Automated writing evaluation(1995-2022):Research trends and implications

Automated writing evaluation is the use of computer programs to evaluate essays written in an educational setting.This study aims to evaluate the state of the art and the trends of automated writing evaluation research.A total of 206 automated writing evaluation-related publications published in 88 journals between 1995 and 2022 were used as the data in our study.Bibliometric methods were employed to identify the publication trends,venues for publication,productive authors,highly cited articles,seminal works,and the most frequently explored topics across the past decades.The findings show that automated writing evaluation has become a fast-growing interdisciplinary area of interest.In addition,this line of research has witnessed a growing interest in topics pertaining to the latest technology,the perception of children,the teachers’feedback,and complex tasks.Implications of our study for future research are also discussed.

A Literature Review on Automated Writing Evaluation

This paper aims to make a brief review on automated writing evaluation(AWE) tools in English writing instruction both at home and abroad. In this paper, seven AWE tools are summarized, including Project Essay Grade(PEG), Intelligent Essay Assessor(IEA), the Electronic Essay Rater(E-rater) and Criterion, Intelli Metric and MY Access!, and Bayesian Essay Test Scoring System(BETSY), all of which are widely used abroad.While in China, i Write 2.0 and the Pigai system are used broadly.Through describing the developing process of AWE system, this paper tends to provide a general knowledge of AWE system.

The Impact of Online Automated Writing Evaluation:A Case Study from Dalian

Automated writing evaluation （AWE） technology is being adopted in classrooms in China and the USA. This paper presents the results of a case study of the application of AWE in Dalian, China. The quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2010 in Chinese middle school English language classrooms. An effect size of 0.30 was found in favor of the experimental group using AWE as an online formative assessment. Student survey responses and teacher observations are presented as convergent evidence to illustrate the impact AWE technology has on teachers, students, and student achievement in English writing.

A Systemic Approach to Continuation Writing

Continuation writing,a new form of testifying students’comprehensive English competence,is also a way to better English as a foreign language.The author here,aiming to use it as an efficient way of boosting students’English competence,proffers a systemic approach for students to getting familiar with and getting close to the writing to improve their ability based on writing after reading.Therefore,this paper is all about the systemic way of approaching continuation writing,including the recognition of the criteria,the ideal writing steps or procedures,the writing evaluation and so on.With all the work done here,the author had hoped to provide the frontline teachers and students a bird view of the continuation writing and a practical way to it.

The Impact of Teacher Involved Peer Feedback in the ESL Writing Class

Among the many possible ways to assessing writing by giving feedbacks, the peer evaluation method is viewed as a relatively effective one for students. Traditional one-way teacher feedback with which the teachers usually make great efforts to mark out all errors had been proved to be unscientific. In this article, based on the specific situation in two English major classes in Wenhua Institute attached to HUST, a series of training and experiments were designed with the aim of proving the effect of peer evaluation in writing class. It is emphasized that language teachers should recognize the practical value of peer evaluation, and try to help students be involved in making peer responses in the writing process actively, so that students can get meaningful experience from evaluating their peers＇ writing, which, in turn, will enhance their own ability to produce more satisfactory essays.

An Analysis of a Writing Test in a Chinese Senior High School

This paper analyzes the design and implementation of a normal writing test in a senior high school. In line with theories of test evaluation, an effective writing test should try to meet the balance of the six usefulness, which will be discussed in this paper; thereafter, pedagogical implications will be mentioned with an emphasis on how a test affects the teachers in changing their teaching approaches and motivates the learners in achieving higher goals in their writing proficiency.

Analyzing the Essay Writing Patterns of Iranian Intermediate-Level Korean Language Learners: A Study Based on the TOPIK Exam

This study examines the writing abilities of Iranian intermediate Korean learners,specifically their performance in the compositional writing section of the Test of Proficiency in Korean(TOPIK).By utilizing the many FACETS-Rasch Model,we meticulously analyzed nine writing samples from the 52nd TOPIK.These samples were evaluated using a modified rubric ranging from 0 to 3 based on predefined criteria for written composition.The results underscored that the sections on“appropriateness of spacing and spelling,”“relevance of vocabulary,”and“content diversity”presented the most significant challenges for the learners.On the other hand,“the quantity of writing”emerged as the least challenging aspect.These findings reveal substantial disparities in various aspects of writing proficiency among learners.The study not only pinpoints issue areas in writing skills,but also underscores the necessity of customized teaching strategies within the TOPIK framework to address these weaknesses.Consequently,it offers valuable insights that could bolster the effectiveness of teaching writing to Korean language learners.The findings of this study are not only significant for the field of language education,but also contribute to a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by intermediate learners and provide a roadmap for improving language instruction.

An Investigation on Chinese Elementary and Secondary School English Teachers' Perceptions on AWE as Formative Assessment Tools

The research is designed to examine current teaching practices and perceptions of elementary and secondary school language teachers so as to inform the design of a large-scale project on AWE （Automated Writing Evaluation） application in the Chinese classroom. The data indicated that teachers were confident in their computer use and understood formative assessment notions and their role in technology-enhanced teaching and learning. However, concerns were raised on the writing rubrics interpretation, the pedagogy on integrating AWE into teaching, and the suitability of the whole English software to Chinese learners. Solutions and suggestions were discussed. Sample lesson plans, pedagogy training and technical support were considered necessary for the participating teachers.