Discussion Rubric(s) CM220: Discussion Rubrics Unless otherwise noted, there is one or more Discussion topic each week. You will find a detailed description of the week’s Discussion topics under each of the units in the course. Discussion Grading Criteria for Units 1–8 Points Earned Main Post: · Student responds to all required points in Discussion prompt including asking a question. · The post is on topic, original, and contributes to the quality of the discussion. · The post makes informed connections to the unit’s Readings. · The post is at least 2 well-developed paragraphs. Deductions: · Student does not respond to all questions in the Discussion prompt. · The post may only be partly on topic or may not make a significant contribution to the quality of the discussion. · The post does not make informed connections to concepts from the unit’s Readings. · The post does not meet length requirements. · The post may be largely unoriginal. No Credit: · No main post. · Plagiarized posts will result in automatic “0” for the Discussion grade. ___/20 Contributions to Discussion (engagement): · Responses to classmates’ initial posts are thoughtful and on topic, advancing the discussion. · Student shows active engagement in the discussion (e.g., asking and responding to questions, posting on more than one day of the unit, sharing additional resources). · Student exceeds the required number of responses to classmates’ initial posts. Deductions: · Student makes only the minimum number of responses to classmates’ initial posts. · Responses do not significantly advance the discussion in a substantive manner. · Student does not show an active engagement in the discussion. · Responses may be off topic. No Credit: · No participation responses are made. · No responses to classmates or instructor. · Responses that are abusive, inappropriate, or plagiarized will result in an automatic “0” for the unit’s Discussion grade. ___/20 Grammar/Mechanics/Style/Citation: · Responses are clearly written in Standard English (SE), and student uses a style appropriate for academic discourse. · Responses are mainly free of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure errors. · If sources are used, student includes signal phrases or APA citations. Deductions: · Responses may have errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. · Responses may have errors in sentence structure which impact meaning. · The style many not be appropriate for classroom discourse (not SAE, slang, text abbreviations, etc.) or responses do not credit sources using signal phrases or APA citations when required in the instructions. ___/5 Purdue Global’s Code of Student Conduct. Discussion posts which are plagiarized will receive a “0.” Comments: ___/45 Unit 9 Discussion Rubric Discussion Grading Cr.

1. Discussion Rubric(s)
CM220: Discussion Rubrics
Unless otherwise noted, there is one or more Discussion topic
each week. You will find a
detailed description of the week’s Discussion topics under each
of the units in the course.
Discussion Grading Criteria for Units 1–8 Points
Earned
Main Post:
· Student responds to all required points in Discussion prompt
including asking a
question.
· The post is on topic, original, and contributes to the quality
of the discussion.
· The post makes informed connections to the unit’s Readings.
· The post is at least 2 well-developed paragraphs.

2. Deductions:
· Student does not respond to all questions in the Discussion
prompt.
· The post may only be partly on topic or may not make a
significant contribution
to the quality of the discussion.
· The post does not make informed connections to concepts
from the unit’s
Readings.
· The post does not meet length requirements.
· The post may be largely unoriginal.
No Credit:
· No main post.
· Plagiarized posts will result in automatic “0” for the
Discussion grade.
___/20
Contributions to Discussion (engagement):
· Responses to classmates’ initial posts are thoughtful and on
topic, advancing the

3. discussion.
· Student shows active engagement in the discussion (e.g.,
asking and responding
to questions, posting on more than one day of the unit, sharing
additional
resources).
· Student exceeds the required number of responses to
classmates’ initial posts.
Deductions:
· Student makes only the minimum number of responses to
classmates’ initial
posts.
· Responses do not significantly advance the discussion in a
substantive manner.
· Student does not show an active engagement in the
discussion.
· Responses may be off topic.
No Credit:
· No participation responses are made.
· No responses to classmates or instructor.

4. · Responses that are abusive, inappropriate, or plagiarized will
result in an
automatic “0” for the unit’s Discussion grade.
___/20
Grammar/Mechanics/Style/Citation:
· Responses are clearly written in Standard English (SE), and
student uses a style
appropriate for academic discourse.
· Responses are mainly free of spelling, grammar, punctuation,
and sentence
structure errors.
· If sources are used, student includes signal phrases or APA
citations.
Deductions:
· Responses may have errors in spelling, grammar, and
punctuation.
· Responses may have errors in sentence structure which
impact meaning.
· The style many not be appropriate for classroom discourse
(not SAE, slang, text

5. abbreviations, etc.) or responses do not credit sources using
signal phrases or APA
citations when required in the instructions.
___/5
Purdue Global’s Code of Student Conduct. Discussion posts
which are
plagiarized will receive a “0.”
Comments:
___/45
Unit 9 Discussion Rubric
Discussion Grading Criteria for Unit 9 Points
Possible
Points
Earned
Presentation
• Posts a draft of the digital media presentation.

6. No credit:
• No presentation posted.
• Plagiarized presentations will result in an
automatic “0” for the unit discussion grade.
10
https://catalog.purdueglobal.edu/policy-information/student-
information-services/conduct/#text
Teamwork and Participation
Student engages in a team setting with professional integrity
and respect
by doing the following:
● Demonstrates professional integrity by showing respect for
classmates (i.e., making the main post and responding to
classmates
in a timely manner so they have time to make revisions for the
Unit 9
Assignment).
● Demonstrates honesty by offering constructive feedback on
others’ presentations.
● Provides support for classmates by using a respectful tone.

7. ● Acknowledges contributions of classmates by responding to
questions and comments.
● Provides feedback to at least two classmates about their
presentations.
● References concepts from the unit reading in the revision
recommendations and responds to all of the assigned response
questions.
Deductions:
○ Does not provide feedback to two classmates.
○ Does not address the questions in the discussion instructions
or responses are too brief.
○ Does not offer at least two specific recommendations for
revision.
○ Does not reference concepts in the unit reading.
○ Does not offer constructive feedback.
○ Does not respond to questions or comments made about main
post.
○ Does not respond to classmates in a timely manner.
No credit:
● No responses to classmates.
● Responses that are abusive or inappropriate will result in an
automatic “0” for the unit’s discussion grade.

8. Plagiarism is a violation of Code of Student Conduct.
Discussion posts that
are plagiarized will receive a “0.”
35
Unit 10 Discussion Rubric
https://catalog.purdueglobal.edu/policy-information/student-
information-services/conduct/#text
http://catalog.kaplanuniversity.edu/Academic_Integrity_Policy.
aspx
Discussion Grading Criteria for Unit 10
Meets
Expectations
(24-30 points)
Main post (content):
• Student responds to at least three questions in the Discussion
prompt.
• The post is on topic, original, and contributes to the quality of

9. the discussion.
• The post makes informed connections to concepts in the unit’s
Learning Activities that help to further exploration of the topic.
• The post is at least two well-developed paragraphs.
Grammar/mechanics/style/citations:
• Response is clearly written in Standard English (SE), and
student uses a style appropriate for academic discourse.
• Response is mainly free of spelling, grammar, punctuation,
and sentence structure errors.
• If sources are used, student includes signal phrases or APA
citations.
Meets Some
Expectations
(18-23 points)
Main post (content):
• Student does not respond to 3 or more questions in the
Discussion prompt.
• The post may only be partly on topic or may not make a

10. significant contribution to the quality of the discussion.
• The post does not make informed connections to concepts
from the unit’s Readings.
• The post is less than two paragraphs.
Grammar/mechanics/style/citations:
• Response may have errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation,
and sentence structure.
• The style may not be appropriate for academic discourse (not
in SE, slang, texting abbreviations, etc.).
• Responses may not credit sources using signal phrases or
citations.
Does Not Meet
Expectations
(17 points
below)
Main post (content):
• Response is too brief to address the questions.

11. • Response is off-topic.
• The post may be largely unoriginal
Grammar/mechanics/style/citations:
• Response has significant errors in spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and sentence structure that make understanding
the meaning difficult.
• The style is not appropriate for academic discourse (not in SE,
slang, texting abbreviations, etc.).
• No citations or signal phrases are used to credit sources.
No Credit • No main post.
• Plagiarized posts will result in an automatic “0” for the unit’s
discussion grade.
Plagiarism is a violation of Purdue Global’s Code of Student
Conduct.
Discussion posts that are plagiarized will receive a “0.”
Comments:

12. https://catalog.purdueglobal.edu/policy-information/student-
information-services/conduct/#text
https://catalog.purdueglobal.edu/policy-information/student-
information-services/conduct/#text
· Tell the class about a community issue that you have some
knowledge of and would like to try and improve. Who are the
people in your community most affected by this issue (key
stakeholders)? Who in the community is in the best position to
bring about a change? What challenges have kept them from
solving this problem already?
· Share your preliminary thesis statement.
· Share the thesis that you created in the “Writing Your
Problem-
Solution
Thesis” Learning Activity.
· In your thesis, be sure to identify your target audience, a
concrete action the audience can take to solve the problem
[solution], and a reason for action [problem/benefit].
· Example: The San Antonio School District [target audience]

13. should provide every high school student with an electronic
tablet [solution] because this will encourage more learning
outside of the classroom, increase mastery of skills, and
increase college acceptance rates [benefit].
· Don’t worry about getting your thesis perfect this week. At
this stage, your thesis is more of a hypothesis that needs to be
tested and refined as you dig further into the problem you will
attempt to solve.
· Finally, wrap your post up with an open-ended question.
For an extra challenge in your peer feedback this week, try to
determine the underlying assumption of your classmate’s thesis
by using what you learned from the “Enthymeme section” of the
Logical Argument Tutorial and then tell the class if you agree
with the assumption or if you have some concerns with it. Those
concerns can help your peers fine-tune the thesis statement.
Hint: To determine the assumption (major premise), you can
replace the “action” in the solution part of the thesis with
“something” and the word “because” with “if.” The minor
premise is the problem statement.
Example: The San Antonio School District should provide every
high school student with an electronic tablet because this will
encourage more learning outside of the classroom, increase
mastery of skills, and increase college acceptance rates.
Major premise: The San Antonio School District should do
something if it encourages more learning outside of the

14. classroom, increases mastery of skills, and increase college
acceptance rates.
Minor Premise: Tablets encourage learning outside of the
classroom, increase mastery of skills, and increase college
acceptance rates.
All Discussion posts and responses to peers should be written in
complete sentences using Standard English. Before posting,
proofread for grammar, spelling, and word-choice issues. Be
sure to respond fully to every aspect of the Discussion.
When you refer to concepts from the unit’s Reading, be sure to
use a signal phrase like “According to . . .[name of reading].” If
you are directly quoting the Reading or another source, be sure
to use quotation marks and cite the source using proper APA in-
text citations and full references. The PGWC has resources on
APA citation formatting.