This study investigated whether dedicated test preparation classes gave learners an advantage in improving their writing test scores. Score gains following instruction on a measure of academic writing skills--the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic writing test--were compared across language courses of three types; all…

Educators often have to choose among different types of rating scales to assess second-language (L2) writing performance. There is little research, however, on how different rating scales affect rater performance. This study employed a mixed-method approach to investigate the effects of two different rating scales on EFL essay scores, rating…

The objective of the present investigation was to examine the comparability of writing prompts for different gender groups in the context of the computer-based Test of English as a Foreign Language[TM] (TOEFL[R]-CBT). A total of 87 prompts administered from July 1998 through March 2000 were analyzed. An extended version of logistic regression for…

Adult English as a second language (ESL) students learning English outside of traditional academic settings are an understudied population of second language learners. The purpose of the research reported here is to contribute to meeting the instructional needs of these students more effectively by investigating the relationships between their…

This study examined whether the graphemic structure of words modulates the timing of handwriting production during the acquisition of writing skills. This is particularly important during the acquisition period because phonological recoding skills are determinant in the elaboration of orthographic representations. First graders wrote seven-letter…

This book presents ideas, strategies, and information intended to help teachers provide students with skills to perform effectively on specific writing tests. The first part of the book ("Background/Rationale") encompasses two major topics--the composing process and scoring methods--to give background for ideas and suggestions in other…

This report presents results from an extensive survey done by the CCCC Committee on Assessment to describe the current writing assessment practices at postsecondary institutions of higher education in the United States. The survey gathered information from 534 respondents (representing a 63% response rate; 842 questionnaires were mailed) regarding…

Unstable, and potentially invalid, variance component estimates may result from using only a limited portion of available data from operational performance assessments. However, missing observations are common in these settings because of the nature of the assessment design. This paper describes a procedure for overcoming the computational and…

This booklet contains the Writing Framework for the 1998 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The Framework describes the basis for the 1998 Writing Assessment, the types of writing assessed, and the methods for scoring student responses. This Framework was developed during 1989-90 in preparation for the 1992 NAEP Writing…

This document includes a booklet and a presentation guide. The booklet contains the anchor papers used to score the 2001 Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) in writing, grade 10. Anchor papers are concrete examples that illustrate the intent of the scoring guides. The papers in the booklet exemplify the full range of score points…

The purposes of this study were to investigate the role of benchmark writing samples in direct assessment of writing and to examine the consequences of differential benchmark selection with a common writing rubric. The influences of discourse and grade level were also examined within the context of differential benchmark selection. Raters scored…

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the selection of benchmark writing samples influences the assessment of students' writing quality. More than 300 grade 3 writing samples were scored in two separate rating sessions. Within each scoring session, raters used a different set of benchmark writing samples. Raw ratings were analyzed…

This document contains samples and explanations from Colorado's state reading and writing comprehension test for Grade 7, hereby released to the public (parents, teachers, and any other interested parties). It presents one multiple-choice reading comprehension item based upon a poem and includes the correct answers. Next, it presents two short…

Examined a scoring anomaly that became apparent in a state-mandated writing assessment. Results for 3,660 essays by sixth graders show that using a spiral model for training raters and scoring papers results in higher mean ratings than does using a sequential model for training and scoring. Findings demonstrate the importance of making decisions…

Analyzes the Analytical Writing Assessment's (AWA) contribution as a performance assessment. Critiques its potential usefulness as a diagnostic tool for management education. Concludes that the AWA does not meet the expectations of GMAT-user schools who endorsed the test as a diagnostic instrument for identifying student deficiencies. States that…