Reports on a study in the development of content-fair essay topics that provide the majority of examinees with the chance to write on a subject about which they know a great deal, and that reduce opportunities for linguistic misinterpretation. (HTH)

Scoring systems for direct writing assessment are described. In holistic scoring, a global quality judgment of the writing sample is made. Primary trait scoring, developed by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, is conducted in accordance with specific goals. Analytic scoring identifies characteristics and quality of writing. These…

Contributors review the advantages and disadvantages of essay contests. Considers typical essay topics, evaluation criteria, contests as motivational techniques, the validity of the essay form, and contests' impact on writers' audience awareness. (MM)

"The Tragic Fallacy" is a polemical investigation exploring the dilemma of a culture unable to conceive of life as having tragic significance; unable to reconcile material and scientific progress to spiritual needs. Furthermore, the essay urges a reevaluation of cultural forms and demonstrates the exigency for drama, and literary arts in…

The power that a teacher can hold over a student can be most unpleasant. The author, an associate principal, recounts his experiences as a student, outlines a dialogue between himself and a former professor, and suggests that teachers re-examine their relations with their students. (RK)

Because of the greater demands made on students in liberal arts for written assignments, the differences in difficulty level among university entrants in various areas of study were examined. The study suggested variability across areas of study and between the sexes in readability levels of written essays. (LBH)

Urges teachers to write for publication, with their class's help, in order to demonstrate the writing process to students. (DD)

This paper describes ongoing work in automated essay scoring that will extend the applicability of models that are currently used for short-essay documents (i.e., less than 500 words). Sponsored by the Fund for Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE), the project would create norms for documents that might normally be found in an…

Every spring there is a great exodus: graduating consultants depart from the writing lab, taking with them semesters and semesters of experience, and leaving a gap in the ranks of the staff. This paper discusses a way lab directors can learn from them: departing consultants wrote short essays entitled "Advice to the Future" which…

This publication provides essays on the acoustical design of music education facilities and reproductions of posters describing 50 projects presented at the 117th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of American held in Syracuse, New York in May 1989. Essays are as follows: "Introduction to the Design Process" (Richard Talaske); "The…

This collection of essays contains responses to a request to examine the emergence and formation of "cultural studies" within the university and the implications of cultural studies for an economics of "disciplinarity." The majority of the contributors are from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Following an introduction…

Article described an exploration in some depth of effective ways to bring reluctant students (and teachers) to a practical and relevant use of literature. (Editor/RK)

Designed for high school and college students as a pattern for writing essay examination answers in a history course, this guide is applicable to students' need to write cogent and coherent essay answers in examinations in any social science or humanities course. (SM)