Effective Strategies for Assessing Written Expression

Assessing Written Expression: Product and Process

Evaluating the Written Product

The evaluation of the written product is a standard technique for testing students. To ensure the assessment is valid and reliable, consider the following logical elements:

• Objectives: Define the specific skills to be assessed. Written expression involves a diverse range of cognitive, procedural, and attitudinal factors.
• Test and Text Type: Once objectives are set, select the appropriate exercise. Drafting a complete text remains the most valid and comprehensive technique for evaluating expression.
• Success Criteria and Scoring Scales: Before testing, design clear success criteria and a scoring scale. Success criteria define the linguistic or communicative aspects required for an acceptable text.

Understanding Scoring Scales

The scoring scale assigns numerical values to specific aspects of the text. These scales generally fall into two categories:

• Analytical Bands: Evaluate the quality of specific aspects of the text.
• Synthetic or Global Bands: Evaluate the text as a whole.

The correction system involves applying these preset bands to the student's work.

Evaluating the Writing Process

Evaluating the process focuses on the student's drafting method, including the strategies, cognitive processes, and techniques they employ. This approach is relatively new in educational settings and presents the challenge of evaluating the subject rather than the written object.

This requires a qualitative assessment based on observation techniques and student interviews, such as observing students while they write.

Communication and Written Expression

Communication consists of four core skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. While reading and writing constitute written expression, speaking and listening form oral expression. The fundamental criteria for all communication tasks are to plan, evaluate, and correct.