Few questions in The Pigman generate more discussion than who is to blame for what happens to Mr. Pignati. Students have opinions, and they will defend them. That energy makes an argumentative essay a natural fit. It also raises a grading question: how do you score an argument when you have your own view?

The answer is to grade the structure of the argument, not the conclusion. Does the writer make a clear claim, support it with relevant evidence, and deal with the strongest objection? Those are questions any reader can answer regardless of who they blame. Say so on the assignment sheet.

Give students a range of defensible positions. The teens might be mostly to blame, or blame might be shared with the adults in their lives, or the situation might be more tragic than blameworthy. Each position can be supported from the text. That variety keeps essays from sounding alike.

Teach the parts of an argument before drafting. A claim, reasons, evidence, a counterclaim, and a rebuttal form a simple structure. Students who draft with this structure in mind write cleaner essays and give you less to untangle.

The counterclaim problem

Counterclaims are where most argumentative essays fall short. Students either skip them or mention an opposing view in a single sentence and move on. A strong rebuttal takes the opposing position seriously and explains why the writer still disagrees. Grading this row carefully will improve the whole set of essays.

• A claim that clearly assigns or shares blame.
• Reasons that connect the claim to specific choices in the story.
• Evidence from the text rather than opinion alone.
• A counterclaim that a reasonable reader might actually hold.
• A rebuttal that answers the counterclaim with evidence.

Keeping your own view out of it

Read the first few essays with your rubric open and your opinion closed. If you notice a strong reaction, pause and check the score against the rubric. It helps to shuffle the stack so you do not grade all the essays with one position in a row.

Blind scoring can help. Have students put an ID number instead of their name on the paper, and cover the name before you start. It takes a minute and reduces the chance that your impressions of a student shape the grade.

Feedback students can act on

Write comments that name the argument move that is missing. "Add a rebuttal here" is specific and doable. "Be more convincing" is neither. Students revise best when they know which part of the structure to work on.

Highlight one moment of strong reasoning per essay. Even a weak paper usually has one. Pointing it out shows students what you are looking for and gives them a place to build from.

Using AI for a consistent first read

Argument essays have identifiable parts, so a rubric-based tool can check for each one. GraideMind and similar platforms can note whether a counterclaim appears and whether evidence is cited. Consistency is one of the main benefits, because the tool applies the same standard to essay one and essay ninety.

As always, review the comments and adjust. You know your students, and you know what the assignment was meant to teach. The tool gives you a head start, not a verdict.