This paper reports on an analysis of large-scale assessments of Grades 5-8 students' writing across 10 provinces and 2 territories in Canada. Theory, classroom practice, and the contributions and constraints of large-scale writing assessment are brought together with a focus on Grades 5-8 writing in order to provide both a broad view of…

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of formulaic writing such as the five-paragraph theme (FPT) or essay for the purpose of earning high scores on high-stakes writing assessments. This qualitative descriptive study analyzed more than 1000 essays from Delaware Grade 8 and 10 writers, written for a statewide…

The writing assessment program in the Cherry Creek, Colorado, schools is described. Writing assessments for students in grades three, six, eight, and 10 have been developed. A holistic approach is used by teachers in scoring these instruments. Improvement of students' essay-writing ability indicates the value of the assessment program. (DWH)

National Assessment of Educational Progress writing sample essays from 1988 and 1990 (495 and 599 essays) were subjected to computerized grading and human ratings. Cross-validation suggests that computer scoring is superior to a two-judge panel, a finding encouraging for large programs of essay evaluation. (SLD)

Examines reasons for using essay tests in the direct assessment of writing ability. Reviews the steps in developing a large-scale testing program; e.g., creating a pool of topics or prompts; developing scoring procedures; training raters; field-testing the system; scoring writing samples; assessing reliability; and assessing validity. (DMM)

Discusses the design and scoring of the writing proficiency exam conducted at San Francisco State University. Explains the program's counseling system for those students who do not pass the proficiency exam. (HTH)

This study was designed to address two frequent criticisms of the SAT essay--that essay length is the best predictor of scores, and that there is an advantage in using more "sophisticated" examples as opposed to personal experience. The study was based on 2,820 essays from the first three administrations of the new SAT. Each essay was…

The effects of presenting a choice of writing tasks on the quality of essays produced by eleventh graders were studied with 34,200 students in Georgia. The choice condition had no substantive effect on the quality of essays, but race, gender, and the writing task variable did. (SLD)

Can students' writing ability really be assessed by standardized, objective tests? This question is explored here along with a discussion of the alternatives and advice for principals to help their English and language arts teachers confront the issue. (Author/TE)

Describes the Colorado Writing Assessment Program, a testing program that provides two kinds of feedback to teachers and students: (1) a holistic score that measures the general quality of writing and (2) a set of scores on analytic scales that reflect students' achievement in four areas. Concludes that the program works. (FL)

A college faculty member who has graded Advanced Placement exam essays on U.S. government and politics, taken mostly by high school juniors and seniors, suggests that high school teachers and college faculty who assess the essays are not the best qualified persons to do so and that despite efforts to ensure consistency, the resulting scores are…

A faculty consultant to the Educational Testing Service for advanced placement (AP) test reading in U.S. government and politics responds to an article criticizing essay evaluation methods and criteria, finding in it a fundamental misunderstanding of the AP reading process and explaining why the essays are subject to less scrutiny for style,…

Explores issues of whose work is actually being evaluated when raters outside the classroom context make judgments about students based on work composed with the support of peers, teachers, and parents. Data from an evaluation of a statewide assessment and a study of scoring elementary school writing portfolios illustrate the issues. (SLD)

Washington State University (WSU), has developed two large-scale assessment programs to evaluate student learning outcomes. The largest, the Writing Assessment Program, diagnoses student writing abilities at entry and mid-career to determine the type of support needed to navigate the expectations of our writing-rich curriculum. The second, the…

Maintains that California teachers are now responsible for preparing students for the new California Learning Assessment System (CLAS) test. Discusses the multiple choice, written response, primary source, and essay writing sections of the test. Provides suggestions for scoring essays and having students evaluate each other's writing. (CFR)