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Factors in Performance on Brief, Impromptu Essay Examinations. College Board Report No. 95-4.

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Factors in Performance on Brief, Impromptu Essay Examinations. College Board Report No. 95-4.
Language: English
Authors: Breland, Hunter M., College Entrance Examination Board, New York, NY.
Availability: College Board Publications, Box 886, New York, NY 10101-0886 ($12).
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 41
Publication Date: 1995
Document Type: Reports - Evaluative
Descriptors: Cohesion (Written Composition), English, Essays, Evaluation Methods, Higher Education, Holistic Evaluation, Language Proficiency, Performance Factors, Scores, Test Content, Test Results, Writing Evaluation, Writing Skills
Abstract: Brief, impromptu essays written for the 1990 administration of the College Board's English Composition Test (ECT) were randomly sampled for four groups of examinees. These essays were subjected to further holistic ratings beyond those conducted for the ECT, and analytical ratings were also obtained. The holistic scores were correlated with the analytical scores to determine which essay characteristics were most closely associated with high holistic scores. Results indicated that overall organization, use of supporting materials, noteworthy ideas, rhetorical strategy, and the thesis statement were the strongest correlates. Comparisons with the results of a study of 1979 essays on a different topic showed that the same characteristics were associated with high scores in that administration. These characteristics correlated strongly with high holistic scores for all subgroups and for males and females. Other factors associated with higher scores, studied only in 1990, were completion of the task, use of a standard essay format, use of literary references, and proficiency in the English language. Certain types of content were also associated with higher scores. Four appendixes present the essay topic, the rating form and instructions, supplementary ratings, and selected examples. (Contains 15 tables and 6 references.) (Author/SLD)
Entry Date: 1996
Accession Number: ED395980
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:Brief, impromptu essays written for the 1990 administration of the College Board's English Composition Test (ECT) were randomly sampled for four groups of examinees. These essays were subjected to further holistic ratings beyond those conducted for the ECT, and analytical ratings were also obtained. The holistic scores were correlated with the analytical scores to determine which essay characteristics were most closely associated with high holistic scores. Results indicated that overall organization, use of supporting materials, noteworthy ideas, rhetorical strategy, and the thesis statement were the strongest correlates. Comparisons with the results of a study of 1979 essays on a different topic showed that the same characteristics were associated with high scores in that administration. These characteristics correlated strongly with high holistic scores for all subgroups and for males and females. Other factors associated with higher scores, studied only in 1990, were completion of the task, use of a standard essay format, use of literary references, and proficiency in the English language. Certain types of content were also associated with higher scores. Four appendixes present the essay topic, the rating form and instructions, supplementary ratings, and selected examples. (Contains 15 tables and 6 references.) (Author/SLD)