The document discusses different approaches to scoring student writing, including objective and holistic scoring. It provides examples of how objective scoring assigns a numerical score to student essays based on errors. Holistic scoring involves assigning a single overall score based on general quality rather than separate scores for individual elements. The document also includes sample rubrics for holistic scoring of language exams and student assignments.

1. Lecturer: Yee Bee Choo
IPGKTHO

2. Objective
Approaches
of Scoring
Holistic Analytic

3. This scoring approach relies on quantified methods of evaluating
students’ writing. A sample of how objective scoring is conducted is
given by Bailey (1999) as follows:
1. Establish standardization by limiting the length of the assessment:
Count the first 250 words of the essay.
2. Identify the elements to be assessed: Go through the essay up to the
250th word underlining every mistake – from spelling and mechanics
through verb tenses, morphology, vocabulary, etc. Include every error
that a literate reader might note.
3. Operationalise the assessment: Assign a weight score to each error,
from 3 to 1. A score of 3 is a severe distortion of readability or flow of
ideas; 2 is a moderate distortion; and 1 is a minor error that does not
affect readability in any significant way.
4. Quantify the assessment: Calculate the essay Correctness Score by
using 250 words as the numerator of a fraction, and the sum of error
scores as the denominator.
Essay correctness = sum of error scores
250

4. Advantages
 Emphasises the students’ strengths rather
than their weaknesses.
Disadvantages
 Still some degree of subjectivity involved.
 Accentuates negative aspects of the learner’s
writing without giving credit for what they
can do well.

5.  Often referred to as "impressionistic" scoring
 Involves the assignment of a single score to a
piece of writing on the basis of an overall
impression of it.
 Individual features of a text, such as
grammar, spelling, and organization, should
not be considered as separate entities.
 Has the advantage of being very rapid
(Hughes 1989: 86).

6.  Holistic Scoring Scale used by Educational
Testing Service for evaluating the Advanced
Placement Examination in foreign languages:
◦ works well and can be altered to fit the level of the
students and the focus of instruction.
◦ numerical scale that ranks performance at levels
described as "superior," "competent," and "incompetent."
◦ for each level, the descriptions can be changed to reflect
the kind of performance that teachers expect at a given
level of language ability.
◦ reliability of this scoring method is considered good
when the raters are trained to establish common
standards based on practice with the kinds of writing
samples that they will be evaluating (Cooper 1977).

7. Demonstrate s
Superiority
9 Strong control of the language; proficiency and variety in
grammatical usage with few significant errors; broad command
of vocabulary and of idiomatic language
Demonstrates
Competence
7-8 Good general control of grammatical structures despite some
errors and/or some awkwardness of style. Good use of idioms
and vocabulary. Reads smoothly overall.
Suggests
Competence
5-6 Fair ability to express ideas in target language; correct use of
simple grammatical structures or use of more complex
structures without numerous serious errors. Some apt
vocabulary and idioms. Occasional signs of fluency and sense of
style.
Suggests
Incompetence
3-4 Weak use of language with little control of grammatical
structures. Limited vocabulary. Frequent use of anglicisms,
which force interpretations on the part of the reader. Occasional
redeeming features.
Demonstrates
Incompetence
1-2 Clearly unacceptable from most points of view. Almost total
lack of vocabulary resources, little or no sense of idiom and/or
style. Essentially translated from English.
Floating Point A one-point bonus should be awarded for a coherent and well-organized
essay or for a particularly inventive one.

8.  In holistic scoring, the reader reacts to the
students’ compositions as a whole and a
single score is awarded to the writing.
 Normally this score is on a scale of 1 to 4, or
1 to 6, or even 1 to 10. (Bailey, 1998 : 187).
 Each score on the scale will be accompanied
with general descriptors of ability.
 The following is an example of a holistic
scoring scheme based on a 6 point scale.

9. TSL3123 Language Assessment
Assessment Rubrics
Task 1: Collecting Samples of Different Test Types (30%)
Scale Criteria
HIGH
DISTINCTION
(90-100)
27-30 MARKS
 Excellent compilation of samples from different types.
 Ideas are very effectively represented in i-Think thinking maps.
 Accurate grammar, vocabulary and spelling, errors, if any, are only minor first
draft slips.
DISTINCTION
(70-89)
23-26 MARKS
 Very good compilation of samples from different types.
 Ideas are effectively represented in i-Think thinking maps
 Almost entirely accurate grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
CREDIT
(60-69)
18-22 MARKS
 Good compilation of samples from different types.
 Ideas are well represented in i-Think thinking maps
 A few errors in grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
PASS
(50-59)
15-17 MARKS
 Satisfactory compilation of samples from limited types.
 Some ideas are satisfactorily represented in i-Think thinking maps.
 Some errors in grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
FAIL
(0-49)
0-14 MARKS
 Incomplete compilation/ poor choice of samples.
 Inability to represent relevant ideas in i-Think thinking maps.
 Errors are numerous and gross that impede understanding.

10. TSL3123 Language Assessment
Assessment Rubrics
Task 2: Designing Language Test and Preparing Marking Rubric (30%)
Scale Criteria
HIGH DISTINCTION
(90-100)
27-30 MARKS
 The test format is highly appropriate and meets the requirements of the learning outcomes.
 The test is very effectively developed using the Bloom’s and SOLO taxonomy.
 The scoring rubric is very effectively developed.
 The test consists of at least four items.
 Excellent and well organised. Excellent language and no grammatical errors.
DISTINCTION
(70-89)
23-26 MARKS
 The test format is very appropriate and meets most of the requirements of the learning outcomes.
 The test is effectively developed using the Bloom’s and SOLO taxonomy.
 The scoring rubric is effectively developed.
 The test consists of at least four items.
 Very good organisation. Very good language with one or two grammatical errors.
CREDIT
(60-69)
18-22 MARKS
 The test format is appropriate and meets many of the requirements of the learning outcomes.
 The test is well developed using the Bloom’s and SOLO taxonomy.
 The scoring rubric is well developed.
 The test consists of three items.
 Good organisation. Good language with a few grammatical errors.
PASS
(50-59)
15-17 MARKS
 The test format is acceptable and meets some of the requirements of the learning outcomes.
 The test is satisfactory developed using the Bloom’s and SOLO taxonomy.
 The scoring rubric is satisfactory developed.
 The test consists of two items.
 Satisfactory organisation. Satisfactory language with some grammatical errors.
FAIL
(0-49)
0-14 MARKS
 The test format is not acceptable and does not meet most of the requirements of the learning outcomes.
 The test is very poorly developed using the Bloom’s and SOLO taxonomy.
 The scoring rubric is very poorly developed.
 The test consists of one item.
 Poor organisation. Poor language with many grammatical errors.

11. TSL3123 Language Assessment
Assessment Rubrics
Task 3: Reporting the Test Results (30%)
Scale Criteria
HIGH DISTINCTION
(90-100)
27-30 MARKS
 Excellent description of the report, supported by a very comprehensive range of item
analysis.
 Convincing, critical and detailed interpretation based on the test results.
 Convincing, critical and detailed discussion and suggestions.
 All references are cited using correct APA format.
DISTINCTION
(70-89)
23-26 MARKS
 Very good description of the report, supported by a substantial range of item analysis.
 Critical and detailed interpretation based on the test results.
 Critical and detailed discussion and suggestions.
 Most references are cited using correct APA format.
CREDIT
(60-69)
18-22 MARKS
 Detailed description of the report, supported by a good range of item analysis.
 Detailed interpretation based on the test results.
 Detailed discussion and suggestions.
 Many references are cited using correct APA format.
PASS
(50-59)
15-17 MARKS
 Reasonable description of the report, but may lack some supporting item analysis.
 Competent and acceptable interpretation based on the test results.
 Competent and acceptable discussion and suggestions.
 Some references are cited using correct APA format.
FAIL
(0-49)
0-14 MARKS
 Inadequate description of the report with insufficient supporting item analysis.
 Inadequate interpretation based on the test results.
 Inadequate discussion and suggestions.
 References are poorly or not cited using the APA format.

12. TSL3123 Language Assessment
Assessment Rubrics
Task 4: Online Participation (10%)
Scale Criteria
HIGH DISTINCTION
(90-100)
9-10 MARKS
 Very high frequency in participating in answering the posed questions on facebook group.
 Excellent opinion on the discussion question.
 Excellent understanding of the issues involved in the discussion question.
 Accurate grammar, vocabulary and spelling, errors, if any, are only minor first draft slips.
DISTINCTION
(70-89)
7-8 MARKS
 High frequency in participating in answering the posed questions on facebook group.
 Very good opinion on the discussion question.
 Very good understanding of the issues involved in the discussion question.
 Almost entirely accurate grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
CREDIT
(60-69)
6 MARKS
 Always participate in answering the posed questions on facebook group.
 Good opinion on the discussion question.
 Good understanding of the issues involved in the discussion question.
 A few errors in grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
PASS
(50-59)
5 MARKS
 Sometimes participate in answering the posed questions on facebook group.
 Adequate opinion on the discussion question.
 Adequate understanding of the issues involved in the discussion question.
 Some errors in grammar, vocabulary and spelling.
FAIL
(0-49)
0-4 MARKS
 Seldom participate in answering the posed questions on facebook group.
 Weak opinion on the discussion question.
 Limited understanding of the issues involved in the discussion question.
 Many errors in grammar, vocabulary and spelling that impede communication.

13. Advantages
 Quickly graded.
 Provide a public standard that is understood
by the teachers and students alike.
 Relatively higher degree of rater reliability.
 Applicable to the assessment of many
different topics.
 Emphasise the students’ strengths rather
than their weaknesses.

14. Disadvantages
 The single score may actually mask
differences across individual compositions.
 Inasmuch as the whole is often greater than
the sum of its parts, a composite score may
be very reliable but not valid (Hughes 1989:
93-94)
 Does not provide a lot of diagnostic
feedback. The student will not necessarily
know the reason for his or her grade on the
writing.

15.  A method of scoring that requires a separate
score for each of a number of aspects of a task,
such as grammatical accuracy, vocabulary,
idiomatic expression, organization, relevance,
coherence.
 Disposes of the problem of uneven development
of subskills in individuals.
 Scorers are compelled to consider aspects of
performance which they might otherwise ignore.
 The very fact that the scorer has to give a
number of scores will tend to make the scoring
more reliable.

16. Characteristics:
 Involve the separation of the various feature
of a composition into components for scoring
purposes
 Scoring schemes provide more detailed
information about a test taker’s performance

17. Components Weightage
Content 30 points
Organisation 20 points
Vocabulary 20 points
Language use 25 points
Mechanics 5 points
TOTAL 100 points
The points assigned to each component reflect the
importance of each of the components.

18. Advantages
 It provides clear guidelines in grading in the form
of the various components.
 Allows the graders to consciously address
important aspects of writing.
 It presents a good analysis of a problem and/or
strongly state a position.
 It allows students to see areas in their own
essays that need work when accompanied by
written comments and a breakdown of the final
score. Its diagnostic nature provides students
with improvement.

19. Disadvantages
 It’s time-consuming. Teachers may make many
judgments about one piece of writing.
 Writing ability is unnaturally split up into
components.
 Concentration on the different aspects may divert
attention from the overall effect of the piece of
writing.
 Negative feedback can be pedagogically
destructive. Teachers who combine analytic
scoring with confrontational or unclear
comments - especially about issues of grammar
- may actually inhibit student growth.

20. Ways to Maximise the Effectiveness of the Scoring
Methods:
 Coming up with a written analytic scale to define
grading criteria clearly.
 Weighing the criteria according to their importance.
For example, if the goal of an assignment is the
assimilation of course material, then logic, ideas,
arrangement and resourcefulness are rewarded more
than grammar and mechanics.
 Providing formative feedback in the form of marginal
and end comments whereby the comments are
balanced and challenging yet supporting the
students.
 Avoiding use of sarcasm in comments.

21. 1. Traditional Letter Grade System
 Students’ performance is summarised by
means of letters
 Easy to understand but is of limited value
when used as a sole report
 They end up being a combination of
achievement, effort, work habits, behaviour.
 Difficult to interpret
 Do not indicate patterns of strengths and
weaknesses

22. 1. Traditional Letter Grade System
A •Excellent
B •Good
C •Average
D •Needs Improvement
E •Failure

23. 2. Pass-Fail System
 Utilise a dichotomous grade system
 Does not provide much information
 Students tend to work to the minimum (just
to pass)
 In mastery learning courses, no grades are
reflected until “mastery” threshold is reached.

24. 2. Pass-Fail System
Pass
Fail

25. 3. Checklist of Objectives
 Objectives of the courses are enumerated
 After each objective, the students’ level of
achievement is indicated
 Very detailed reporting system
 More informative for parents and students
 Time-consuming to prepare
 POTENTIAL PROBLEM- keeping list
manageable and understandable

26. 3. Checklist of Objectives
Objective 1
•Fair
Objective 2
•Outstanding
Objective 3
•Very Poor
Objective 4
•Good
Objective 5
•Very Good