Trait #2 - Organization

5 Rating:

The organization enhances the central idea of the work. The order, structure, or presentation moves the reader through the text.

• Details seem to fit where they are placed; sequencing is logical and effective.
• The beginning engages the reader and the conclusion leaves the reader with a sense of finality.
• Pacing is well controlled; the writer delivers needed information at just the time, then moves on.
• Transitions are smooth and weave the separate parts into a cohesive whole.
• Organization flows so smoothly that the reader hardly thinks about it.

3 Rating:

The organizational structure is strong enough to move the reader from point to point without confusion.

• The paper has a recognizable beginning and conclusion. The beginning may not create a strong sense of engagement; the conclusion may not leave the reader with a strong sense of finality; it may just seem to quit.
• Sequencing is usually logical. It may sometimes seem too obvious, or otherwise ineffective.
• Pacing is fairly well controlled, though the writer sometimes spurts ahead or spends too much time on the obvious.
• Transitions often work well; at times though, connections between ideas are fuzzy or call for inferences.
• Despite a few problems, the organization does not get in the way of the main point.

1 Rating:

The writer lacks a clear sense of direction. Ideas and details seem strung together in a random, haphazard fashion--or else there is no identifiable internal structure at all. More than one of the following problems is likely to be evident:

• The writer has not yet drafted a real beginning or conclusion.
• Transitions are not yet clearly defined; connections between ideas seem confusing or incomplete.
• Sequencing, if it exists, needs work.
• Pacing feels awkward, with lots of time spent on minor details or big, hard-to-follow leaps from point to point.
• Lack of organization makes it hard for the reader to get a grip on the main point.

General Outline of an Essay

Introductions Conclusions and Paragraphing