Think about the following questions in writing your paper.

1. Do the values of your constructed variables make sense? For example, if a variable is constructed as a percentage, the values should fall between 0% and 100%.

2. Given the question you are attempting to answer, is your empirical specification appropriate? In other words, if you are investigating whether variable Y is a function of X1, are Y and X1 in your empirical model?

3. Do you interpret your empirical results correctly?

4. Do you emphasize the empirical results that more closely relate to the point of your study? You should judge which results you want to highlight.

Evaluate your paper using the rubric below. (The table below is a modification of a rubric first constructed by Dr. Cristina Bodinger-deUriarte who teaches in the Sociology Department).

Grammar

Level	Assessment of Grammar
High	The writing is grammatically sound. Student demonstrates appropriate word usage, sentence structure, syntax, spelling, punctuation, etc.
Medium	The writing has grammatical flaws, but is generally acceptable. Circled items indicate areas that require significant improvement: appropriate word usage, sentence structure, syntax, spelling, and punctuation.
Low	There are serious grammatical problems in this work. The student should seek help from personnel at the Writing Center.

Clarity

Level	Assessment of Clarity
High	The discussion is always clear and focused so that you always know what the student is trying to convey. The student provides a precise view of the topic, why the student chose to examine it, and how (s)he did so.
Medium	Occasionally the writing loses focus; occasionally it is not clear what the student is trying to convey or why (s)he is attempting to do so.
Low	You cannot figure out what the student is trying to convey at most points. The “how” and “why” of the written work remain largely unclear.

Critical thinking / Reasoning

Level	Assessment of Critical thinking / Reasoning
High	The student clearly explains ideas in use, demonstrates an understanding of relative importance of factors, and provides appropriate links among ideas and between ideas and the line of argument. The reasoning provided is coherent and well-argued.
Medium	The student occasionally misconstrues meaningfulness of factors or misplaces emphasis. At times, the line of reasoning loses coherence or is poorly supported.
Low	There is no clear argument or line of reasoning provided; ideas are poorly presented, linkages are poorly illustrated. Or the emphasis is misplaced to the degree that the interpretation is questionable.