ChatGPT, a sophisticated online chatbot, sent shockwaves through many sectors once reports filtered through that it could pass exams. In higher education, it has raised many questions about the authenticity of assessment and challenges in detecting plagiarism. Amongst the resulting frenetic hubbub, hints of potential opportunities in how ChatGPT…

Assigning grades is conventionally the exclusive, lonely terrain of the instructor, even as other aspects of responding to student writing are collaborative. As an alternative that promotes student engagement and agency, labor-based contract grading is used in a growing number of writing classrooms. This article describes an alternative:…

Many large-scale performance assessments include score resolution procedures for resolving discrepancies in rater judgments. The goal of score resolution is conceptually similar to person fit analyses: To identify students for whom observed scores may not accurately reflect their achievement. Previously, researchers have observed that…

Researchers frequently evaluate rater judgments in performance assessments for evidence of differential rater functioning (DRF), which occurs when rater severity is systematically related to construct-irrelevant student characteristics after controlling for student achievement levels. However, researchers have observed that methods for detecting…

There are several student performances assessed in Intensive English Programs (IEPs) worldwide in each academic year. These student performances are mostly graded by human raters with a certain degree of error. However, the accuracy of these performance assessments is of utmost importance because they feed data into some high stakes decisions…

In 2016, with mounting pressure from parents, educators, and other stakeholders around the state pushing back against the volume of standardized tests students are required to take, the Texas Education Agency introduced the Texas Writing Pilot. This pilot was designed to study the feasibility of creating an alternative writing assessment that…

Developing models, using mathematics, and constructing explanations are three practices essential for science inquiry learning according to education reform efforts, such as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States, 2013). However, students struggle with these intersecting practices, especially when developing and interpreting…

Students at all grade levels in the United States are experiencing significant difficulties in the area of written expression (Salahu-Din, Persky, & Miller, 2008; U.S. Department of Education, 2012). Although performance feedback is an effective evidence-based intervention for improving the writing fluency of elementary-aged students,…

The number of performance assessments continues to increase around the world, and it is important to explore new methods for evaluating the quality of ratings obtained from raters. This study describes an unfolding model for examining rater accuracy. Accuracy is defined as the difference between observed and expert ratings. Dichotomous accuracy…

Writing assessment becomes an interesting issue lately since it is not a simple task for the teachers and English intructors. There are some important considerations for the teachers in conducting writing assessment such as time limitation for the students to write, and how to give a score. Previous research had discussed the issue of validity and…

At the same time that creativity, play, and inquiry are receiving special focus in academic, professional, and educational settings, mandated assessments have never been more prominent, despite public debates that question the value of such testing. In the context of these apparently contradictory developments in literacy education, as a…

As a language skill, writing has had, still has and will continue to have an important role in shaping the scientific structure of human life in that it is the medium through which scientific content is stored, retained, and transmitted. It has therefore been a major concern for writing teachers and researchers to find a reliable method for…

Background: For language teachers, using rubrics has become the norm in assessing performance-based work. When using rubrics, one question stakeholders have is to what extent teachers are true to the rubrics. For classroom teachers, the correct use of rubrics is crucial. Rater training and rater calibration are not commonly offered to…

Rubrics have been widely recognized by writing teachers for its efficiency in facilitating grading and its potential to be instructive. However, its use and value in oral production assessments still remain to be proven. Thus, this qualitative study was designed to explore the students' perceived uses of rubrics and their actual use of rubrics in…

With a view to support instruction, formative and summative assessment and to provide model handwriting performance for students to compare their own performance, a Malayalam handwriting scale is developed. Data from 2640 school students belonging to Malappuram, Palakkad and Kozhikode districts, sampled by taking 240 students per each grade…