ABSTRACT

Writing competency, often labeled as “written communication skills,” is one of the fundamental learning outcomes identified by institutions of higher education. Consequently, general education curricula often include programs such as first-year composition and writing-across-the curriculum/ writing-in-the-disciplines. As notions of what it means to write are complicated by digital media, these programs have also expanded to include more than just traditional essayistic literacy as reflected in programs with names such as communication-across-the-curriculum. Even in institutions that do not have designated writing programs, competency in writing is still considered one of the important goals of undergraduate education. Although much of this focus occurs in the classroom or within specific courses, writing also plays a significant role in assessment beyond the classroom in composition placement, proficiency exams, and program reviews. While most psychometricians consider writing assessment to include indirect methods such as short-answer and/or multiple-choice exams of editing, writing teachers prefer exams that require students to write (e.g., Broad, 2003; Diederich, 1974; O’Neill, Moore, & Huot, 2009). In this chapter, we focus exclusively on these types of assessments, so-called direct writing assessments.