Testing Writing Nosotroslj

TESTING PRODUCTIVE SKILLS:
TESTING WRITING
March 27, 2021
Presented by:
Liza Jane C. Nosotros

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To be discussed:
✘ What is writing?
✘ Types of writing and Writing Performances
✘ Assessment tasks for each types of writing
✘ Issues in Assessing Responsive and Extensive Writing
✘ Test of Written English (TWE)
✘ Scoring Methods for Responsive and Extensive Writing
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Writing
Writing is the process of expressing the ideas, information, knowledge, or
experience and understand the writing to acquire the knowledge or some
information to share and learn. (White, 1986).
Writing is activity to produce or draw graphic symbols which represent a

language that is understood by people, so that other people can read the
graphic symbols presented. (Tarigan, 1994)
Writing is representation or symbol of language. (Ramelan, 1992)

GENRES OF WRITING
1. Academic Writing
2. Job-related Writing
3. Personal Writing
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1. Academic Writing
Academic writing is clear, concise, focussed,
structured and backed up by evidence. Its purpose is
to aid the reader’s understanding.
(papers and general subject reports, essays, compositions,

academically focused journals, short answer test responses,
technical reports (theses, dissertations)
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2. Job-Related Writing
Job-related writing gives only the need-to-know
information. Leaves everything out. It aims to
instruct reader to do something and explain what
reader needs to understand.
(messages (phone messages), letters/emails, memoranda

(interoffice), reports (job evaluation, projects reports),
schedules, labels, advertisements, announcements, manual)
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3. Personal Writing
Personal writing
requires you to reflect on the topic on
a personal level. Personal writing is not based on
research on the topic, but instead centers on your
opinions, thoughts, and experiences.
(greetings, cards, invitations, messages, shoppoing lists,

financial documents (checks, loan applications),
TYPES OF WRITING PERFORMANCE
1. Imitative
2. Intensive
3. Responsive
4. Extensive
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1. Imitative Writing or Writing Down
To produce written language, the learner must attain skills in the fundamental,
basic tasks of writing letters, words, punctuation, and very brief sentences. This
category includes the ability to spell correctly and to perceive phoneme-
grapheme correspondences in the English spelling system.
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1. Imitative Writing or Writing Down

Ex.
spelling test
matching
converting numbers to their word equivalent

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2. Intensive Writing (controlled)

is sometimes used as a production mode for learning, reinforcing, or testing
grammatical concepts and strictly controlled by the test design.
Ex.
grammatical transformation
✘ changing all verbs to past tense
✘ sequencing pictures
✘ describing pictures
✘ completing short sentences
✘ and ordering task
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3. Responsive Writing
involves the development of sentences into paragraphs. The purpose depends
almost exclusively on the context or function of writing.
Ex.
✘ short reports
✘ interpreting visual aids
✘ summary
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4. Extensive Writing
The student is able to shape a purpose, objectives, main ideas, conclusions, etc.
Into a coherent paper. Extensive writing also implies successful management
of all the processes and strategies of writing for all purposes.
✘ Research papers
✘ Term papers
✘ Project reports
✘ Thesis
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MICRO- AND
MACROSKILLS OF
WRITING
MICROSKILLS
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1. Produce graphemes and orthographic patterns of English.

2. Produce writing at an efficient rate of speed to suit the purpose.
3. Produce an acceptable core of words and use appropriate word order patterns.
4. Use acceptable grammatical systems (e.g. tense, agreement, pluralization, patterns, and
rules.
5. Express a particular meaning in different grammatical forms.
6. Use cohesive devices in written discourse.
MACROSKILLS
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7. Use the rhetorical forms and conventions of written discourse.

8. Appropriately accomplish the communicative functions of written texts according to form
and purpose.
9. Convey links and connections between events, and communicate such relations as main
idea, supporting idea, new information, given information, generalization, and
exemplification.
10. Distinguish between literal and implied meanings when writing.
11. Correctly convey culturally specific references in the context of the written text.
12. 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.
DESIGNING ASSESSMENT TASKS
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Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing
Tasks in Hand Writing Spelling Tasks and

Letters, Words, and Detecting Phoneme-
Punctuations Grapheme
1. Copying
1. Spelling tests
2. Listening cloze selection
2. Picture-cued
3. Picture-cued
4. Form completion
3. Multiple choice
5. Converting numbers and 4. Matching phonetic

abbreviations to words symbols
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1. Tasks in (Hand) Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations
For all the practical purposes, hand writing remains a skill of paramount
importance within the larger domain of language.
1.1 Copying
directing a test-taker to copy letters or words.
The test-takers reads: Copy the following words in the spaces given:
Bit___ bet___ bat___ but__ Oh?___ Oh!_
Bin___ bin___ gin___ pin__ Hello, John.____
Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing 20
Tasks in Hand Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations
1.2 Listening cloze selection tasks
these tasks combine dictation with a writers’ script that has a frequent deletion
ratio (every 4th or 5th word). This provides a list of missing words from which the test-
taker must select. So, the purpose at this stage is not to test spelling but to give
practice in writing.
Test-taker hear:
Write the missing word in each blank. Below the story is a list of words to choose
from.
Have ____ ever visited San Francisco? It ___ a very nice ___. It is _____ in
______summer and ____ in the winter. I _____the cable cars ____bridges.
is you cool city

like and warm the
1.3 Picture-cued tasks

Familiar pictures are displayed, and test-takers are told to write the word that the
picture represents.
Ex.
1.4 Form completion tasks
It is the use of a simple form (registration, application, etc) that tasks for name,
address, and other data.
Ex.
1.5 Converting numbers and abbreviations to words
Test-takers are directed to convert numbers and abbreviations to words.
Ex.
Test-taker hear: Fill in the blanks with words.
Test-takers see:
9:00 ___________
Tues ___________
5/3 ___________
726, Main St.___________________
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Spelling Tasks and Detecting Phoneme-Grapheme Correspondences
2. Spelling Tasks and Detecting Phoneme-Grapheme

Correspondences
This is use to assess the ability to spell words correctly and to process
phoneme-grapheme correspondences.
2.1 Spelling test – the teacher dictates a simple list of words followed by the
word in a sentence with a pause for test-takers to write the word.
Ex.
The test-takers hear:
receive believe title little
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2.2 Picture-cued tasks

Pictures are displayed with the objective of focusing on familiar words whose spelling
may be unpredictable.
Ex.
The test-taker see: The test-takers write:
Locker/rocker
Puncher/panzer
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2.3 Multiple choice techniques
Presenting words and phrases in the form of a multiple
choice task risks crossing over into the domain of assessing reading, but if items have a
follow-up writing component, they can serve as formative reinforcement of spelling
conventions. They might be more challenging with the addition of homonyms.
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2.3 Multiple choice techniques

Ex.
Test-takers read:
Choose the word with the correct spelling to fit the sentence, then write the word in the space provided.
1. He washed his hands with________________.
A. soap
B. sope
C. sop
D. soup
2. I tried to stop the car, but the _______________didn't work.
A. braicks
B. brecks
C. brakes
D. bracks
3. The door bell rang, but when I went to the door, no one was______________
A. their
B. there
C. they're
D. thair
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2.4 Matching phonetic symbols
Test-takers are asked to write the correctly spelled word alphabetically based on the
shown phonetic symbols.
Ex.
The test takers read: In each of the following words, a letter or combination of letters has
been written in a phonetic symbol. Write the word using the regular alphabet.
1. teacher
2. day
3. this
4. now
5. like
6. cat
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Designing Assessment Tasks: Intensive Writing
1. Dictation or Dicto-Comp
2. Grammatical Transformation Tasks
3. Picture-cued Tasks
3.1 Short sentences
3.2 Picture Description
3.3 Picture Sequence Description
4. Vocabulary Assessment Tasks
5. Ordering Tasks
6. Short Answer and Sentence Completion Tasks
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Designing Assessment Tasks: Intensive (controlled) Writing
1. Dictation or Dicto-Comp
This technique is a variation on the dictation procedure. The teacher reads a short
paragraph several times. The students listen carefully each time the paragraph is read.
After the teacher has finished reading the paragraph for the last time, the students should
write it as they remember it staying as close as possible to the original sequence of
events.
Ex.
✘ Rewriting the paragraph after the teacher read the passage from the best of their
recollection
*test-takers must internalize the content of the passage. He/she may recreate the story in their words.
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2. Grammatical Transformation Tasks

This technique is used as an assessment task, to measure grammatical competence.
Ex.
✘ Change the tenses in a paragraph
✘ Change full forms of verbs to reduced forms
✘ Change statements to yes or no/wh questions
✘ Change questions in to statements
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3. Picture-cued Tasks
This is to know how students write sentences based on
provided pictures grammatically.
3.1 Short sentences
A drawing of some simple action is shown; the test-taker writes a brief sentence.
Ex.
Tests-takers write:
She is eating. She is eating her dinner.

She is holding a spoon.
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Picture-cued Tasks
3.2 Picture description
Test-takers are asked to describe the picture using prepositions:
on over under next to around
Ex.
Test-takers write:
• A person reading on a couch

• A cat under the table
• Books and pencil on the table
• Chairs around the table
• A lamp next to the couch
• A picture on the wall
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Picture-cued Tasks
A sequence of pictures (3-6) depicting a story line that provides a suitable

stimulus for written production. If writing the correct grammatical form of a
verb is the only criterion, then some test items might include the simple form
of the verb.
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Picture-cued Tasks
Ex.
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Picture-cued Tasks
Ex.
Test-takers read:
Describe the man’s morning

routine in 6 sentences
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Picture-cued Tasks
Ex.
Test-takers write:
He gets up at seven o’clock.

He takes a shower at 7:05.
At 7:20, he gest dressed.
Then, he eats breakfast.
At 7:50, he brushes his teeth.
He leaves the house at 8:00.
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4. Vocabulary Assessment Tasks
The major techniques used to assess vocabulary are:
- defining
- using a word in a sentence
Ex.
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4. OrderingTasks
This task generates writing performance and may be said to tap into grammatical
word-ordering rules. Ordering or reordering a scrambled set of words into a correct
sentence.
Ex.
Test-takers read: Put the words below into the correct order to make a sentence:
cold / winter/ is/ weather / the / in/ the

✘ test-takers write: The weather is cold in the winter.
studying / what / you / are
✘ test-takers write: What are you studying?
next / clock / the / the / is / picture / to
✘ test-takers write: The clock is next to the picture
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4. Short-answer and Sentence Completion Tasks
Items are very simple and predictable to somewhat more elaborate responses.
Ex.
Test-takers see:
1. Alicia: Who’s that? 2.
Tony: ____________Gina. Jennifer: _______________?
Alicia: Where’s she from? Kathy: I’m studying English?
Tony: ____________Italy.

*Scoring on a 2-1-0 scale may be the most appropriate way to avoid self-arguing about the
appropriateness of a response.
ISSUES IN ASSESSING RESPONSIVE AND
EXTENSIVE WRITING
1. Authenticity
2. Scoring
3. Time
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Issues in Assessing Responsive and Extensive Writing

1. Authenticity
It is a trait that is given special attention. You need to check the validity of the
production presented by a test-taker and it needs to be authentic in order to bring out the best
in the writer. In this case the teacher becomes less of an instructor and more of a coach or
facilitator.
2. Scoring
These two last stages (responsive and extensive) are the hardest to be assessed. You
must assess not only the form (the way the writer put words together), but also the function
of the text (what the writer is trying to say).

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Issues in Assessing Responsive and Extensive Writing
3. Time
Another assessment issue surrounds the unique nature of writing, It is the only skill in
which the writer is not constrained by time. The writer is free to write as many drafts as he
wants before it becomes a final product.

DESIGNING ASSESSMENT TASKS: RESPONSIVE AND
EXTENSIVE WRITING
1. Paraphrasing
2. Guided Question and
Answer
3. Paragraph Construction
Tasks
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Designing Assessment Tasks

1. Paraphrasing
The initial step in teaching paraphrasing is to ensure that learners understand the
importance of paraphrasing:
• To say something in one’s own words

• To avoid plagiarizing
• To offer some variety in expression
*scoring of the test-taker’s response

primary - conveying the same or similar message
secondary -evaluation of discourse, grammar, and vocabulary.
*analytic and holistic scales might also be considered as criteria for an evaluation.
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2. Guided Question and Answer
This type of task has the pedagogical benefit of guiding a learner without dictating the
form of the output. The test administrator poses a series of questions that essentially serve as
an outline of the written text. Guided writing texts, may be scored on either analytic or a
holistic scale.
Ex.
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3. Paragraph Construction Tasks

3.1 Topic Sentence Writing
There is no rule that says every paragraph must have a topic sentence, but the stating of
a topic through the lead sentence has remained as a tried-and-true technique for teaching the
concept of a paragraph.

Assessment consists of:
• Specifying the writing of a topic sentence,

• Scoring points for its presence or absence, and
• Scoring and/or commenting on its effectiveness in stating the topic.
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3.2 Topic Development within a Paragraph
Because paragraphs are intended to provide a reader with “clusters” of meaningful,
connected thoughts or ideas, this another stage of assessment is development of an idea
within a paragraph.
4 Criteria Applied to Assess the Quality of a Paragraph
3.2.1 the clarity of expression of ideas

3.2.2 the logic of the sequence and connections
3.2.3 the cohesiveness or unity of the paragraph
3.2.4 the overall effectiveness or impact of the paragraph as a whoel
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3.3 Development of Main and Supporting Ideas Across Paragraphs
As writers string two or more paragraphs together in a longer text, the writer attempts
to articulate a thesis or main idea with clearly stated supporting ideas.
Elements in Evaluation
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4. Strategic Options
4.1 Attending to Tasks
In responsive writing, the context is seldom completely open-ended; a task has been
defined by the teacher or test administrator, and the writer must fulfill the criterion of the
task.
4 Types of Tasks Addressed in Academic Writing Courses:

4.1.1 compare/contrast
4.1.2 problem /solution
4.1.3 pros/cons
4.1.4 cause/effect
*Assessment of the fulfillment of the task – formative and informal
*Scoring – holistic or analytic score
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4.2 Attending to Genre
Another way of looking at the strategic options open to a writer is the extent to which
both the constraints and the opportunities of the genre are exploited.
Criteria to Assess Common Genre
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TEST OF WRITTEN ENGLISH

(TWE)
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TEST OF WRITTEN ENGLISH (TWE)
- one of the internationally available standardized tests of writing ability
- established in 1986
- is in the category of a timed impromptu test. The test-takers are under a 30-minute
time limit and are not able to prepare ahead of time for the topic that will appear.
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TEST OF WRITTEN ENGLISH (TWE)
The manual of D. Philipps entitled Longman Introductory course, tips for the
TWE test-takers to maximize success on the test.
1. Carefully identify the topic

2. Plan your supporting ideas
3. In the introductory paragraph, restate the topic and state the organizational
plan of the essay
4. Write effective supporting paragraphs
5. Restate your position and summarize in the concluding paragraph
6. Edit sentence structure and rhetorical expression.
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TEST OF WRITTEN ENGLISH (TWE): SCORING GUIDE
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Scoring Methods for Responsive and Extensive Writing
1. holistic
2. primary trait
3. analytical
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1. Holistic Scoring –
a single score is assigned to an essay, which represents a reader’s general overall
assessment.
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2. Primary Trait Scoring –

is a variaition of the holistic method in that the achievement of the primary
purpose, or trait, of an essay is the only factor rated.
This method also focuses on “how well students can write within a narrowly range
of discourse” (Weigle, 2002).
*For rating the primary trait of the text, Lloyd Jones (1997) suggested a four point
scale ranging from zero (no response or fragmented response) (the purpose is
accomplished in a convincing fashion) to 4.
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2. Primary Trait Scoring –

In summary, a primary trait score would assess:
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2. Analytic Scoring –
breaks a test-taker’s written text down into a number of subcategories
(organization, grammar, etc.) and gives a separate rating for each.
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2. Analytic Scoring –
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Beyond Scoring: Responding to Extensive Writing
1. Assessing Initial Stages of the Process of Composing
2. Assessing Later Stages of the Process of Composing

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1. Assessing Initial Stages of the Process of Composing

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1. Assessing Later Stages of the Process of Composing

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THANK YOU!

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TESTING PRODUCTIVE SKILLS:

Liza Jane C. Nosotros

Writing is activity to produce or draw graphic symbols which represent a

Writing is representation or symbol of language. (Ramelan, 1992)

(papers and general subject reports, essays, compositions,

(messages (phone messages), letters/emails, memoranda

(greetings, cards, invitations, messages, shoppoing lists,

1. Imitative Writing or Writing Down

1. Imitative Writing or Writing Down

converting numbers to their word equivalent

2. Intensive Writing (controlled)

1. Produce graphemes and orthographic patterns of English.

7. Use the rhetorical forms and conventions of written discourse.

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

Tasks in Hand Writing Spelling Tasks and

5. Converting numbers and 4. Matching phonetic

Tasks in Hand Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations

1.2 Listening cloze selection tasks

is you cool city

Tasks in Hand Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations

1.3 Picture-cued tasks

Tasks in Hand Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations

1.4 Form completion tasks

Tasks in Hand Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuations

1.5 Converting numbers and abbreviations to words

Test-takers are directed to convert numbers and abbreviations to words.

Test-taker hear: Fill in the blanks with words.

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

2. Spelling Tasks and Detecting Phoneme-Grapheme

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

2.2 Picture-cued tasks

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

2.3 Multiple choice techniques

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

2.3 Multiple choice techniques

Designing Assessment Tasks: Imitative Writing

2.4 Matching phonetic symbols

Designing Assessment Tasks: Intensive Writing

2. Grammatical Transformation Tasks

She is eating. She is eating her dinner.

• A person reading on a couch

3.3 Picture Sequence Description

A sequence of pictures (3-6) depicting a story line that provides a suitable

Describe the man’s morning

He gets up at seven o’clock.

cold / winter/ is/ weather / the / in/ the

4. Short-answer and Sentence Completion Tasks

Issues in Assessing Responsive and Extensive Writing

Issues in Assessing Responsive and Extensive Writing

2. Guided Question and

Designing Assessment Tasks

• To say something in one’s own words

*scoring of the test-taker’s response

Designing Assessment Tasks

Designing Assessment Tasks

3. Paragraph Construction Tasks

• Specifying the writing of a topic sentence,

Designing Assessment Tasks

3. Paragraph Construction Tasks

4 Criteria Applied to Assess the Quality of a Paragraph

3.2.1 the clarity of expression of ideas

Designing Assessment Tasks

3. Paragraph Construction Tasks

Designing Assessment Tasks