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Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the conventions of spelling and capitalization to use when developing text.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the conventions of punctuation to use when developing text.
- Demonstrate knowledge of appropriate word usage and grammatical sentence structure to use when developing text.
- Recognize methods of developing an introduction to a text that draws a reader's attention, specifies a topic, and provides a thesis.
- Recognize methods of developing the body of a text that presents, emphasizes, links, and contrasts ideas in a clear, concise, and coherent manner.
- Recognize methods of developing a conclusion to a text that provides a summary or resolution, suggests a course of action, or offers a personal commentary.
Sample Item:
A writer has drafted the short paragraph below as part of a persuasive essay.
For many students who are finishing up high school, taking a year off before heading to college may be a wise decision. In fact, today, some colleges even strongly encourage potential college first-years to take time off before attending. Taking time off can allow a student to explore his or her career interests, travel abroad and learn a new language, volunteer for a political campaign, or simply work full time to save money. ________________________________________________blank
Which of the following sentences would be most effective for the writer to use in the blank as a conclusion to this paragraph?
- Some high school students are not accepted at the colleges that they would like to attend, so they reapply to them the next year.
- There are many students who spend their first year of college partying, sleeping late, and skipping classes, which is a terrible waste.
- Some colleges have found that high school students who take a year off before attending college end up earning better grades in college.
- There are many exciting opportunities to take advantage of after high school, and going to college is only one of them.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
D. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of developing a conclusion to a text that provides a summary or resolution. The first two sentences of the paragraph introduce the idea that, for many students, taking a year off between high school and college may be advisable. Next, a list of several constructive ways in which to spend a year off is provided. In response D, the main idea of the paragraph is summed up most effectively and thus is the best conclusion; the other responses serve only to introduce more details, some of which are tangential to the main idea of the paragraph.
Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the appropriate form of writing to use for a particular purpose and audience.
- Recognize methods of generating and organizing ideas for writing.
- Recognize methods of drafting text to show logical development of a central idea or theme through the use of relevant supporting details.
- Recognize methods of revising text to eliminate wordiness, redundancy, distracting details, and extraneous information.
- Recognize methods of editing text to generate interest and clarify meaning, such as varying sentence length and structure, maintaining parallelism, and using appropriate transitions.
- Recognize methods of proofreading and preparing text for publication.
Sample Item:
A writer has drafted the short paragraph below as part of an expository essay.
Diana Chang is a contemporary Chinese American poet. She spent much of her childhood in China. Her work reflects her cultural heritage. Her work often exhibits the use of ancient Chinese verse forms.
Which of the following edited versions of this paragraph should the writer choose to use in the essay to engage the reader more fully and provide the clearest meaning?
- Diana Chang, who spent most of her childhood in China, is a contemporary Chinese American poet whose work reflects her cultural heritage. In fact, many of her poems exhibit the influence of ancient Chinese verse forms.
- Many contemporary Chinese American poets exhibit the use of ancient Chinese verse forms in their works. Diana Chang spent much of her childhood in China and now lives in the United States. As a result, her work often reflects her Chinese cultural heritage.
- Diana Chang spent much of her childhood in China. Now, she spends much of her adult life writing poetry. She is Chinese American. She writes poetry that reflects her cultural heritage. She writes poetry that reflects ancient Chinese verse forms.
- Many poets reflect their cultural heritage in their works. They use ancient verse forms. One contemporary Chinese American poet, Diana Chang, spent much of her childhood in China and now lives in the United States.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
A. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of editing text to generate interest and clarify meaning. In response A, the first three sentences of the original draft are combined to subordinate information in the clearest and most appropriate way. Also, the last sentence of the original draft is linked effectively to the preceding sentence by employing a transitional phrase ("In fact, . . .).
Descriptive Statements:
- Recognize methods of selecting and refining a topic for research.
- Recognize methods of composing specific, open-ended questions for a research topic.
- Recognize methods of identifying and locating multiple and various sources of information for a research topic.
- Recognize methods of assessing the credibility, objectivity, and reliability of sources of information.
- Recognize methods of gathering and organizing information from sources systematically.
- Recognize methods of paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting information from sources appropriately and of integrating a paraphrase, summary, or quotation effectively into a text.
- Recognize methods of citing or acknowledging sources of information appropriately in a text.
Sample Item:
A writer is developing a research paper and decides to use the passage below to support an idea in the paper.
Writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need. I started early and never quit. All fiction is based on research. We need voices that aren't ours and experiences we never had. In my case, it's invariably a young person's voice that jumpstarts my next novel. Happily, it keeps happening.
—"The Story as Alternative Universe," by Richard Peck (English Journal, p. 73)
Source: Peck, Richard. The Story as Alternative Universe. Copyright © 2008 by the National Council of Teachers of English. Reprinted with permission.
Which of the following attempts to quote and paraphrase this passage would be most appropriate for the writer to use in the paper?
- According to Richard Peck, writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need. He believes that all fiction is based on research, and for him, it is usually "a young person's voice" that provides him with a new perspective for "jumpstarting" his next novel (Peck 73).
- Most writers are like hunter-gatherers. They "need voices that aren't theirs and experiences they never had." For Richard Peck, it's usually a young person's voice that provides the impulse for beginning a new novel. "And happily," he is able to find that voice regularly (Peck 73).
- According to Richard Peck, "writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need." They must look outside themselves for people, places, and perspectives to use in their works that are new and revealing. "We need voices that aren't ours and experiences we never had" (Peck 73).
- Most fiction relies on research for its insights. Richard Peck points out that writers are like "hunter-gatherers." By nature and need, they must find "voices" that are not theirs and "experiences" that are not familiar to them. Happily for Peck, this "keeps happening" (Peck 73).
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
C. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of quoting from and paraphrasing sources appropriately. In response C, a signal phrase introduces the source of the ideas and the quotations used in the paragraph, attributing them appropriately to Richard Peck. Peck's main idea is also paraphrased appropriately; each quotation captures his unique ideas and forms of expression. The other responses provide deficient paraphrases and contain examples of plagiarism, misquoting, and ineffective or unnecessary quoting.
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