Assigning, Responding, Evaluating: A Writing Teacher's Guide Book

Chapter 1 Writing Assignments and Essay Topics 1

Constructing Writing Assignments 2

Planning Assignments for Discovery and Revision 2

Sequencing Writing Assignments 2

Writing Assignments Presented in Written Form 5

Heuristic for the Writer of Writing Assignments 7

Class Discussion of the Assignment 8

Prewriting 9

Sample Assignments for a Writing Course 10

Understanding the Writing Process 10

Planning and Drafting 11

Revising and Editing 12

Constructing and Analyzing Argument 14

Constructing Paragraphs 14

Constructing Grammatical Sentences 15

Using Dictionaries 17

Varying Tone 17

Analyzing Experience 18

Becoming a Researcher 19

Assigning a Research Paper 21

Selected References 23

Chapter 2 Helping Students Do Well on Writing Assignments 25

Essay Tests and Writing Assessment 25

Understanding the Assignment 28

Writing Clear Essay Questions 28

Responding to Unclear Essay Assignments 31

The Role of Memory 34

Working within Time Constraints 35

The Twenty-Minute Essay 36

The Thirty-Minute Essay 37

The Forty-Five-Minute Essay 37

One-, Two-, and Three-Hour Essays 38

Organizing the Response 39

Revising and Editing 41

Computer Assisted Writing and Responding 42

Avoiding Plagiarism 43

Selected References 47

Chapter 3 Responding to Student Writing 49

Purposes and Effects of Responding 50

Responding to Drafts 53

Authority, Responsibility, and Control 55

Sample Student Paper in Two Drafts 57

Collaborative Writing 63

Using Student Response Groups 64

Fostering Self-Assessment 67

Handling the Paper Load 68

Presentation Copy 69

Conclusion 70

Selected References 71

Chapter 4 Issues in Grading Writing and UsingScoring Guides 73

Grading and Student Motivation 73

Using Scoring Guides to Improve Assignments and Teacher Grading 75

Scoring Guide 75

Using Scoring Guides in Peer Group Assessment 82

Using Scoring Guides to Help Students Assess Their Own Work 83

Conclusion 84

Selected References 85

Chapter 5 Using Writing for Placement and Assessment 87

Is Placement a Good Idea? 87

Criteria for a Placement or Diagnostic Test 89

Directed Self-Placement 91

The New "Writing" Portion of the SAT and ACT 93

Transfer Credit, Advanced Placement, CLEP, and Dual Enrollment 93

Exit and Proficiency Assessments 94

Procedures for Developing Assessments 95

Exit Assessments 97

Proficiency Barrier Assessments 99

Goals of Proficiency Assessment at the University Level 100

Types of Proficiency Assessments in Use 101

Multicampus Testing 102

Campus Testing Programs 102

Course Certification 104

Writing-Intensive Courses 105

Test with Course Option 107

Portfolio Assessment 108

Certification through General Faculty Involvement 109

Writing Assessment and Special Needs Students 112

Language Issues 112

Physical Disabilities 114

Learning Disabilities 114

Computer Scoring of Writing 115

Selected References 116

Disabilities References 117

Chapter 6 Evaluating Impromptu Writing Based on Personal Experience 119

The Value and Limitation of Impromptu Writing 119

Writing about Personal Experience 120

Essay Test 1: Personal-Experience Assignment 1 121

Holistic Scoring Guide 123

Sample Student Essays 124

Discussion of the Essays 128

Essay Test 2: Personal-Experience Assignment 2 129

Holistic Scoring Guide 130

Sample Student Essays 131

Discussion of the Essays 137

Essay Scoring beyond the Classroom: Using Group Scores 137

Pretesting and Posttesting Using Impromptu Writing 138

Selected References 139

Chapter 7 Evaluating Impromptu Writing Based on Given Texts 141

Literature and the Teaching of Writing 142

Essay Test 3: Text-Based Topic 1 144

Holistic Scoring Guide 144

Sample Student Essays 145

Discussion of the Essays 150

Essay Test 4: Text-Based Topic 2 152

Holistic Scoring Guide 153

Sample Student Essays 154

Discussion of the Essays 160

Constructive Notes on Impromptu Writing for Assessment 161

Selected References 162

Chapter 8 Using Portfolios 163

A Brief History of Portfolios and Their Evaluation 164

Problems with Holistic Scoring of Portfolios 165

Keys to Phase 2: Goals Statements and the Reflective Letter 169

Teacher-Graded Course Portfolios 169

Staff-Graded Course Portfolios 171

Outcomes Assessments 177

Scoring Portfolios Based on the Reflective Letter 181

Appendix: Sample Goals Statements 183

A California State University at San Bernardino, Department of English GOALS for English Majors 183

B Northern Arizona University Goals for English 105 184

C Arizona State University Writing Programs Course Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes 184

D University of Arizona, Electrical and Computer Engineering Writing Outcomes 187

Selected References 187

Epilogue

Concluding Notes on Assessment and the Teaching of Writing 189

Index 191