For authors
Read the rubric first.
These are the questions reviewers answer. Fix a gap before you send the paper.
Read the rubricAuthor toolkit
Make the paper easier to review.
Use this free checklist before you upload. It is for student researchers, teachers, and program leaders.
A six-part self-check
Before you upload.
Use this list when the draft is complete. It works for classwork, capstones, research programs, and independent projects in the humanities, social sciences, and STEM.
- 01
Start with a question
State a question or thesis that a reader can follow and challenge.
- 02
Show your sources
Use one citation style or data record. Let readers find the evidence for each major claim.
- 03
Name the limits
Say what your evidence can and cannot show.
- 04
Blind the manuscript
Remove your name, school, acknowledgments, and file metadata before upload.
- 05
Disclose assistance
Explain material help from AI tools, mentors, editors, translators, coders, or data analysts.
- 06
Invite revision
Ask one careful reader where the argument is least clear. Then revise with a short plan.
For teachers and programs
Let students choose.
Share the checklist. Support revision. Let each student decide whether Open Margin fits.
Share with studentsFor contributors
Write a useful review.
We need reviewers and advisors who can write specific, private, and fair comments.
Review with usWhen the draft is ready
Do one last check before you submit.
Blind the file. Check the sources. Explain the limits. Make sure you are ready for another reader's comments.