Holistic grading methods evaluate essays as a whole rather than as a sum of parts. A holistic scoring rubric describes the characteristics of excellent, good, and weaker essays. An excellent essay clearly states a position, provides original evidence to support it and refute counterarguments, and makes relationships between ideas clear. A good essay also states a position and addresses counterarguments but may have minor issues. Weaker essays have problems like lack of evidence, organization, or addressing counterarguments.

1. Holistic grading
Holistic grading methods assume that an essay is other than a sum of particular
parts so we read the essay as a whole. the holistic scoring guide describes the
characteristics of excellent, good and not-so-good essays.
Samples of Holistic Scoring Rubrics
The essay clearly states a position, provides support for the position,
Excellent raises a counter argument or objection, and refutes it. The evidence, both
writer in support of the position and in refutation of counterpositions, is
6 persuasive and original (that is, drawn from the student's own
observations, not borrowed). The essay tackles a significant objection or
counterargument, not a trivial one. The relationships between position,
evidence, counterargument, and refutation are clear, and the essay does
not contain extraneous or irrelevant information.
The essay states a position, supports it, raises an objection or
Good counterargument, and refutes it. The essay may, however, contain one or
writer more of the following ragged edges: evidence is not uniformly persuasive
5 or original; the counter-argument is not a very serious threat to the
position; one has to read between the lines to see relationships between
ideas and some ideas seem out of place or irrelevant.
The essay states a position and raises a counterargument, but their is well
Average developed. The objection or counterargument considered may lean toward
Writer the trivial. The essay may also seem disorganised. Nonetheless, the essay
4 should receive a 4 in acknowledgement of the cognitive complexity of the
task. It is more difficult to address arguments and counterarguments than
it is simply to support one line of argument.
The essay states a position, provides strong and original evidence
Fair supporting the position, and is well organised. However, the essay does
writer not address possible objections or counterarguments. Thus, even though
3 the support seems stronger and the essay may be more well organised
than the 4 essay, it should not receive more than a 3.
The essay states a position and provides some support, but it doesn't do it
Weak very well. Evidence is scanty, general, trivial or not original. The essay
writer achieves its length largely through repetition of ideas and inclusion of
2 irrelevant information. The overall impression is that the essay has been
dashed off at the last minute.
Very The essay does not state the student's position on the issue. Instead, it
weak restates the position presented in the assignment and summarizes the
writer evidence discussed in the text or in class. The essay may include an
1 occasional I agree with, but it provides nothing beyond what was said in
class or in the readings. The essay receives a 1 rather than a 0 because
there may be some merit to being able to summarise what the author of
the text said.
Source : Gibbs, G., Habeshaw, S. and Habeshaw, T, (1986). 53 Interesting Ways to Assess
Your Students. Technical and Educational Services:Bristo, pp. 11-26.
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2. Holistic Scoring Rubrics
Score Description
Demonstrates complete understanding of the problem. All requirements of task are included
5
in response.
Demonstrates considerable understanding of the problem. All requirements of task are
4
included.
3 Demonstrates partial understanding of the problem. Most requirements of task are included.
2 Demonstrates little understanding of the problem. Many requirements of task are missing.
1 Demonstrates no understanding of the problem.
0 No response/task not attempted.
Holistic Scoring Rubric
A - EXCELLENT (85 - 100) - A Markedly Exceptional Performance
• a comprehensive grasp of the subject matter is demonstrated, including an in-depth
understanding of the relevant concepts, theories, and issues related to the topic
addressed
• an awareness of differing view-points is demonstrated and a rigorous assessment of
these undertaken where relevant
• an ability to think critically is demonstrated in the analysis, synthesis and evaluation of
relevant information . a thoughtful statement of position is presented and defended
through logical arguments and carefully selected supportive detail; the arguments
presented build to a consistent conclusion
• originality, insight, and creativity are demonstrated; the paper goes beyond repeating
what others have said and contributes something new to our understanding of the topic
• a clear, fluent, and concise style highlights a well-written, tightly argued, and logically
structured essay
• a virtually flawless mastery of all aspects of grammar, structure, and style is
demonstrated
B - SUPERIOR (70 - 84)- Clearly Above Average Performance
• a thorough grasp of the subject matter is demonstrated.
• an awareness of differing view-points is demonstrated and an assessment of these
attempted where relevant . the paper goes beyond description to interpretation, analysis,
synthesis and evaluation
• a position is adopted and logically argued; appropriate supporting detail is supplied
• a clear style which communicates well (but may contain occasional or minor flaws in the
mechanics of spelling, grammar, sentence structure, etc.) is evident in the logical
presentation of a reasonable argument
C - SATISFACTORY (55 - 69) - A Fully Competent Paper
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3. • a basic grasp of the subject matter is demonstrated
• accurate information incorporating relevant sources and references is conveyed
• a position is adopted and logically argued
• an adequate attempt at analysis, synthesis, interpretation or evaluation is evident
• an acceptable style demonstrates an awareness of, and attention to, the principles of
paragraph development, sentence structure, grammar and spelling, etc.
D - POOR (40 - 54) - A Marginally Acceptable Paper
• a lack of familiarity with the subject matter is demonstrated through the omission of key
material, or through the misinterpretation of important concepts, theories or issues
• a lack of critical thinking is evident in a paper which is more descriptive than interpretive;
or in which the analysis and synthesis are logically flawed; or in which there is a reliance
on assertion; or in which the relevance of supporting detail is questionable
• a position is not taken, is hard to determine, or is inconsistent with arguments or
information presented in the paper
• there is a lack of originality and an over-reliance on material presented in class or in the
assigned readings
• written expression requires improvement in basic communication skills; or written
communication is marred by inflated diction, overly complex sentence structures, or an
obtuse style.
F - FAILING (0 - 39) - An Unacceptable Performance
• a basic lack of understanding of the subject matter is demonstrated through gross
misinterpretation or omissions
• there is little attempt to go beyond description; or interpretation and analysis
demonstrates gross error in logic or supporting detail
• little or no factual material is presented; or material presented contains gross factual
error; or is completely irrelevant
• written expression is disorganized, incoherent, poorly expressed,_and contains
unacceptably frequent or
• serious errors in grammar, sentence structure, and spelling
OR
• an attempt is made to use other authors' work without providing proper acknowledgment
• an attempt is made to hand in a paper from another course
• an attempt is made to write a paper on a topic other than that approved in writing by the
instructor
(marking criteria compiled by R. Runte and K. Mazurek)
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