Argument Writing Grade Ladder - Ladders, Pyramids and Cherries

The grade ladders have been useful in targeting top level skills and applying them in our work. 

This is a particularly effective way at building your grade because it gives you a hierarchy. If you think of the ladder as a pyramid (too many metaphors?) then you will find most of Rung 1 in your work with examples of higher level skills as you go through to Rung 5  where you will be showing judicious (well judged) examples of top level devices, sentences, punctuation, paragraphs and vocabulary (the cherry on the top of the cake if you will- somebody stop me with these metaphors!).

Overall - it is a good way to plan and benchmark your work. Make sure you try to use examples of as much the skills as possible (as long as they make sense). Happy preparation and enjoy.

If you are interested - you can test your knowledge of each rung by looking at my take on the Scottish Referendum below. Post the quotations and the features they contain in the comments section.

Paragraphs	Rung
The content of paragraphs is shaped for effect exploring and returning to arguments.	5
Paragraphs are linked cohesively by discourse markers	4
Paragraphs contain a range of facts and opinions.	3
Paragraphs focus on one piece of information with a clear topic sentence	2
Work is Paragraphed	1

Sentences	Rung
Sentence lengths are crafted for effect with use of high level structural devices such as anaphora and parison.	5
Sentences include adverbial clauses prepositions and noun phrases.	4
Sentences balance interrogative, exclamatory, declarative and imperative to convey an argument.	3
Sentences are mostly complex.	2
Sentences contain subject, finite verb and object.	1

Devices	Rung
Work shows evidence of choice of devices for specific effect. (Could include Irony or Satire)	5
Work includes Anecdotes, Hyperbole and Triadic Structure.	4
Work includes Persuasive Devices Rhetorical Questions, Personal Pronouns)	3
Work is balanced with positive and negative metaphors to show opinions.	2
Work use Adjectives and Adverbs.	1

Vocabulary	Rung
Judicious use of complex Negative and Positive Language show balance but hints at a preference.	5
Highly Complex language used accurately and where appropriate throughout.	4
Vocabulary includes subordinators to show balance and language of the expert.	3
Vocabulary clearly shows point of view.	2
Every day vocabulary is used accurately (including Spelling)	1

Punctuation	Rung
Accurate use of the full range of punctuation including more complex punctuation used for effect. (Semi-colon and Colon)	5
Accurate use of punctuation with ellipsis, dashes and brackets used for effect.	4
Accurate use of punctuation with question marks and exclamation marks used for effect.	3
Accurate use of simple punctuation including commas.	2
Accurate use of Capital Letters and full stops.	1

Should Scotland become an Independent Country?

After a well fought referendum campaign from both sides of the debate, the one thing that is clear is that the question of Scottish independence is yet to be fully answered. On one side we have the YES campaign who appeal to the heart with arguments of geographical autonomy, nationalism and patriotism; the NO campaign appeal to the head with arguments of history, family and finance. Both sides argued with passion that the fate of a nation lay together or apart; as a whole or fraction; united or disunited. Now that the dust has settled, are we any closer to the right answer?

The crux of the argument from the unionists was that Scotland did not have the monetary power to go it alone. No one wants to see five million people look hungrily over the border as the welfare state, pensions and the NHS fell apart around it. It was fundamental that they proved that Scotland would be worse off without the U.K. The irony here is that in proving that Scotland needed the support of the United Kingdom, the NO campaign may have sparked the independence debate in England. An overlooked but undoubtedly important idea within the debate was would the rest of Great Britain have been worse off without Scotland?

Here is where the YES campaign fought. They attempted to prove that Scotland would be a wealthy utopia creating a fair and equal society where everyone prospered. Reaching out to the all corners of Scotland, they created a narrative of prosperity where people would be better off each year to the same amount of money as the NO campaign said they would lose: in the ‘People’s Republic of Scotland’ no one would go without and everyone would be equal. It was a view of a society you should believe in. It was a view of a society you could believe in and they persuaded 45% of the voters that it was a model of society you can achieve.

However, the mudslinging of modern politics sullied the views put forward by both sides. Although the NO campaign highlighted that Scotland may not be able to afford a state of the art NHS and crumbling hospitals would be common place, the Conservative and Labour parties had presided over a dismantling of the NHS that left many hospitals running at huge losses. While the YES campaign pointed out appalling child poverty in areas of Scotland, they neglected to highlight they’ve had the devolved power to deal with this since 2007.

As the referendum drew closer, the back and forth of claim and counter claim became tedious leading the majority of voters to take to finding the facts and discussing these in the pubs, clubs and social networks. The negativity of the NO campaign (can a NO campaign be anything but negative?) put me and many voters off. Don’t tell me what I will lose if I vote no, tell me what I will gain!

In the end, I believed that Scotland could cope alone and should have the ambition to do so. I wanted a society that was shaped by those with the nation’s interests at their heart. I wanted a society that was driven to innovate rather than complacently relying on others and I wanted a new nation that my daughter could shape rather than become a cog in an out-dated and under-reformed elitist institution. For me, it was simple: I wanted a nation that looked after everyone and only the YES campaign gave me that option. Scotland should be an independent country.

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Writing MOT 2014

You will now be receiving your writing MOT that evaluates the skills you have shown in coursework drafts and classwork. Below are the criteria for accessing each grade so you can reference this as you work through your re-drafts.

The key academic language referenced in the vocabulary section is found here

Below E Grade

Spelling - Your work contains frequent errors in simple spelling.

Punctuation - You often use commas where you should use full stops and may miss out capital letters in proper nouns or at the beginning of sentences. 

Vocabulary - You mostly use informal language in your work. You are able to recognise and use fewer than 100 common academic words. 

Sentence Structures - Your sentences are rarely broken up with punctuation.

Devices - Your work sometimes contains adjectives / adverbs to add detail. 

Paragraphs - You often forget to paragraph.


Grammar - You write the way you would speak without modifying your work. You might use informal words like 'kinda' or 'gonna' and sometimes your work doesn't make grammatical sense 'leaving the house.'.

E Grade

Spelling - You make regular errors with simple words and often make mistakes with homophones such as 'their, there and there'.

Punctuation - You use simple punctuation in your work but often use commas where you should use full stops and may miss out capital letters in proper nouns or at the beginning of sentences. You may miss out question marks in questions.

Vocabulary - You use everyday words consistently but often use some informal language in your work. You are able to recognise and use 100 - 134 common academic words

Sentence Structures - Your sentences are mostly simple or compound and you don't always punctuate your longer sentences accurately. Your complex sentences mostly have subordinate clauses at the end of the sentence.

Devices - Your work will contain adjectives / adverbs to add detail. You do not use devices for effect.

Paragraphs - You break your work into even sized chunks of text without organising your work into paragraphs of similar topics. Paragraphs are often single sentences that need breaking up with punctuation.


Grammar- You write the way you would speak without modifying your work. You might use informal words like 'kinda' or 'gonna' and you often mix your tenses without meaning to.

D Grade

Spelling - You can spell most simple words correctly and sometimes make mistakes with homophones such as 'their, there and there'.

Punctuation - You use simple punctuation in your work but often use commas where you should use full stops and may miss out capital letters in proper nouns or at the beginning of sentences.

Vocabulary - You use everyday words consistently but don't always consider the effect of the words you use. You are able to recognise and use between 135 - 174 common academic words.

Sentence Structures - Your sentences are mostly accurate but you don't think about the effect of the sentences you choose. Your complex sentences mostly rely on subordinate clauses at the beginning of your sentences.

Devices - Your work will contain adjectives / adverbs for effect and you may use some similes / rhetorical questions. You do not use devices for effect.

Paragraphs - You break your work into logical blocks but these are not always correct.


Grammar - Your writing is mostly informal and you might make mistakes with agreement such as 'we was' instead of 'we were'.

C Grade

Spelling - Your spelling across all common words and words with increasingly complex patterns is accurate. When your spelling is incorrect it is close.

Punctuation - You use a range of punctuation accurately but have errors in your use of semi-colons, colons, dashes.

Vocabulary - You use everyday words consistently and use vocabulary to achieve effects. You are able to recognise and use 175 - 214 common academic words.

Sentence Structures - You write using a range of sentence types and lengths and strive to create effects with your use of sentences which you often achieve. You can create sentences with subordinate, adverbial and embedded clauses.

Devices - You understand which devices are appropriate for the purpose of your text and often use these for effect.

Paragraphs - Paragraphs have clear topic sentences and are split into logical blocks though not always accurately.

Grammar - Your writing is more formal. You are able to use the correct form of the verb for the subject of your sentence but often write in a colloquial way e.g. 'Any things identified will be removed.' rather than  'Any objects that are identified will be removed.'


'There was this man' rather than 'There was a man.'

B Grade

Spelling - Your spelling is always accurate including words with complex patterns. Your only errors are more unusual words.

Punctuation - You use a full range of punctuation in your work accurately and often for effect.

Vocabulary - You your vocabulary is always used for effect and you are using some more complex vocabulary. You are able to recognise and use 215 - 254 common academic words.

Sentence Structures - Your sentences structures are always accurate and mostly used for effect. You are able to use longer and shorter sentences to create tension / indicate tone. You are able to create complex compound sentences.

Devices - Your are able to use a range of devices and match these to the purpose of tasks to consistently create effects. You may use devices such as oxymoron, hyperbole, triadic structure confidently for effect.

Paragraphs - Paragraphs have clear topic sentences and are mostly accurate with attempts to vary length for effect.


Grammar - Your writing is formal and confident. You may make errors in nouns / verbs such as 'practice / practise' 'effect / affect' 'advice / advise'.

A Grade

Spelling - Your spelling is always accurate including words with complex patterns. You often spell unusual words accurately.

Punctuation - You use a full range of punctuation accurately and for effect.

Vocabulary - You are able to use a range of high level vocabulary for effect but the construction of the word might not be appropriate in the context of the sentence. You are able to recognise and use 255 - 299 common academic words.

Sentence Structures - Your sentences are well chosen, varied and used for specific effects. You are able to develop multi-clause complex compound sentences.

Devices - Your work will contains a range of more sophisticated devices that are appropriate to the purpose of the task. These may include extended metaphors, semantic field and paradox.

Paragraphs - Paragraphs are always accurate with clearly signaled arguments and variation in length for effect. You may use your paragraphs to juxtapose content.


Grammar - Your writing is always in a formal tone. You may make mistakes such as 'could of' instead of 'could have' or mix up fewer and less.

A* Grade

Spelling - Your spelling is always accurate including high level sophisticated vocabulary

Punctuation - You use a full range of punctuation accurately creating subtle / sophisticated effects.

Vocabulary - You are able to use a range of high level vocabulary for effect which is always used appropriately and for effect. You are able to recognise and use more than 300 common academic words.

Sentence Structures - Your sentences are well chosen, varied and used for specific effects. You are able to create multi clause complex compound sentences. You achieve sophisticated effects with the construction of your sentences often juxtaposing ideas or using structural devices such as anaphora or parison.

Devices - Your work will contains a range of more sophisticated devices that are appropriate to the purpose of the task. These may include extended metaphors, semantic field and paradox. You are able to subtly vary the tone of your work with your choices.

Paragraphs - Paragraphs are always accurate with clearly signaled arguments, variation in length and juxtaposition of paragraphs for deliberate effect.


Grammar - Your are able to write effectively in a formal register but have the ability to use an informal register to vary tone and pathos for sophisticated effects.

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