A study assessed the ability of 20 eleventh grade students to recognize particular stylistic features when reading and then to use such features in their writing. Half the subjects were given a model paragraph from an Edgar Allen Poe story, without having the story identified for them, while the other half received only a verbal summary of the…

Composition theory accounts of coherence have tended to look at relationships within the text rather than at those between the text and the real world. In fact, empirical evidence suggests that the relationships between the text and the real world may be just as important for coherence. Forty-eight short papers were selected at random from those…

An effective model for analyzing revision processes in writing needs to synthesize what research has shown about the process, the strategies involved, and what is known about students' revision strategies. Development of such a model also requires recognizing that (1) a relationship exists between reading and writing in the revision process, (2)…

To determine how writers who differ in editing performance respond to operationally defined categories of errors in different kinds of written texts, a study asked novice and expert editors to correct and comment upon three kinds of error (consulting, intuiting, and comprehending) in two tasks (a self-written essay and three essays written by…

A study examined the effect of topic-specific background knowledge on the general quality and local coherence of student writing. Ninety-seven tenth grade students were assigned two writing tasks on specific topics at two points during a semester. J. Langer's measure of topic-specific knowledge was administered prior to each writing task. Each…

The writing test at Colorado State University determines which students move from basic composition into the college composition course. Initially, all incoming students take a placement test similar to the holistically scored writing tests administered by the Educational Testing Service. This placement test, along with other information, provides…

This report summarizes and synthesizes current research on the effects of using word processors on students' writing performance. The report examines cognitive models of the writing process, issues in the assessment of writing performance, and research on instruction in keyboarding. The work was carried out as part of a course requirement by…

Developed in response to numerous requests from curriculum specialists and classroom teachers, this booklet addresses student assessment in written composition. Its purpose is: (1) to assist teachers in constructing writing prompts which correspond to the TEAMS (Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills) writing objectives and measurement…

This paper provides principles which can be used to mark mathematics papers in secondary schools. Sections included are: (1) "Drafting the Marking Scheme" (describing 15 general considerations); (2) "Calculations" (listing 16 grading principles on computation papers); (3) "Graphs" (providing four guidelines on graph papers); (4) "Constructions"…

A total of 2,000 essays written by 1,000 students was submitted to generalizability analyses for domain-referenced tests. Each student had written one essay on each of two prompts representing two models of discourse. Each essay was read by six readers and judged on a scale of from 1 to 4. No reader read essays from both prompts. Reader agreement…

This book contains 16 articles on how teachers respond to students' writing and how they can help students evaluate their own writing and make it more effective. It encourages teachers to study their own assumptions and techniques for responding to student work, assess whether they are helping students take responsibility, and adjust their…

In order to facilitate the decentralization of the Illinois writing assessment program, this handbook describes and provides materials for writing assessment training workshops. The first of the nine sections in the handbook gives a general overview of the Illinois Writing Assessment. The second section, on training for assessment, describes…

Intended to encourage teachers to examine their assumptions about teaching writing, this document containing a mixture of theory and practice deals with many aspects of writing. The chapters discuss (1) an examination of children's writing and some questions arising from the examination; (2) reasons for failure to write well, including the home…

A study examined the role diagnosis plays in the process of revision. Seven student writers and seven expert writers were asked to revise a letter, written from one athletic coach to another discussing why women are reluctant to participate in college sports, for a handout recruiting freshman women. In addition to 26 explicitly "planted…

Intended for teachers, this bibliography lists 3 books and 16 journal articles about evaluating writing. The works cover such aspects as the effects of praise and blame on student writing, the evaluation of composition without using grades, an evaluation system that promotes writing, procedures for evaluating writing, holistic reading in the…