Friday, May 10, 2013

English Teachers Reject Use of Robots to Grade Student Writing - Dan Berrett, Chronicle of Higher Ed

Critics of standardized tests argue that the written portion of those assessments can short-circuit the process of developing ideas in writing. Using machines to grade those tests further magnifies their negative effects, according to a statement adopted last month by the National Council of Teachers of English. As high-school students prepare for college, the statement reads, they "are ill served when their writing experience has been dictated by tests that ignore the evermore complex and varied types and uses of writing found in higher education." The intent of the statement, which was passed unanimously by the council's executive committee, is to prompt policy makers and designers of standardized tests to think more fully about the pitfalls of machine scoring, said Chris M. Anson, director of the writing-and-speaking program at North Carolina State University. http://chronicle.com/article/English-Teachers-Reject-Use-of/139029/