While some of you may not teach writing exclusively or explicitly, I believe we share the sometimes anxiety-filled experience of handing back essays. I know when I began teaching, I was ill prepared for the emotional, sometimes even hostile responses my comments and grades evoked. It wasn't long before I learned how to avoid this unpleasant experience. I began turning back papers in the last few minutes of class, so I could exit quickly, not having to spend the class period getting the stink eye—or worse yet, seeing eyes fill with tears.

After reflecting on the pain and indignation surrounding the process of grading student essays, I have come to realize that most students see the grading of their writing as a random, subjective, even fascist act. In order to show my students that the grades they receive on their final drafts are not based on whimsy, personality, or ideology, but on specific, time-tested criteria that all good academic writing exhibits, I began to share with them the standards I use when grading their papers. Not surprisingly, when I invited students to join me on my side of the big desk, they were grateful to enter a conversation on evaluation from which they have been historically excluded.

I believe most of us look to similar evaluative criteria when grading student essays. An excellent essay must demonstrate a command of the topic; the argument must be well developed with a clear analytic focus; the essay must be logically organized and well supported; the prose must exhibit syntactic fluency and variety; and the paper must be generally free from errors in grammar and punctuation.

The idea to have students evaluate their writing projects came out of my desire to transcend the pain of the grading process while maintaining rigorous standards. I now require my students, either through an in-class or homework exercise, to evaluate their own essays before they turn them in to me for a final grade.

As a teacher of writing, I have spent the better part of eight years developing more effective methods for teaching my students to write with more analytic insight and syntactic fluency. To date, the self-grading exercise has proven the most effective means of inviting students to embrace writing as a process of intellectual discovery and personal commitment.

I should clarify that I teach writing as a process; this means that my students usually submit at least a first complete draft and then a final draft of every major essay before they receive a final grade. On the day they turn in their first complete draft (and I clarify that this draft should be revised and edited and should reflect their best effort), they engage the critical practice of grading their own essays. The first time I announce to a class that they will be grading their papers, I'm greeted with great enthusiasm—they joke that of course this means they all get A's. Once the joking has subsided, I explain that the grade they choose has little bearing on the grade I put on the essay. Instead, the purpose of the exercise is to create a focus and lexicon for a dialogic exchange between the student writers and the instructor grader (me).

This exercise not only allows students to experience grading their essays, it also enables me to see where we are in agreement or disagreement about the quality of their writing. I inform them that their self-evaluation helps me guide my revision comments because I get a glimpse into how each student sees his or her own writing—its strengths and weaknesses. When I require students to think critically through revisions of their own writing, I invite them to become more independent and more accountable for their written projects.

After I hand out the rubric, go over the criteria, and turn the task over to them, the room becomes very quiet. Frankly, I am still surprised to find that most students invited to participate in and understand the process of criteria-based evaluation take the task so seriously.

I explain to my students that the grading rubric I use is adapted from the scoring guide used by the Education Testing Service for the CSU English Placement Test. I add that over the years I have used a number of scoring guides. And while this one is still in process, I find it offers a clear delineation of the criteria most college instructors are looking for when they grade.

Before my students begin the task of evaluating their own essays, I take plenty of time to discuss each criterion and category. To identify the specific elements of writing I look for when evaluating their essays, I begin at the top of the Scoring Guide.

To demonstrate a "Command of Assignment/Topic," a student must show that he or she has addressed all aspects of the written paper assignment, including the paper length.

A:	Addresses the topic clearly and responds effectively to all aspects of the task
B:	Clearly addresses the topic but responds to some aspects of the task more effectively than others
C:	Addresses the topic but may slight some aspects of the task
D:	Distorts or neglects some aspects of the task
F:	Suggests confusion or an inability to comprehend the task

To demonstrate critical thinking a.k.a. "Analytic Focus and Development," the essay must have a clear, unifying thesis statement; topic sentences or assertions that connect logically to that thesis; and paragraphs that thoughtfully engage the who, what, where, when, how, and why of analysis.

A:	Explores the issues thoughtfully and in depth
B:	Shows some complexity of thought and development
C:	May treat the subject simplistically or repetitively
D:	Lacks development, or demonstrates confused thinking
F:	Underdeveloped, illogical, or confused

The "Organization and Support" criteria prompt students to consider whether their paragraphs are in a logical order (dictated by theme or chronology), whether their transitions are smooth, and whether their support is credible.

A:	Coherently and logically organized, with ideas supported by logical reasoning and well-chosen examples
B:	Well organized and developed, with appropriate reasons and relevant examples to support ideas
C:	Adequately organized and developed, generally supporting ideas with reasons and examples
D:	Poorly organized and developed, does not provide adequate of appropriate details to support ideas
F:	Confusing organization, simplistic generalizations, lacks relevant support

To clarify the definition of "Syntactic Variety and Sentence Structure," I review examples of different sentence types on the board. To be sure they understand this important category, I also have them identify and underline an example of each sentence type in their essay to show hard evidence of variety or a lack thereof.

A:	Has an effective, fluent style marked by syntactic variety (subordination, coordination, verbal phrases . . .)
B:	Displays some syntactic variety and facility in the use of language
C:	Demonstrates adequate facility with syntax and language
D:	Inadequate sentence control or avoids sentence variety
F:	Fails to display sentence control

Before they grade their essays on "Mechanics, Usage, and Punctuation," I give them an eleventh-hour incentive by telling them that they will not be graded down for any errors they correct.

A:	Generally free from errors in mechanics, usage, and punctuation
B:	May have a few errors in mechanics, usage, and punctuation
C:	May have some errors, but demonstrates a general understanding of mechanics, usage, and punctuation
D:	Has an accumulation of errors in mechanics, usage, and punctuation
F:	serious and persistent errors in mechanics, usage, and punctuation

Once we have collectively discussed and answered any lingering questions about each of the five criteria, students begin the individual focused grading exercise. Before class, I write a series of steps on the board that they are then instructed to follow.

1.   Read your essay slowly and carefully
2.   Underline your thesis statement and examples of different sentence types
3.   Mark, and if possible, fix any errors in usage
4.   Choose a letter grade for each of the five criteria
5.   Assign a 4-0 (A-F) to each of the individual grades
6.   Add the five numbers together and divide the total by five
7.   The final number corresponds to the letter grade

When I grade the student essays, I write margin and end comments. On the back page of the essay, where the student has already listed his or her scores for each category, the total score, and the final grade, I juxtapose my grades. Through this visual map, students can see easily where we line up in agreement and where we disagree. This method helps me to cut through the disagreement and point to the specific area that is holding the quality of the writing back.

For instance, a student who has always gotten B's on essays might, out of habit, give herself 3's or B's on each category. While I might also average the grade out as a B, I may have given A's for the categories "Command of Topic" and "Organization" but C's for the categories of "Analytic Focus and Development" and "Syntactic Variety." The juxtaposed grading charts enable this student to leave class clearly knowing what is required to bring her writing to the A level.

Incorporating the self-grading exercise into the curriculum has made returning papers a more enjoyable experience. When returning papers, I no longer face hostile confrontations, tearful excuses, and the stink eye. Believe it or not, I have more students than ever coming to my office to discuss my suggestions for improving their writing, or to confess that they are not surprised they received low grades because they really hadn't tried. Students who have been too hard on themselves gain a little more self-confidence, and students who have suffered from an inflated view of their own writing leave somewhat humbled, but with clear suggestions for improving their writing.

I have used this self-evaluation exercise in developmental and transfer-level writing classes as well as in upper division and graduate seminars. Across the board, students invited to participate in the evaluation of their essays have learned to take their writing more seriously and to appreciate the value of specifically-focused, constructive criticism. I hope you find this self-grading exercise as helpful and enjoyable as I have.