Objectives

Discuss the use of essay questions

Compare two types of essay questions
Hypothesize the advantages and
disadvantages of using essay questions
Compare two types of scoring rubrics
Evaluate sample essays using a scoring
rubric
Create examples of two types of essay
questions

Whats So Great About

Essay Questions?
They allow assessment of students
abilities to:
Formulate problems
Organize, integrate, and evaluate ideas
and information
Apply knowledge and skills

Forms and Uses of Essay

Questions

May be used to measure knowledge of

factual information
Full potential realized with more higherorder thinking problems

Useful in meeting learning outcomes

concerned with the abilities to
conceptualize, construct, organize,
integrate, relate, and evaluate ideas
in content areas such as: history,
civics, literature, science, math, etc.
Most widely used when the main
focus is on student writing in any
subject
Examples: distinguishing between

narrative essays, expository essays, and

persuasive essays or focusing on writing
process

Confucius Say
The freedom of response provided by
essay questions is not an all-or-nothing
affair but, rather, a matter of degrees.
Restricted
Response

ExtendedResponse

Restricted Response Essay

Questions

Usually limits both the content and the

response by restricting the scope of the
topic to be discussed, generally
indicated in the question
Useful for measuring learning outcomes
requiring interpretation and application
of data in a specific area
Any outcomes measured by an objective
interpretive exercise can be measured
by a restricted response essay question

Examples of Restricted
Response Essay Questions

Describe two situations that

demonstrate the application of the law of
supply and demand. Do not use those
examples discussed in class.
State the main differences between the
Vietnam War and previous wars in which
the United States has participated.
Why is the barometer one of the most
useful instruments for forecasting
weather? Answer in a brief paragraph.

The Restricted Response essay

question provides for more ease of
assessment, but it restricts the scope
of the topic to be discussed and
indicates the nature of the desired
response to the student which limits
his or her opportunity to demonstrate
these behaviors on their own.
Is there a better method for evaluating
complex achievement

Extended-Response Essay
Questions

Freedom of response allows student to

select information that they think is
pertinent, to organize the answer in
accordance with their best judgment,
and to integrate and evaluate ideas as
they deem appropriate
Places value on higher-order thinking
skills

Examples of ExtendedResponse Essay Questions

Imagine that you and a friend found a

magic wand. Write a story about an
adventure that you and your friend had
with the magic wand.
Compare developments in international
relations in the administrations of
President William Clinton and President
George W. Bush. Cite examples when
possible.

To Keep Things Simple

Objective Interpretive- select

Restricted Response Essay- supply
Extended-Response Essay- write

Pros & Cons of Essay

Questions

Apply your knowledge

They give student the
options to chose what they
want to write about
reasoning
The teacher can tell if the
student studies or not
Can often prepare in
advance what to write

Time consuming
Grading: grammar usage
vs. content
Legibility
Hard to formulate ideas in
time
Takes longer to grade

How Can We Change Those

Cons to Pros?

Unreliability- clearly defining learning

outcomes to be measured, properly
framing questions, carefully following
scoring rules, and obtaining practice in
scoring
Amount of time- reserve use of
extended-response questions for
learning outcomes that cannot be
measured well objectively

Limited Sampling- try to obtain as

representative a sample of learning
outcomes as possible (accumulate a
series of essays throughout the
school year to be included in a writing
portfolio)

Suggestions for
Constructing Essay
Questions

Restrict use of essays to learning

outcomes that cannot be measured well
objectively
Construct questions that call forth skills
specified in learning standards
Example box on page 235

Phrase the question so that the

students task is clearly indicated

Example:
Poor: Compare the Democratic and
Republican parties.

Better: Compare the current policies

of the Democratic and Republican
parties with regard to the role of
government in private business.
Support your statements with
examples when possible. (Your
answer should be confined to two
pages. It will be evaluated in terms of
the appropriateness of the facts and
examples presented and the skill with
which it is organized.)

Indicate an approximate time limit for

each question

Now that we have essay questions how

do we score them?

Scoring Essay Questions

Tips to remember
Use clear specifications of scoring
criteria
Inform students of scoring criteria
Use an initial review to find anchor
responses for comparison
Use descriptive rather than judgmental
scores or levels (writing is clear and
thoughts are complete vs. excellent)

Scoring for Restricted

Response Essay Questions

In most instances, the teacher should

write an example of an expected
response
For example, if the student is asked to

describe three factors that contributed to the

start of the EDSA people power, the teacher
would construct a list of acceptable reasons
and give the student 1 point for each of up to
three reasons given from the list

Scoring for ExtendedResponse Essay Questions

Analytic Scoring Rubrics
Consist of a rubric broken down into key
dimensions that will be evaluated
Enables teacher to focus on one
characteristic of a response at a time
Provides maximum feedback for
students

Holistic Scoring Rubrics

Yield a single overall score taking into
account the entire response
Can be used to grade essays more
quickly
Does not provide as much specific
feedback as analytic rubric
Should not consist of scores alone,
but rather contain scores
accompanied by statements of the
characteristics of the response

Suggestions for Scoring

Essay Questions

Prepare an outline of the expected

answer in advance and use a clear
scoring rubric
Use the scoring rubric that is most
appropriate
Decide how to handle factors that are
irrelevant to the learning outcomes
being measured

Evaluate all responses to one

question before going on to the next
one
When possible, evaluate answers
without looking at the students name
If especially important decisions are
to be based on the results, obtain two
or more independent ratings