A writing test was developed with validation based on the assumption that the use of formulaic language is an important aspect of language proficiency and should be considered in assessing native and non-native English proficiency. Formulaic language is defined as language chunks learned and used together (e.g., "false sense of security"),…

Writing teachers and educators can add to information from large-scale testing and teachers can strengthen classroom assessment by creating a tight fit between large-scale testing and classroom assessment. Across the years, large-scale testing programs have struggled with a difficult problem: how to evaluate student writing reliably and…

Originally developed as part of a project for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on writing apprehension and the writing process is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes an overview of the project; a comprehensive search of the ERIC…

Recently a number of writers and researchers have praised the editing and text moving capabilities of word processing programs, proposing that they can be useful in helping students revise more readily and skillfully. With this premise, 16 eighth grade students participated in a program in which they used a text editor or word processing system to…

A description and supporting materials of the elementary school writing program of the Bay Shore Public Schools (New York) are presented. The description and materials include: (1) the program philosophy; (2) a review of writing research including a 12-point summary of methods for teaching writing and a 10-point summary of the proper classroom…

With use of a carefully planned program of peer evaluation, the teacher can develop students' skills in analysis, evaluation, proofreading, and punctuation. Giving each student a copy of the "Indicator for Rating Performance, Grades 6-12," the teacher explains that the 11 essential parts of any written work are each described and given a specific…

Direct assessment of writing skill, usually considered to be synonymous with assessment by means of writing samples, is reviewed in terms of its history and with respect to evidence of its reliability and validity. Reliability is examined as it is influenced by reader inconsistency, domain sampling, and other sources of error. Validity evidence is…

A questionnaire entitled "An Inquiry into Classroom Practices in the Teaching of Writing" was sent to 222 authorities comprising two groups: those who have published a work in the form of a book or monograph under the auspices of the National Council of Teachers of English since 1963, and those who have held administrative positions in…

The North Carolina Annual Testing Program assessed the writing skills of students in Grade 6 and Grade 8 in the 1989-90 school year. Sixth-grade students were asked to write a clarification composition focusing on a special day and explaining to the reader why the day is special, and eighth-grade students were asked to write a letter to their…

The Alberta, Canada, Social Studies examination for grade 12 contains 70 multiple choice questions covering the following subjects: political ideologies, economics, world geography, world history, and current events. The questions are often related to political cartoons, charts, maps, or a series of quotations that precede the question(s). Two…

A 1985 study of students at Ferris State University (Michigan) found that the majority of freshmen improve their writing abilities from their beginning English course to the end of their freshman year, with ability levels changing little after that. In the current study, graduating seniors were studied to evaluate growth in writing throughout the…

This study involved the selection and adaptation of a writing assessment procedure for teachers and researchers in the Duval County Public Schools (Florida) to use in assessing changes in writing ability among elementary grade students. Through a review of the literature, four writing assessment procedures (analytic, holistic, focused holistic,…

A study examined whether a program of writing instruction based on peer feedback would improve writing better than instruction based on teacher feedback. It was hypothesized (1) that experimental peer feedback classes would perform better than control classes on certain writing achievement variables and would display more positive attitudes toward…

Writers who compose on computers have often complained of the difficulty they have in evaluating and correcting their work on the screen, particularly if the changes necessary are large, structural ones. A study of six freshman composition students and five writers experienced with computer writing examined how each used hard copy printouts of…

Intended for composition teachers and researchers, as well as those involved with educational issues apart from the writing community (legislators, administrators, researchers in other fields, parents), this book contains essays that take a critical step beyond the standard arguments of the profession, pushing hard for example, at some of the…