Writing Assessment and the Revolution in Digital Texts and Technologies

Writing and the teaching of writing is changing at a rapid pace. How can educators understand writing assessment as and with technology in the 21st-century classroom? Michael Neal contends that new technologies are neither the problem nor the solution. Instead, educators need to tap into digital resources only inasmuch as they promote writing and its assessment as rhetorical with authentic purposes, audiences, and contexts. In this accessible text, Michael Neal provides an innovative framework for the formative and holistic assessment of students' digital composition at the college and high school level. Chapters address the recent evolution of writing assessment tools, the growing trend of computer automated scoring, and the immense future potential of technology-assisted assessments. This book provides frameworks to help teachers evaluate student-produced, multi-media writing; evaluates a wide range of current assessment technologies; addresses concerns about the current trend of machine scored composition; suggests ways teachers can implement digital technologies to improve student writing as well as engage learners.