Communication Across the Curriculum
Grading and Evaluation Tools
" Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can
be counted counts." Albert Einstein
Assessment of writing, like writing itself, is a process. It's a process that
reflects ongoing classroom practices, not just end of the term products. Not
all evaluation is about ranking and sorting students. Some types of evaluation
are formative, meaning that they inform students about how they are doing and
how they might improve through the process of revision. Other types of assessment
are summative, providing ending commentary on writing submitted for evaluation
rather than revision. Teaching Writing Intensive courses offers professors an
opportunity to reflect on how they evaluate writing, on what they value about
good writing, and on how to convey some of those messages to their students.
The articles in this section review different types of evaluation, including
the use of portfolios. Portfolio evaluation is one of the key features of the
UNCG Composition Program, and portfolios are used widely across disciplines
as an assessment tool.
Articles, Books, and Book Chapters