criteria

A-A+ (80-100)	-no major grammar mistakes -organization tight -logical flow to argument -sparkle to writing -material thoroughly digested -element of originality -among the top 10% of student papers I have evaluated in my years of teaching
B+ (75-79)	-all of the points covered by A grade but less sparkle and originality. -the phrase "highly competent" suggests itself in reading the paper
B (70-74)	-no major grammar mistakes but some minor flaws in the writing -material well covered -words like "competent" and "decent effort" suggest themselves. Word "exceptional" does not suggest itself
C (60-69)	-paper shows an adequate comprehension of the material -no major grammatical or logical flaws but organization of the paper is loose
C- (50-59)	-knows material but material is inadequately covered and incompletely digested -organization of the paper is loose -grammar not hopeless but some serious flaws -the paper suggests that, in spite of its flaws, a sincere effort was made
E (under 50)	-inadequate coverage of material -one would say: "This person doesn't really understand the material" -major flaws in grammar and organization -either of the above two points would itself be enough to constitute a failure. In addition, my inclination to fail would be increased if the following was clear: -little effort was made