Term Paper Rules

Your term paper should be at least 1500 words, not counting tables, figures, or references. You can write about one innovation or several different innovations, but if you are going to write about more than one innovation, the paper should tie the different topics together in some way. I don't want you to read five articles about five unrelated topics and write a one-page summary of each. Instead, write about several ways to reduce carbon emissions, or a few new recycling ideas, or a couple of ways to reduce tire noise pollution in urban areas.

The theme of your paper should be introduced in the first paragraph and your succinct conclusions should appear in the final paragraph. In between, your writing should flow from one point to the next in an organized manner. In other words, your paper should tell a good story (as opposed to jumping from one thought to the next in a disjointed fashion).

Your paper should include a reference list and all references should be cited in the paper using the author-date format. Your references should support the text and be cited in the text. It is not sufficient to simply include a list of references at the end of the paper. All references in the reference list must be cited somewhere within the document; that is the difference between a reference list and a bibliography.

Your paper should be double-spaced in 12-point Times New Roman with 1-inch margins on all sides. Pages should be sequentially numbered at the bottom of the page. Figures and tables should be sequentially numbered. Each figure should have a brief caption ("Figure 1. A Typical Cement Kiln") immediately below the figure and each table should have a brief title ("Table 1. Greenhouse Gas Emissions") situated immediately above the table. DO NOT INCLUDE A COVER PAGE. At the top of the first page, put the title of the paper in bold text and, on the line immediately below that, put your name.

Your term paper will be graded on content (40%), structure/readability (15%), formatting and length (15%), grammar/punctuation/spelling (15%), and quality of the references used (15%). It will count as 10% of your final course grade. The paper will be graded using the following rubric:

Criterion

Substandard
20%

Poor
40%

Fair
60%

Good
80%

Exceptional
100%

Content & Discussion 
40
pts

Content is incomplete. Information presented is not necessary or not sufficient to address the topic. Topic is not clearly discussed.

Major points are addressed, but they are not well supported or discussed.

Content is accurate and mostly complete.

Purpose is clear. Information provided is stated clearly and supports the topic.

Purpose is clear. Information provided is stated clearly and is both necessary and sufficient to address the topic.

Structure & Readability 
15
pts

Structure detracts from the message. Content is disjointed and lacks transition of thoughts. No clear introduction or conclusions.

Structure is hard to follow. Paragraph transitions need improvement. Introduction does not preview the major points. Conclusions do not flow well from the contents.

Structure of the paper is clear. Introduction is sufficient. Conclusions follow from the contents.

Introduction previews all of the major points. Paragraph transitions are logical and make the paper easy to follow. Conclusions follow from the contents.

Paper is well organized and ideas flow naturally from one paragraph to the next. Conclusion flows from the body of paper.

Formatting & Length
15
pts

Paper lacks many elements of correct formatting and/or paper is less than 1000 words.

Paper lacks some elements of correct formatting and/or paper is less than 1200 words.

Paper contains most elements of correct formatting but paper is less than 1500 words.

Paper has all required components but there are places where it is inconsistent; paper is at least 1500 words.

Paper follows designated guidelines with all required components and is at least 1500 words.

Grammar, Punctuation & Spelling 
15
pts

Paper contains numerous errors in grammar, punctuation and spelling, making the paper a chore to read.

Paper contains enough errors in grammar, punctuation and spelling to make the paper hard to read.

Paper contains few errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling, making the paper relatively easy to read.

Paper contains almost no errors in grammar and only a couple of errors in punctuation or spelling, making it easy to read.

Paper contains almost no errors in grammar, punctuation or spelling. Language is clear and precise. Paper is easy to read.

References Cited 
15
pts

Selections outdated or from a single source. Selections too reliant on biased information from manufacturer websites. Less than 3 references cited.

Selections outdated or from a single source. Selections too reliant on biased information from manufacturer websites. Minimum of 3 references cited.

At least 3 references from different sources. Some selections are of questionable relevance to the topic or clearly biased.

At least 3 references from different sources. All references are relevant to the topic but some come from manufacturer websites.

All sources are recent and relevant to the topic and come from a variety of nonbiased scholarly sources such as technical journals.