Paper Judging Form

A. Topic and Level

Is the topic an appropriate and interesting one for an audience consisting primarily of undergraduates? In general, we would like student papers to not be so elementary as to be uninteresting but no so esoteric as to be unfathomable.However, there certainly have been instances when a paper has given a unique or clever approach to an elementary topic or beautifully unmasked an esotericand complicated topic.
B. Organization/Preparation

We expect the student to put some thought into the arrangement of topics and the development of the material. References and historical notes should be cited where appropriate. The order of topics and logical development should be sound.
C. Presentation

The presenter should be well rehearsed. A good presentation should flow. It should be neither verbose nor terse.
D. Understanding

The paper presenter should be comfortable and familiar with the material. The presenter should not get lost in the material, and should be responsive to questions in a confident and thoughtful way.
E. Use of Visual Aids

If computer output is used, screen images should be readable by all members of the audience, and any accompanying sound should be clearly audible.
F. Exposition or Research

We look for and reward both good exposition and good research. Try to ascertain if the student authored the exposition or did the research. We are more interested in the work done by the student than by the student’s faculty advisor.