A practicum was designed to determine board-wide standards for assessing student achievement in reading and writing in kindergarten through grade 8 by creating analyzed exemplars of student work. Reading and writing indicators were developed to be used as the basis for analyzing the reading and writing exemplars. Teachers collected writing…

In response to the segregation, stigmatization, and valorization that placement systems can cause, writing instructors at Ohio State University paired an honors class with a basic writing class. For each of 3 years, the paired classes met in adjoining computer-enhanced classrooms, and when the classroom dividing wall was opened, the students…

Designed to provide practical information for all elementary teachers, whether they are just getting started, getting comfortable, or fine-tuning their assessment program, this book examines manageable and practical ways to collect information about young learners. It presents the voices of many elementary teachers at various grade levels…

In July 1992, American College Testing convened a 5-day meeting to set achievement levels in writing for grades 4, 8, and 12 to be recommended for use in reporting the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Sixty-six panelists (teachers, non-teacher educators, and non-educators) attended the meeting and participated in the…

This study examined the actual performance of lower-achieving candidates in Standard Grade English. Information was collected over two years from the examination scripts and folios of course work of over 300 low-achieving students in grades three through six at several large schools throughout Scotland. A number of schools were visited to study…

A study examined the writing performance of American schoolchildren based on a survey conducted in 1992 by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Nationally representative samples of fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade students attending public and private schools--approximately 30,000 in all--responded to a variety of writing…

This summary report is the third of three reports (Preliminary, Final, and Summary) of the findings of the 1988 Provincial Writing Assessment in Manitoba, Canada for grades 4, 8, and 11 of English language schools. It contains a brief description of the study along with recommendations. The report notes that the 1988 Writing Assessment was the…

This final report is the second of three reports (Preliminary, Final, and Summary) of the findings of the 1988 Provincial Writing Assessment in Manitoba, Canada for grades 4, 8, and 11 of English language schools. It contains an overview of the purposes, procedures, and a detailed presentation of the findings and recommendations of the Writing…

This report describes the procedures used to collect, describe, and evaluate school-based writing in a special pilot portfolio study conducted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to explore portfolios as an alternative method of assessing students' writing achievement. The report has three main purposes: (1) to explore…

This study compared ISTEP+ (Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress) writing test scores before the implementation of a writing improvement program with ISTEP+ writing test scores. The study was conducted two years after such a program was implemented. Data from two groups was collected for this comparison. The first group used was the…

Literacy instruction does not end with reading success in early grades. As students move to middle and high school, new challenges emerge that can affect literacy achievement. Even for students who achieve early reading and writing success, the literacy demands of middle and high school can pose substantial challenges. Older students must be able…

The Nebraska K-12 Reading/Writing Standards reflect what students should know and be able to do by the end of grades 1, 4, 8, and 12. In addition to identifying grade-level specific standards, the Reading/Writing Standards are further divided into the following four topic strands: (1) Reading--decoding written language and using printed material…

This study invesitigated possible reasons for the low performance on the text-based writing assessment of the Delaware Student Testing Program (DSTP) in 2000, especially for grades 3 and 5, and considered ways to improve classroom instruction. In the first part of the study, a panel of teachers reviewed the anchor papers from the assessment and…

This study describes a program for students in the target 4th, 7th, and 8th grades who exhibit low achievement in writing. This low achievement affects behaviors, attitudes, and peer interactions. Discipline referrals, district assessments, and teacher written assessments substantiate this dilemma. Probable cause for lack of writing skills has…

Noting that electronic communication places new demands on language that leads to interesting variations in written language use, this Digest summarizes insights gained from research on writing behavior and performance in the electronic age. It concludes that both the process and the content of writing are evolving in response to the increased use…