Name : Lilik Agustinah

NIM : 1610117220013

Class : Language Testing and Assessment A3

Assessing Writing in The Language Classroom

Abstract : Every classroom lesson involves some form of assessment, whether it is in the form of

informal, unplanned, and intuitive teacher processing and feedback, or in formal, prepared, scored

tests. The purpose of this study is to description assessment and evaluation of writing skills.

Key words : Assessing, Writing

Introduction

Writing is one of the skills that should be mastered in learning English. In writing, there are several

stages that should be passage to achieve a good writing. And sometimes, students think that writing

is very difficult for them. It because in writing has a complex process (i.e., prewriting, writing and

editing). Like Nunan (2003) said that writing can mean product or process. And also writing

involves mental processes, thinking and rethinking to produce sentences. Writing process actually

is a way of looking at writing instruction in which emphasis is on what students think and do as

they write (Tompkins, 2000).

The writing assessment is the process of collecting, analyzing and recording information about

student progress towards achievement of syllabus outcomes. An important purpose of assessment

is to design appropriate learning programs for all students. Assessment is integral to teaching and

learning. It should be based on learning outcomes that specify what students know, understand and
are able to do with language. Writing assessment procedures should be related to the knowledge

and skills that are taught within the school program, and to the syllabus outcomes.

Discussion

Microskills and Macroskills of Writing

Microskills

 Produce graphemes and orthographic patterns of English.

 Produce writing at an efficient rate of speed to suit the purpose.

 Produce an acceptable core of words and use appropriate word order patterns.

 Use acceptable grammatical systems (e.g., tense, agreement, pluralization) patterns and

rules.

 Express a particular meaning in different in grammatical forms.

 Use cohesive devices in written discourse.

Macroskills

 Use the rhetorical forms and conventions of written discourse.

 Appropriately accomplish the communicative functions of written texts according to form

and purpose.

 Convey links and connections between events, and communicate such relations as main

idea, supporting idea , new information, given information, generalization, and

exemplification

 Distinguish between literal and impliate meanings when writing.

 Correctly convey culturally specific references in the context of the written text.
  Develop and use a battery of writing strategies, such as accurately assessing the audience's

interpretation, using prewriting devices, writing with fluency in the first drafts, using

paraphrases and synonyms, soliciting peer and instructor feedback, and using feedback for

revising and editing.

Types of Strategies for Teachers in Writing

In line with the implementation of CTL or contextual approach, there are some strategies that

teachers use in the classroom. There are five strategies proposed by Crawford (2001) as follows:

1. Relating

Relating is the most powerful element in contextual teaching strategy. It also suggests that

students’ learning in the context of one’s life experiences or preexisting knowledge

(Crawford, 2001). In relating, teachers link a new concept to something completely

unknown to students. Caine & Caine (1993) called this reaction “felt meaning.” That

reaction can be momentous, as when a student finds the solution to a problem that he or

she has spent significant time and effort in solving.

2. Experiencing

The previous statement appears to indicate that relating connects new information to life

experiences or prior knowledge that students bring to the classroom. Teachers are able to

overcome this obstacle and help students construct new knowledge with hand-on

experiences that occur inside the classroom. This strategy is called experiencing. In

experiencing, students are learning by doing through exploration, discovery, and invention

(Crawford, 2001).
3. Applying

Applying strategy can be defined as learning by putting the concepts to use (Crawford,

2001). Clearly, students can implement the concepts when they are engaged in hands on

problem solving activities. Teachers can also motivate a need for understanding the

concepts by assigning realistic and relevant exercises. Relating and experiencing are

strategies for developing insight, felt meaning, and understanding. Applying is a contextual

teaching and learning strategy that develops a deeper sense of meaning.

4. Cooperating

Teachers using student-led groups to complete exercises or hands-on activities are using

the strategy of cooperating. This strategy refers to learning in the context of sharing,

responding, and communicating with other learners (Crawford, 2001). Most students feel

less self-conscious and can ask questions without feeling embarrassed, when they work

with peers in a small group discussion. Another fact of cooperative learning is that it can

be counterproductive. For example, some students may not participate in the group

processes at all, while others may dominate and the group members may refuse to accept

or share responsibility for the group’s work. Johnson and Johnson (1990), who are the

leading researchers in cooperative learning, have established guidelines to help teachers

avoid those negative conditions and create environments where students may be expected

to learn concepts at a deeper level of understanding. The guidelines are divided into five

points: structuring positive interdependence within students learning groups; having

students interact while completing assignments and ensuring that the interactions are on-

task; holding all students individually accountable for com-pleting assignments and not

letting them rely overly on the work of others; having students learn to use interpersonal
 and small group skills; and ensuring that learning groups discuss how well the group

functions.

5. Transferring

Transferring is a teaching strategy that we define as using knowledge in a new context or

novel situation—one that has not been covered in class. It suggests that students who learn

with understanding can also learn to transfer knowledge (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking,

1999).

Types of Scoring in Writing

There are five scoring categories.

1. Critical Response to the Writing Task and Text

This category emphasizes ability to complete the writing task and to demonstrate

understanding of the main ideas in the reading text, using critical analysis, and integrating

own ideas and experiences to respond to the main ideas in the text.

2. Development of Writer’s Ideas

In this category are evaluated on the ability to develop the ideas (for example, by using

summary, narrative, or problem/solution) in a clear and organized way. The response

should include both general statements and specific details and examples. Specific

references to the text must be included with these details and examples.

3. Structure of the Response

This category evaluates the ability to organize ideas into a cohesive essay that supports a

central focus, or thesis. The structure of essay is evaluated for evidence of logical

connections between ideas and the use of transitions to convey these connections.
 4. Language Use : Sentences and Word Choice

This category evaluates the degree to which the students demonstrate sentence control and

variety in sentence structure. This category also evaluates the ability to use appropriate

vocabulary to make the ideas clear.

5. Language Use : Grammar, Usage, Mechanics

This category evaluates the students' ability to follow the conventions of standard

American English language use in terms of grammar and mechanics, so that the students'

meaning is clear.

Process for Assessing Writing Achievement

Within a planned whole-school approach, teachers gather assessment information based on

contributions from a variety of sources by, for example: collecting samples of students’ writing,

carefully selected over time, to provide evidence of progress; criteria for assessing writing need to

cover the whole text, sentence level and word-level aspects of the text observing students’

behaviour and interacting with them as they engage in the processes of writing during modelled,

guided and independent writing. analysing the student’s Basic Skills Test (BST) results using

student self-assessment recorded on self-editing checklists, self monitoring sheets and

questionnaires, conducting three-way conferences where the teacher, parent and student meet to

discuss the outcomes achieved and address relevant issues. Discussing student progress with

teaching staff (including ESL teachers, community language teachers and support staff) consulting

with outside specialists; for example, speech pathologist. Teachers analyse teaching and learning

experiences that develop the skills, knowledge and understandings needed to achieve the writing

outcomes towards which students are moving. Principles of effective instruction are adhered to.

Teachers monitor and record students’ evidence of progress.

Whether we are focusing on testing or assessing, a finite number of principles can be named that

serve as guidelines for the design of a new test or assessment and for evaluating the efficacy of an

exciting procedure.

1. Practicality

A good test is practical. It is within the means of financial limitation, time constraints, ease

of administration, and scoring and interpretation.

2. Reliability

A reliable test is consistent and dependable. A number of source of unreliability may be

identified :

 The test itself (it is construction), known as test reliability.

 The administration of a test.

 The test taker, known as student – related reliability.

 The scoring of the test, known as rater (or scorer) reliability.

3. Validity

By far the most complex criteria of a good test is validity, the degree to which the test

actually measure what it is intended to measure. How does one establish the validity of a

test? Statistical correlation with other related measures is a standard method. But ultimately,

validity can be established only by observation and theoretical justification.

4. Authenticity

In a test, authenticity may be present in the following ways :

 The language in the test is a natural as possible.

 Items are contextualized rather than isolated.

 Some thematic organization to items is provided, such as through a story line or episode.

 Tasks represent or closely approximate, real world tasks.

5. Wash back

When students take a test, ideally they will receive information (feedback) about their

competence, based on their performance. That feedback should “wash back” to them in the

form of useful diagnoses of strengths and weakness. Wash back also includes the effects

of an assessment on teaching and learning prior to the assessment itself, that is, on

preparation for the assessment. Informal assessment is by nature more likely to have built

in wash back effects, because the teacher is usually providing interactive feedback. Formal

tests can also have positive wash back, but they are also subject to an in advertent absence

of wash back if students simply receive a letter grade or a single overall numerical score.

Conclusion

Assessment is an integral aspect of the pedagogical process of designing lessons, implementing

them, and evaluating their success. Without an assessment component in every writing activieties

and every course, we could’nt determine the attainment of objectives and goals.

To assessing writing we have to considered to what levels and what assessment methods

appropriate to our students. We have also consider too the micro and macroskills of it, from

processing tiny bits and pieces of language to strategic, interactive, and complex skills of extended

discourse.

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