and is engaging? Sets up context?
Evaluation is of something specific, not a broad issue or
category?
Target audience awareness
Clear and direct qualitative thesis statement near the beginning?
Clear and focused criteria near the beginning?

5. Structure/organization, focus/clarity: stays on topic and follows
criteria?
Support/explanation: avoids summary? Depth and specific
examples and details? Logical? Quotations sandwiched
appropriately and cited properly using MLA format? Individual
thinking is evident? Doesn’t rely on sources too much?
Voice/tone: distinctive? Engaging? Consistent? Appropriate for
audience?
Counterarguments: considers other viewpoints and handles them
appropriately?
Conclusion: engaging? Wraps things up clearly?

6. Mechanics (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc.) are
sound? Works cited pages is done correctly?
Estimated Grade:
Evaluation Argument Paper Guidelines
(minimum of 4 full pages)
Corresponding Reading: Chapter on evaluation arguments in
Good Reasons, along with the chapter on MLA format.
Overview: The general assignment is to evaluate something
(film, restaurant, appliance, program, policy, a law . . . ?) by
applying certain criteria (aesthetic/artistic, practical, functional,
societal, intellectual, moral, etc.). This could be mostly a
defense or criticism but will likely be a combination of both.
Steps:
(1) observe, use, visit, etc. your topic/subject and take notes
and make
observations as you do so
(2) sort/categorize your notes—find patterns and threads, make
connections,
consider criteria

7. (3) do some basic internet research to get a feel for opinions
on your topic
(4) anticipate, acknowledge, and consider major alternate
viewpoints related to your
criteria
(5) brainstorm for unified ideas—find some tracks and flirt
with thesis statements
(6) write the draft
(7) rewrite and revise the draft.
Guidelines & Advice: Make sure you have a focus (which comes
about by choosing a target audience and laying out specific
intent and criteria for evaluation)—in its final stages, this
evaluation should sound as little like a rant or an “I’m big fan!”
cheerleading exercise as possible. As in any type of
argumentative writing, demonstrating knowledge of other points
of view will only make your writing stronger—and a test for
your topic/thesis, anyhow, is to make sure there is room for
disagreement.
Work on developing your own style, your own voice, in this
assignment. Approach the writing as being informal, but . . .
even though I call this an “informal” assignment, the content
and ideas should be well developed and organized coherently,
and the writing should be mechanically sound (aside from any
voice-related inconsistencies, such as fragments for emphasis or
run-ons for “poetic” use . . .). In other words, experiment with
language, structure and voice, but don’t try to convince me that
laziness equals style. Again, write to reach a specific target
audience.
Topics: They have to be specific. By this I mean that we're not
looking at an issue (abortion, pro sports salaries, health care
reform, etc.), but we're looking at a smaller, more specific
subject, or object. You couldn't evaluate abortion, but you could

8. evaluate a Planned Parenthood Center, a specific one. You
couldn't evaluate steroid use in Major League Baseball, but you
could evaluate baseball's policy (if you could access the
document) on steroid use. If you wanted to say WSU's housing
policy is discriminatory against a certain group, get a copy of
the housing policy, and use fairness as a criterion. It, your
topic, has to be something you have access to. If you want to do
Disneyland, visit Disneyland this quarter, in other words.
Please try to avoid gadgets (phones, computers, etc.). These
have made for problematic papers in the past. We want to work
on writing prose arguments, and the more tech talk there is the
harder this seems to be to do.
We're looking at something specific and how well it works or
doesn't work and the "why" behind it. This comes with defining
criteria. If you want to evaluate a Sunbeam 12-cup coffee
maker, decide what's important in a coffee maker (criteria). You
have a lot of choices; mine for my office here at WSU might be
that a coffee maker has to (a) not over-brew the coffee and must
maintain the flavor of the beans, (b) be durable and easy to
maintain, operate, and keep clean, and (c) be reliably safe as far
as burns and fire hazards and leaving on throughout the day.
This would be the criteria you would put the Sunbeam 12-cup
coffee maker through.
Your evaluation will then be supported with good solid logic
and a detailed explanation, along with basic Internet sources,
which must be cited correctly (see the MLA chapter in our text).
Make sure to sandwich your quotations, use signal phrases, and
use ending citations.
THE BASICS of an Evaluation Argument
-Decide on a target audience you wish to persuade. Come up
with a thesis statement that explains your opinion on the overall
quality of your topic, relative to your target audience.
-Choose appropriate criteria. In order to evaluate a topic, you
need to detail criteria in which the topic will be evaluated. (For

9. example, if you are evaluating a movie, the criteria might be
cinematography, plot, realistic characters, or special effects.)
-Critique the criteria. The body of your argument should
address the effectiveness or ineffective qualities of each piece
of criteria. Provide examples and detailed explanation to
support your assessment of each piece of criteria.
-Support your argument with reputable research. (For this
paper, we’ll work mostly with popular, rather than scholarly,
sources, and we’re focusing on direct quotations.)
-Address any counterarguments that might arise.