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papers； but it may encourage attendance if students are rewarded with a few points for
participation。
The assignment should be clearly worded and specific。 Instruction about the form of the paper should give
detailed instructions on how the paper is to be prepared。 The topics of papers should be described in such a
way that the possibility of misinterpretation is minimized。 You may need to give a systematic plan for a
paper or to enumerate the points you expect to be covered。 You can select questions from those provided in
the test bank or create your own。 Here is a list of verbs you may find useful as you create effective essay
questions：
advise pare contrast apply
illustrate evaluate criticize summarize
relate design analyze predict
trace justify
take sides on the controversy between
explore the implications of
Specify a specific purpose or audience for the paper。 The instructor is the traditional audience for student
papers； and since you know so much； students tend to expect that you will not need important information
or explanation。 An example of a specific purpose would be “to encourage a friend to see a behavior
therapist about a particular phobia。” The targeted audience could be students who have not taken
introductory psychology； the readers of Parents’ magazine； or a person who has written to Dear Abby about
a psychological problem。
Inform students about how their papers will be evaluated。 This information； as well as other details； can be
specified in a handout； “All you need to know about writing assignments。” This can be part of the syllabus
or distributed separately。 Suggestions for the handout are outlined below。
。 General discussion of written assignments： In this section inform students how many papers are
required； how long they are to be； how topics are to be selected； and whether papers that receive
a low score can be rewritten。 Students should not be allowed to write more than one paper
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related to a chapter。 Assign specific due dates for the papers throughout the term to prevent
students from handing in all their papers on the last day of the term。
。 Specific guidelines for preparation of papers： In this section tell students such things as： use 8。 by
11 paper； write on one side only； put the title； assignment number and your name at the top of
the first page； type using double…spacing and one…inch margins； don’t use plastic covers or
binders。 It is a good idea to discuss plagiarism in this section and to indicate how students
should handle quoted material。
。 Evaluation criteria： The three traditional criteria for evaluation of papers are content or ideas；
organization； and mechanics。 You may want to assign weights to each of these criteria。 For
example； if the maximum number of points for a paper is 25； you might assign 12 for content； 8
for organization； and 5 for mechanics。
。 Topics： Provide a chapter…by…chapter list of the topics from which students can choose。 Having
this list at the beginning of the term gives students a chance to make tentative choices of topics
that interest them。
EVALUATING STUDENT WRITING
There are two extremes to be avoided in evaluating papers。 One is over grading or providing excessive
feedback and the other is putting a grade on the paper with no marks or ments to justify your
evaluation。
To avoid both extremes； it is best to devise an evaluation plan that is relatively easy to use and to
municate to students。 One author suggested drawing a straight line under ideas or other aspects of a
paper that you particularly like and drawing a wavy line under passages that are poorly written or
confusing。 This system can be extended by developing a code to indicate the reason for a wavy line； for
example； G for poor grammar； U for unsupported generalization； I for irrelevance； and E for erroneous
information or conclusion。
Critical thinking is an aspect of student writing that you may want to emphasize in evaluating papers。 Here
is one set of guidelines for evaluating critical thinking：
。 Ask questions； be willing to wonder。
。 Define the problem。
。 Examine the evidence。
。 Analyze assumptions and biases。
。 Avoid emotional reasoning： “If I feel this way； it must be true。”
。 Do not oversimplify。
。 Consider other interpretations。
。 Tolerate uncertainty。
There may be nothing you can do for your students that will benefit them as much as writing assignments。
Many students find writing distasteful but are aware of their deficiency in written munication and
apprehensive about the implications of the problem for future employment。
WHAT TO DO WHEN THE EARTHQUAKE ES
Even the best…laid plans of effective teachers occasionally go awry。 If you are not uptight and excessively
formal about what should and ought to happen in your class； these events can often be turned to your
advantage； to reveal your human side or to capitalize on the attention and emotional involvement they
generate to bring some academic points home more forcefully than you could normally。 Here are some
suggestions to help you go with the flow：
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YOU HAVE MADE A MISTAKE
Admit it； laugh at it； correct it； consider why you made it； and thank the person who discovered it。 If you are
unsure of what is wrong； ask some specific person in the audience to tell you why the students are reacting
as they are。
RULE VIOLATION
When the class is disrupted by deliberate rebellion—individual or collective—or when someone is violating
some implicit rule of yours； handle the problem directly and immediately。 Do not ignore it。 Do not try to
continue with planned material。 Determine first what the nature of the disruption is； how representative it
is of the whole class； and whether the apparent explanation is a valid one （e。g。； students who are leaving
early are on their way to some required athletic activity or students are inattentive due to a hearing
difficulty）。 Assume it is a valid protest until proved otherwise。 If； for example； you are distressed by a
student reading the newspaper right in front of you； stop and say so。 Say it is upsetting； ask the student to
put it away； or alternately； ask the student to leave and read it outside。 It is not necessary to embarrass the
student； but you can set a firm but gentle example of the classroom decorum you expect。 It is always
advisable to speak personally to any such disrupting student afterward to explain your action in a
nonthreatening manner。 Many potential sources of trouble are won over with such demonstrations of
personal attention and caring。
CHALLENGES TO YOUR AUTHORITY
You will encounter a variety of “problem” students。 Do not use your position as an authority to beat them
down in class。 Such students often respond positively to a personal meeting after class to discuss the nature
of the problem。 This open recognition may be all that is necessary； the student may be calling for help； may
want to be given some limits； or may be able to tell you where you are going wrong and losing student
interest。 The best way to establish your intellectua