Pulaski County Schools
Somerset KY
Writing Portfolios
Assessment Home
- WHAT is it?
A writing portfolio is a compilation of student work, chosen by the student, to
display that student’s best writing pieces.
Portfolios at the 4th and 7th grades will consist of three pieces: reflective,
personal expressive or literary, and transactive.
• The 4th grade students do not have to identify content in the table of
contents since the Ungraded Primary encourages elementary teachers to utilize
interdisciplinary units of study, making content identification sometimes
difficult.
• The 7th grade students will need to identify a content area piece other than
English/Language Arts.
The 12th grade portfolio will consist of 4 pieces: reflective, personal
expressive or literary, transactive, and transactive w/analytical or technical
focus.
• One piece will be from a content area other than the required English courses.
• All grade levels will have a choice of selecting either a personal expressive
or a literary piece for their accountability portfolio.
The scoring rubric has changed from a holistic rubric to an analytic
rubric. The Kentucky Board of Education recommended the change to an analytic
rubric to align the state with national standards and to give feedback that is
more precise to the writer to allow improvement in writing. The analytic rubric
offers several advantages over the holistic rubric, including the ability to
identify the areas of strengths and weaknesses of the writer in content,
structure, or conventions. Scoring will be analytical, meaning readers will
score 3 separate areas of writing in one piece at a time. Scores will then be
added together to arrive at a raw composite score. This score will then be used
to determine the student’s overall performance level based on scale scores and
cut points.
WHO submits a portfolio?
Students in grades 4, 7 & 12 will submit portfolios.
WHEN will submission occur?
Portfolios are due on the first day of the KCCT testing window, which is April
21, 2008. Districts may file a request for an extension of portfolio development
for schools on block schedules. Contact the Division of Assessment Support for
more information.
WHY create this portfolio?
Student portfolios are created to gauge a student’s improvement in writing
skills.
First, post-secondary educators emphasized the fact that Kentucky students were
coming to college much better prepared in terms of their writing skills.
Secondly, the business community noted that while students were better writers,
they still needed more focus on the kinds of writing they would experience in
the workplace.
After discussion with over 10,000 teachers, administrators and other
stakeholders through focus groups, surveys, trainings, and email discussions,
several important changes were recommended by the Kentucky Board of Education.
On-Demand Writing for 5th and 8th Grades
WHAT is it?
The On-Demand Writing consists of one 60-minute direct prompt and 12 multiple
choice questions on revising and editing skills. The fifth grade will use either
the letter or article form that is assigned in the task statement of the prompt.
The eighth grade will have expanded choices for using these forms: letter,
article, editorial, or speech.
WHO is testing?
Students in grades 5 and 8 will be assessed.
WHEN will testing occur?
The KCCT testing window is April 21-May 2, 2008.
WHY give this test?
To demonstrate a student’s ability to write, revise and edit various writing
forms or styles by use of a direct prompt and multiple choice items.
On-Demand Writing for 12th Grade
WHAT is it?
Students will answer two prompts: a 90-minute
direct prompt and a 60-minute passage-based prompt. The direct prompt will be
scored holistically and used in accountability, while a sample passage or
text-based prompt will be scored with the new analytic rubric. In the 2007-2008
school year, both types of prompts will be used in the live operational
assessment, scored analytically, and included in accountability reports.
WHO is testing?
Students in 12th grade will be assessed.
WHEN will testing occur?
The 12th grade on-demand testing window is September 17-28, 2007.
WHY give this test?
To assess the student’s ability to write using various forms or styles and to
better prepare them to enter the college or work world.
More information from the
Kentucky Department of Education.
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