Literature Review Grading Rubric
Grading Criteria 1st source 2nd source 3rd source 4th source 5th source 6th source 7th source 8th source Single item/whole paper
Student uses minimum of eight sources (10%)
Student used at least four sources are academic/scholarly sources (journal articles, monographs,
monograph chapters, master theses, dissertations) (10%)
Student’s remaining sources are credible and consist of works from professional or trade
publications, government sources, major newspapers, credible media outlets, and credible non-
governmental organizations (10%)
Student consistently uses single appropriate documentation style (a.k.a. citation) and formatting
(10%)
Student’s thesis for literature review synthesizes research, states main premise and subtopics, and
makes her or his position on issue clear (10%)
Student clearly identifies target audience and writes in appropriate formal diction (5%)
Student creates sections in literature review that align with subtopics and groups sources together
accordingly (10%)
Student’s introduction clearly identifies topic, narrows its scope, explains topic’s importance,
comments on the extent and nature of the sources in the review, and addresses the purpose of the
narrowed topic and problem (10%)
Student’s conclusion revisits key purpose in writing the literature review and ends with thoughts
regarding the research, questions he or she still has about the topic, and/or recommendations he or
she can now make based upon his or her review (10%).
Student’s word count is included and falls between 1,750-2,000 Generally speaking, scholars write literature reviews to demonstrate they have familiarized themselves enough with the topic at hand that they are aware of the prior research. They do this in order to demonstrate their competence and to show others how there is one or more unaddressed aspect of the topic. This is known as a research gap. Although in the course of your research you may have identified a research gap, that isn’t your focus. The purpose of your research is to examine an unresolved controversy in your field, determine its primary features (causes, effects, and potential solution[s]), and recommend to someone in a decision-making capacity how to either solve the problem or at the very least ameliorate one or more of its consequences. introdduction In addition to labeling the literature review section of the paper to distinguish it from the introduction and conclusion, she also provides subheadings to indicate which subtopic she is covering in that part of the literature review (a.k.a., the body of the paper). She explains the two problems by blending the points of the authors of her sources in an order that is logical and demonstrates agreement among them as well as causes and effects.