NYSED Responses to OPT Essay ScoringQ and A

February 2010

Q 1. The GED Official Essay Scoring Guide (chart format) lists ability to understand the writers idea at the top of the chart and then breaks down five points: 1. Response to Prompt 2. Organization 3. Development and Details 4. Conventions of Edited American English (EAE) 5. Word choice Is this a hierarchy of importance? Some of the scorers saw it as such but were confused how to put all the different components togetherespecially if they conflicted with one another. For example syntax, if the essay is written in non-standard syntax does that impact the scoring? It would seem to fall under Conventions of EAE, which is low on the list, but could really make an essay hard to understand. A 1. It is not an exact hierarchy of importance, as holistic scoring asks you to consider all of these components in an overall impression. The definition of holistic scoring used by the GED Testing Service (GEDTS) is, Holistic Scoring is a method of evaluating writing in which a reader judges a piece of writing for its overall effectiveness. No one factor neither grammar, organization, spelling, etc. is weighted more than another in determining the overall effectiveness of the piece of writing. However, if the essay has no clear focus and lacks organization and development, then the conventions of Edited American English (EAE)/word choice may not even need to be considered. From the GEDTS Scoring Points training materials, There are three key factors from the scoring guide to consider: focus (response), organization, and development. Usually, if focus, organization and development are lacking, the issues of EAE and word choice wont factor into the score. Another critical point to remember from the GEDTS Guidelines for Holistic Scoring: This is only a 45 minute test. Remember, examinees had only 45 minutes to read the prompt, write a first draft, and write the final draft. Do not compare the finished product with your writing assignments for which students have longer preparation time. Regarding the specific syntax issue, it really depends on the impact of the errors - ask yourself, Does the use of language (sentence structure, EAE and word choice) cause the reader to have difficulty identifying and following the writers ideas? So, it is certainly possible that non-standard syntax that does not complicate the readers comprehension of the essay may not negatively impact the score at all. Conversely, syntax usage that really makes an essay hard to understand - per the question - would certainly affect the scoring. Q 2. One of the attendees had read an OPT essay that was well written but used texting abbreviations like U for you and R for are. Is this just a spelling mistake? A 2. To date, GEDTS has not issued specific guidance regarding this new trend. However, when asked for clarification by our essay scoring staff, they indicated that at this time, texting abbreviations should be considered much like misspellings - errors in the use of Conventions of EAE. Q 3. It was understood by the scorers that the perspective of the essay should not be taken into account when scoring. That is to say if the perspective is racist or negative in someway, that
NYSED 02/22/2010

this should not be reflected in the scoring. However, in at least one scorers experience when looking at how his students score on the essay on the actual GED there does seem that essays that are more positive or have a better message get a higher score. Is this something that is talked about when scoring the actual GED essays? A 3. Since OPT scorers do not see what testers write on the actual GED test, this assertion is very questionable. Yes, Reader Objectivity Issues are a key part of the GEDTS certified essay reader training and are also included under their Guidelines for Holistic Scoring. Specifically, readers are instructed to be aware of and avoid potential biasing factors, such as personal reactions to the persona or tone of the response and reactions to the content of the response. Q 4. If the essay is well written but the writer obviously ran out of time so there is no conclusion etchow is that scored? A 4. The reader should score a response based solely whats on the paper assume nothing. From GEDTS Scoring Points, Scoring holistically, the reader cannot project what a writer might have meant or might have included. The reader can only score what the words on the paper communicate or fail to communicate. Q 5. What if the writer wrote a very good essay but obviously misunderstood the prompt, how is that scored? A 5. As long as the response is connected/related to the prompt, it should not impact the scoring. Ask yourself, Does the paper respond to the prompt? Note that while in discussions we often use the words topic and essay, the GEDTS only uses the terms prompt and response when discussing actual testing. The prompt is given to elicit a response, or, a writing sample. The current prompts are deliberately general so there cannot be a right or wrong response, and it is extremely difficult to be considered off topic. Many GED Language Arts, Writing, Part II preparation materials contain a wide variety of essay topics which may ask for comparison and contrast, to support/disagree with a statement, etc. While practicing writing for a variety of audiences/purposes is a critical component of writing skills development, the prompt on the actual test will be general. Remember, this is not an essay but only a writing sample. Q 6. Is there a minimum length? A 6. No, there is no minimum length. Its possible for a short response to adequately address the areas of response to the prompt, organization, conventions of EAE and word choice, but it may not be effective enough in development and details to achieve coherent development with specific and relevant details and examples. However, as part of training readers are instructed, Dont assume that all short responses are 1s and all long responses are 3s or 4s. From GEDTS Scoring Points, A 1-score may have five paragraphs, but if the sentences in those paragraphs fail to establish a focus, organize the information and provide a sufficient amount of detail, then the reader will have difficulty identifying and following the writers ideas. Q 7. How does the complexity of topic covered affect the scoring? Example: One essay talks about wearing a seat belt as the most important rule, and another essay tackles the golden rule as the most important rule. A 7. As the tester has no choice in what topic he or she receives, the topic should in no way impact the scoring. Readers are trained to not compare a paper to another paper or rank papers in terms of quality. When in doubt, refer to the scoring guide criteria.

NYSED 02/22/2010