A series of a student documents
created over a period of time could be submitted for
computer analysis that provides an assessment of the
student's progress towards individual writing goals.
The particular standards used to assess student
writing ability on important tests like the SAT II
could be used to help project the student's
performance on that test and structure their
preparation for it. Exercises could be created to
provide the student with an individualized sequence
of study that would prepare the student for the
test. Many of these exercises could be automated
through a program using computerized lesson plans to
help the student develop targeted skills. These
exercises could be made available either on the
internet or on a CD-ROM.
The computer could analyze a set of
essays produced by a given class and help the
teacher determine which writing exercises would best
benefit the most students at that particular time in
the school year. Since a hypertext exercise book,
linked to our punctuation rules and composition
handbooks, would also serve individual student
needs, the teacher can devise lessons that slide
between group activities and individual exercises
which make the most efficient use of class time.
The computer could analyze a
complete grade level and determine patterns of
achievement for the grade as a whole. This
assessment would give administrators and department
heads the ability to check how the students as a
whole were progressing towards established writing
objectives.
These statistics could be compared
with performance evaluations of larger groups of
students in a given age group or region. This
functionality could supply useful information
comparing performance in a variety of demographic
groups. These studies might be more useful than
other tests of intelligence because they directly
measure the ability of the student to write clearly
and effectively, a primary educational goal.
