Sample Assignment Structure

A traditional history paper process is essentially comprised of 6 stages. My assignment structure addresses each step of the paper writing process so I can provide feedback and guidance and assess the student’s ability at each stage of the paper writing process. I want students to be able to:

  1. Understand a document’s context
  2. Evaluate evidence from a document in context
  3. Construct a thesis from evidence analyzed in context
  4. Determine the value of each piece of evidence in support of the thesis
  5. Organize an argument that includes contextual factors for evidence in support of the thesis
  6. Polish the argument in grammatically correct written form

A student can potentially get lost at each of these stages. If the only document available to grade is a traditional history paper, it can be difficult to tell where the student does or does not have mastery of historical argumentation.

Each of the steps in my assignment structure addresses one of the skills above. Students hand in the first step for the first assignment, adding a step for each additional assignment thereafter. I also distribute rubrics in advance so students can gauge their progress on their own:

  1. 5Ps: Describing a primary source by applying the 5Ps — What are the 5Ps? | Student worksheet | Grading Rubric
  2. Evidence Matrix (EM): Extracting and categorizing individual pieces of historical evidence from a primary source — Student worksheet | Grading Rubric
  3. Evidence Questions (EQ): Learning to ask the right detailed historical questions–and to answer those questions–by tying individual pieces of evidence to secondary sources and contextual information — Grading Rubric
  4. Broad Historical Question (BHQ): Asking a more broadly-based historical question–and finding preliminary answers to that question–by combining the smaller questions drawn from individual pieces of historical evidence — Grading Rubric
  5. Historical Synthesis (HS): Learning how to effectively synthesize steps 1-4 in order to present and organize the explanation of a historical question using cited evidence (the outline stage) — Grading Rubric
  6. Revision Workshop (WK): Applying peer and instructor review to refine the evidence in the face of questions and counterarguments (the paper-writing stage)