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Levels of Writing:

Writing to communicate is reader based prose, transactional, aimed at a group audience which may be known or unknown, designed to convey ["show what you know"] information, opinions, etc. [Level 2 and Level 3]

Writing to learn is writer based prose, expressive, often aimed at the self or close friends, "trying on" different concepts or poses, designed to explore and discover [Level 1 writing]

Level 1:
writing to remember, sort out thoughts, organize;
note taking, freewrites, logs, journals, first drafts;
instinctive spelling and punctuation, casual grammar; never evaluated except for content or use of process

Level 2:
-informal but communicative need vocabulary, grammar, delivery that does not impede communication but need not be flawless;
exams, homework, intermediate drafts; evaluated for clarity of thought, organization and knowledge, with some attention to common writing conventions

Level 3:
-formal and polished writing that has gone through all stages of the writing process; letters, reports, research papers, final drafts;
correctness in writing conventions and editing skills important, in addition to content and organization

Grading Criteria

An "A" paper will:

	demonstrate a strong sense of audience and context
	develop the topic with relevant detail and support
	clearly acknowledge sources
	exhibit outstanding style, grammar, and attention to detail
	proceed clearly from point to point
	provide a clear purpose and thesis idea
	[in general, an "A" paper presents its ideas with originality, flair, and competence]

A "B" paper will:

	demonstrate a competent sense of audience and context
	develop the topic with relevant detail and support
	clearly acknowledge sources
	exhibit competent style, grammar, and attention to detail
	proceed clearly from point to point
	provide a clear purpose and thesis idea
	[a "B" paper may lack some originality, or be less developed than an "A" paper, but the strengths will still outnumber the weaknesses]

A "C" paper will:

	demonstrate a sense of audience and context
	develop the topic with relevant detail and support
	acknowledge sources
	exhibit a mastery of style and grammar such that the reader is not confused
	proceed from point to point in a logical way
	provide a clear purpose and thesis idea
	[a "C" paper may have a balance of strengths and weaknesses, proceed in formulaic or clichéd ways, and probably have less competence in style and grammar]

A "D" paper will:

	struggle with a sense of audience and context
	under-develop the topic or fail to provide detailed support
	acknowledge sources
	confuse the reader with awkward or ungrammatical sentences
	present the ideas in a haphazard order
	provide a vague purpose and thesis
	[a "D" paper may not exhibit all the listed problems, but the weaknesses will outnumber the strengths]

An "F" paper will:

	demonstrate severe organizational, stylistic, and/or focus problems
	fail to acknowledge sources
	fail to develop the topic
	fail to provide a clear purpose and thesis

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