the impact of covid 19 on the US economy

Is your essay in MLA Format (inch margins, double spaced, 12-point font size, Times New Roman font, numbered pages, no extra spaces between paragraphs)?

Title

Does your title accurately capture the subject matter of your essay and argument?

Introduction

Does your intro/thesis paragraph follow the pattern:

Orienting Information/Entering the Conversation
Transition Sentence Setting Up the Thesis
Thesis/Claim

Are there vague wind up before the pitch statements in the first sentences that are so general that they could apply to most issues? (If so, delete them and find a more focused entry into the conversation.)

Are your first sentences free of questions/quotes?

If you use research after the first sentences of the introduction, does it address your topic as a whole?

Is your introduction narrow enough to give the essay direction without limiting what you will discuss in your body paragraphs? Is it wide enough to develop your argument without seeming so vast as to not give your essay any direction at all?

Thesis/Claim

Do you have a clearly defined thesis/claim that is an actual argument (as opposed to saying that something simply exists)? The way to check this is to think about what other plausible arguments could be made about your topic, even if you don’t agree with them. If you can’t think of any, you may have a weak argument or no argument at all.

Once it’s written, check your conclusion. Does it serve as a stronger thesis than your original thesis? If it does, move your conclusion to your intro/thesis and adjust your essay accordingly.

Background Paragraph(s)

Does your background paragraph provide necessary contextualizing information?

Does your background paragraph offer a chronology of your topic that brings the reader up to the present-day situation you’re writing about?

Does it offer important moments and/or setbacks in the history of your topic?

If you are talking about laws, policies, or legislation, have you included its formal name and the year it was introduced or made into law? If applicable, have you explained what its shortcomings were/are that had a part in creating the current day situation you are writing about? (Keep in mind that nonenforcement of a policy or law is just as much a shortcoming as a badly conceived or executed law or policy).

Structure and Paragraphing

Are the sections of the body of your essay grouped together by subtopic? In other words, is all the information connected to a subtopic within the same paragraph/series of paragraphs?

Are individual paragraphs organized around a single idea?

Do individual paragraphs begin with a topic sentence?

Do paragraphs move from larger statements to concrete, specific details?

If your paragraphs are more than half of a typed page, where can they be divided/developed into single paragraphs?

Supporting Your Claim (Argumentation)

Is each paragraph organized around one big idea that you can fully develop?

Does each sentence focus on only one idea (that you can continue to develop in the following sentences)?

Have you explained how your research supports your thesis or section of your argument that you are working with (by building upon that research, not repeating it)?

Have you told the reader how you want them to think about the research you offer in order to follow the line of logic you’ve established (by building on your research, not repeating it)?

For every “they say,” do you provide an “I say.”

Do you use the correct “They Say/ I Say” transition words and phrases?

Do you state your opinions as if they were facts (knowing that the content of the sentence will tell the reader that it’s an opinion)?

If you introduce a counter-argument, do you follow it by explaining why it is not as valid as your argument?

Research

Did you get your research from credible/trustworthy sources: databases, news organization websites, .gov, .edu, or a .org where you are clear and/or make it clear to a reader of the organization’s agenda?

Have you verified any information you may have gotten from Wikipedia or the open web with other credible sources (and used those credible sources in your in-text citations and works cited page)?

Are your quotes and paraphrases quote/paraphrase-worthy grey area statements? (Basic orienting facts are usually not).

Are your quotes and paraphrases set up or introduced properly by providing 1. Who said it? 2. Why we should care?

Are your quotes word-for-word-reproductions of the original (with the exceptions of ellipsis to shorten long quotes and minor changes of words [in brackets] to fit the mechanics of the sentence in your essay?

Do your paraphrases use different words and sentence structures than the original? (Is there a chance it might be patchwriting plagiarism?) Does it keep the original context and intent of the original text?

Is the research properly cited with an MLA-formatted citation regardless of whether it is a direct quote, paraphrase, idea, or statistic? (last name #); (last name); (First few words of article title if no last name); (website), not including URL?

Have you cited indirect quotes as (qtd. in last name)?

Have you cited all information that doesn’t originate with you—whether it is a direct quote, paraphrase, idea, or statistic correctly?

Conclusion

Does your conclusion bring the essay to a close without repeating the introduction too closely, opening the door to a new essay, or giving an “after school special” ending?

Does your essay offer a glimpse into the future of your topic? (This is not required, but it can be a helpful strategy).

Does your conclusion serve as a stronger thesis? If so, adjust your essay accordingly.

Works Cited

Is it in MLA Format?

Is it in alpha order by the last name of the author or the first word in the title of the article?

Is it properly capitalized?

Have you removed the annotations?

Please paste your works cited to the end of the essay. Please don’t send it as a separate document.