A Variety of Assessment Tools

While all the articles I read identify various tools to assess student writing, Alber-Morgan, Hessler, & Konrad (2009) identify 20 common tools to assess student writing. They are as follows:

• Use writing portfolios
• Measure time spent prewriting
• Count number of ideas in planning notes
• Count number of words written
• Count correct word sequence
• Calculate correct word sequences minus incorrect word sequences
• Count number of correct punctuation marks
• Use rubrics
• Use analytic scale scoring
• Form a committee to score student work
• Administer the Test of Written Language (Third Edition)
• Administer the Test of Early Written Language (Second Edition)
• Administer the Written Language Assessment
• Administer the Test of Adolescent and Adult Language (Third Edition)
• Administer the Writing Process Test
• Encourage self-evaluation
• Teach students to peer evaluate
• Use selective grading of student work
• Use selective grading of specific writing skills
• Use selective grading of CBM writing samples 

While some of these writing assessment tools will be discussed in more detail, all of the above measure different aspects of student writing, and should be considered when selecting an appropriate tool to assess student writing.