Dangerous Liaisons: Reflections on a Pilot Project for State-Mandated Outcomes Assessment of Written Communication

Autor/in	Denny, Harry C.
Titel	Dangerous Liaisons: Reflections on a Pilot Project for State-Mandated Outcomes Assessment of Written Communication
Quelle	In: Assessing Writing, 13 (2008) 1, S.26-44 (19 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1075-2935
DOI	10.1016/j.asw.2008.03.002
Schlagwörter	Undergraduate Students; Writing Evaluation; State Universities; Pilot Projects; Writing Tests; Program Effectiveness; Essays; Writing Instruction; Portfolio Assessment; Holistic Evaluation; Enrollment Management + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Staatliche Universität; Pilot project; Modellversuch; Pilotprojekt; Writing test; Schreibtest; Essay; Aufsatzunterricht; Schreibunterricht; Portfoliobeurteilung; Holistische Methode
Abstract	This study details the development and results of a campus-based writing assessment plan that was mandated by a state-wide university system in order to explore the ''value-added'' from a writing program curriculum to undergraduate students' competence with written expression. Four writing samples (two timed essays and two conventional essays) that are produced before, during and at the close of enrollment in the writing program are scored for critical thinking, genre knowledge, rhetorical skills, and mechanics. The results indicate that local campus student achievement related to writing is comparable with performance captured by nationally normed technologies and larger assessment projects at similar state universities. The data also suggest significant performance difference related to the institutional position of students' instructors as well as students' own enrollment status. The article concludes that while the data produced by this research project are compelling, the policy and political implications of the undertaking suggest greater sensitivity to the institution's culture and program direction as well as its impact on instructor morale, student learning environment and the place of composition studies in the university. (Contains 5 tables and 2 figures.) (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10