The following 18 Sample Student Responses represent a range of score points.

Score for Sample Student Response #1: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This response is related to the question and shows only minimal knowledge. Several fragments indicate a general familiarity with the idea of segregation (blacks and whites could not be nowhere near each other) and the concept that times have changed for the better (back then is different from now; that was wrong).

Score for Sample Student Response #2: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Several key ideas are provided (all have to do with equality; today…all the schools are a mix of all races and ethnicities; government had to take additional action that was necessary for the precedent and ruling to be applied to the actual situation) with little support.

Score for Sample Student Response #3: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This vague and fragmented response shows only minimal knowledge. An incomplete idea is given (kids are more comfortable working with each other and can learn without worrying about race) that alludes to the impact of the Supreme Court decisions. Compare to Anchor Paper #1.

Score for Sample Student Response #4: Rubric Score 3

Annotation: This response shows some understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. The concepts are accurate and supported. An appropriate application of the implications of these decisions (segregation is no longer a key issue; generation of today has hopefully learned to look beyond race) and the subtleties involved in resolving such issues (still being fought over on whether or not affirmative actions are necessary to provide racial equality) are provided, demonstrating higher order thinking skills. Compare to Anchor Paper #6.

Score for Sample Student Response #5: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Several key ideas are given (people should be exposed to equal protection in all things; students were not getting equal opportunities; schools are no longer segregated, and all students are exposed to equal opportunities in learning both inside the classroom and out) with little support.

Score for Sample Student Response #6: Rubric Score 3

Annotation: This response shows some understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings (without these rulings, other states and school districts would have been able to find means of maintaining segregated public schools). Concepts are accurate and supported. Appropriate application is demonstrated in the analysis of how public education works to promote equality (schools are forced to be integrated and fair) while acknowledging some drawbacks in its actual execution (extended bus rides; forced to change schools; all in the name of their district maintaining an integrated and fair image). Further evidence of higher order thinking is indicated by an evaluative conclusion (while these and other issues have yet to be resolved, they are far less grotesque). Compare to Anchor Paper #6.

Score for Sample Student Response #7: Rubric Score 4

Annotation: This comprehensive response presents an in-depth analysis of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Concepts are accurate and well supported with no misconceptions. Powerful and thorough application of the principles behind each ruling provides evidence of higher order thinking and results in a strong and thoughtful conclusion (no de jure segregation exists in American public schools today; citizens have become more aware of their rights because of these cases, making protection of civil liberties one of the most important public issues; these three cases have led towards…more cases that have used the Fourteenth Amendment as basis for their rulings). Compare to Anchor Paper #7.

Score for Sample Student Response #8: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This response shows minimal knowledge. An incomplete idea (it was a good decision to make us all equal) hints at the link between the Fourteenth Amendment and the Supreme Court rulings.

Score for Sample Student Response #9: Rubric Score 4

Annotation: This response shows understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Concepts are accurate and very well supported. Knowledge is seamlessly integrated throughout this insightful response, leading to powerful application of higher order thinking. The comprehensive overview of the “struggle” through time to refine equal education rights ends with a pointed comparison between the days of “separate but equal” and today (the fact that people who are debating education policy are focusing on designing policies that promote equality and nondiscrimination shows a stark contrast to the days of segregation, where people fervently believed in the virtues of active segregation).

Score for Sample Student Response #10: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This response is related to the question and shows only minimal knowledge. A couple of fragments allude to the significance of the Fourteenth Amendment in relation to the Supreme Court cases; however, these ideas are vague and incomplete (Fourteenth Amendment of equality; affect education today by making it mostly equal and unsegregated). The response also includes a misconception. (In Brown v. Board of Education, the Fourteenth Amendment was established.) Compare to Anchor Paper #1.

Score for Sample Student Response #11: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. While several key ideas are provided (amendment was a way to stop segregation; don’t discriminate; don’t have separate school facilities), the given information is sometimes vague, repetitive, and minimally supported.

Score for Sample Student Response #12: Rubric Score 3

Annotation: This response shows some understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Concepts are accurate and supported. The student provides a solid explanation of the Fourteenth Amendment, Brown v. Board of Education, and the limitations of the judicial branch. Higher order thinking is shown in the discussion of what life could be like without these Supreme Court decisions (United States could still be bound by the oppression that lingers in countries like South Africa; the oppressed minority could have revolted, triggering a race war).

Score for Sample Student Response #13: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. Some key ideas are presented (nothing could be denied, education, voting, etc. from a person based on race; we have minorities and people from foreign countries all in one school; everyone is treated equally). An appropriate reference is made to Plessy v. Ferguson. (Brown v. Board did need the Supreme Court ruling, the Supreme Court went back and overturned an earlier ruling.) Compare to Anchor Paper #3.

Score for Sample Student Response #14: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This response shows only minimal knowledge. The student provides a few fragments, indicating some awareness of the effects of Supreme Court decisions (freedom to go to whatever school you want without being discriminated against; might still be segregation). Compare to Anchor Paper #1.

Score for Sample Student Response #15: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. The student interprets the facts in Brown v. Board of Education and gives additional key ideas in the discussion of the effect on public education (now the schools are more likely to be equal; almost everyone gets a fair education).

Score for Sample Student Response #16: Rubric Score 3

Annotation: This response shows some understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings. The student recognizes the subtleties of interpreting the Constitution — in this instance, the Fourteenth Amendment (In Plessy v. Ferguson, Supreme Court Justices read the Fourteenth Amendment in a way that would legalize segregation, although later Justices read it differently). Concepts are accurate and supported. Higher order thinking is evidenced in the way that the perceived effects of segregation extend from racism in schools to inequalities in society as a whole (extend past schooling and into the government {election of officials, fair representation, balanced ideologies}, the economy, and private lives of Americans). Compare to Anchor Paper #6.

Score for Sample Student Response #17: Rubric Score 1

Annotation: This response is related to the question and shows only minimal knowledge. A fragmented idea (if it wasn’t for those decisions, we would still have all white or all black schools) provides a bit of knowledge that is not included in either the chart or the question.

Score for Sample Student Response #18: Rubric Score 2

Annotation: This response shows knowledge of the Fourteenth Amendment’s impact and the subsequent Supreme Court rulings (all men should be created equal; in each of these Supreme Court rulings it talks about how segregation in public schools based on people’s race is illegal). Other basic ideas are also provided (because of minorities that help integrate public schools; instead of having all white) as well as some information irrelevant to the question (public school also integrates with different abilities).

Anchor Papers used in scoring