judging criteria for essay writing competition

The Scholastic Awards Writing Rubric: What Is It and How Can It Improve Your Writing?

When jurors review writing works during the awards selection process, they must keep in mind the Awards’ three judging criteria:

Originality

Work that breaks from convention, blurs the boundaries between genres, and challenges notions of how a particular concept or emotion can be expressed.

Technical Skill

Work that uses technique to advance an original perspective or a personal vision or voice, and shows skills being utilized to create something unique, powerful, and innovative.

Emergence of a Personal Voice or Vision

Work with an authentic and unique point of view and style.

We’ve used the same judging criteria since the Awards began in 1923 and have found it useful for identifying works that show promise. But how are those criteria used when reviewing teen writing? To assist our judges with making their selections, we’ve put together a rubric that offers guides to help the jurors determine which works meet the criteria and which works exceed them.

Students and educators may want to review the rubric to see where their works fall and what they can improve. For instance, rambling sentences can drown out a strong voice, and works that are grammatically correct can fall short of the originality criteria if they don’t present any new ideas. Like any skill, writing can be improved with practice, and reviewing the rubric may help.

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Zoya Makkar, Awake from an Ignorant Slumber , Photography. Grade 10, Plano East Senior High School, Plano, TX. Karen Stanton, Educator ; Region-at-Large, Affiliate . Gold Medal 2021

Criteria for Judging

Content (55%), demonstrated understanding of political courage.

• Demonstrated an understanding of political courage as described by John F. Kennedy in  Profiles in Courage
• Identified an act of political courage by a U.S. elected official who served during or after 1917.
• Proved that the elected official risked his or her career to address an issue at the local, state, national, or international level
• Explained why the official's course of action best serves or has served the larger public interest
• Outlined the obstacles, dangers, and pressures the elected official is encountering or has encountered

 Originality

• Thoughtful, original choice of a U.S. elected official
• Story is not widely known, or a well-known story is portrayed in a unique way
• Essay subject is not on the list of most written about essay subjects .

Supporting Evidence

• Well-researched
• Convincing arguments supported with specific examples
• Critical analysis of acts of political courage

Source Material

• Bibliography of five or more varied sources
• Includes primary source material
• Thoughtfully selected, reliable   

Presentation (45%)

Quality of writing.

• Style, clarity, flow, vocabulary

Organization

• Structure, paragraphing, introduction and conclusion

Conventions

• Syntax, grammar, spelling, and punctuation

An essay will be disqualified if:

• It is not on the topic.
• The subject is not an elected official.
• The subject is John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, or Edward M. Kennedy.
• The subject is a previous  Profile in Courage Award recipient  unless the essay describes an act of political courage other than the act for which the award was given.
• The subject is a senator featured in  Profiles in Courage .
• The essay focuses on an act of political courage that occurred prior to 1917.
• It does not include a minimum of five sources.
• It is more than 1,000 words or less than 700 words (not including citations and bibliography.)
• It is postmarked or submitted by email after the deadline.
• It is not the student’s original work.

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Criteria for Judging Essays in the Creative Writing Competition 2013

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Drawing on a modified version of Delphi technique, the researchers in this study tried to develop a rubric comprising the main criteria to be considered in the evaluation of works of fiction. Review of the related literature, as well as the administration of a Likert scale questionnaire, and a series of unstructured interviews with experts in the fields of literature and creative writing, led to the identification of ten elements which were used in the construction of the first version of the rubric. To ensure its validity, a number of distinguished creative writing professors were asked to review this assessment tool and comment on its appropriateness for measuring the intended construct. Some revisions were made based on these comments, and following that, the researchers came up with an analytical rubric consisting of nine elements, namely narrative voice, characterisation, story, setting, mood and atmosphere, language and writing mechanics, dialogue, plot, and image. The reliability of this rubric was also established through the calculation of both interrater and intrarater reliability. Finally, the significance of the development of this valid and reliable rubric is discussed and its implications for teaching and assessing creative pieces of writing are presented.

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TOEFL Writing Section: Syllabus, Questions, Pattern & More

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) includes a writing element that is essential to evaluating your ability to communicate ideas in written English clearly and convincingly. The Writing component of the TOEFL exam is one of the four core sections, along with Reading, Listening, and Speaking.

To help you prepare well and get a good score, we’ll go into detail about the TOEFL Writing tasks in this article. We’ll provide sample essays, useful advice, and techniques.

TOEFL Writing

TOEFL Writing Section

The TOEFL Writing section consists of two tasks designed to assess your ability to write in an academic setting. These tasks test your ability to synthesize information from different sources, articulate your ideas clearly, and construct well-organized essays.

Integrated Writing Task

• Description: You will read a short passage on an academic topic and then listen to a lecture on the same topic. You must then write a response summarizing the points made in the lecture and explaining how they relate to the points in the reading passage.
• Purpose: This task evaluates your ability to comprehend and integrate information from multiple sources and express this in a cohesive written format.

Independent Writing Task

• Description: You will be asked to write an essay expressing your opinion on a given topic. You need to support your opinion with reasons and examples from your own knowledge and experience.
• Purpose: This task assesses your ability to articulate and support personal opinions in a clear, organized, and grammatically correct manner.

Time Allocation for Each Task

Detailed breakdown.

Following is the detailed breakdown of the TOEFL Writing Section:

• Reading: 3 minutes to read a passage (approximately 250-300 words).
• Listening: 2-3 minutes to listen to a lecture (approximately 150-220 words).
• Writing: 20 minutes to write your response (150-225 words).
• Writing: 30 minutes to write an essay (at least 300 words) on a given topic.

Points to Remember

• Integrated Writing: Focus on accurately summarizing and relating the content from the reading and listening materials. Avoid including personal opinions.
• Independent Writing: Develop a clear thesis statement and support it with well-organized paragraphs and specific examples. Focus on clarity, coherence, and grammatical accuracy.

TOEFL Writing Task 1: Integrated Writing

The Integrated Writing Task requires you to read a passage and listen to a lecture, then write a response that summarizes the points made in the lecture and explains how they relate to the reading passage. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the task structure:

Reading Passage

• Duration: 3 minutes
• Content: Approximately 250-300 words on an academic topic.
• Focus: Introduces a topic, providing three main points or arguments.

Listening Lecture

• Duration: 2-3 minutes
• Content: Approximately 150-220 words.
• Focus: Discusses the same topic, often providing counterpoints or additional details to the reading passage.

Writing Response

• Duration: 20 minutes
• Content: 150-225 words.
• Focus: Summarize the lecture, emphasizing the connections and contrasts with the reading passage.

Sample Integrated Writing Essay

Reading passage excerpt.

The reading passage discusses the benefits of ecotourism, emphasizing that it promotes environmental conservation, provides economic benefits to local communities, and offers educational opportunities for tourists.

Lecture Excerpt

The lecture challenges these points, arguing that ecotourism can actually lead to environmental degradation, has limited economic benefits for locals, and that the educational impact on tourists is often minimal.

Sample Essay

The reading passage presents ecotourism as a beneficial activity that supports environmental conservation, economic growth, and education. However, the lecture provides a contrasting view, suggesting that ecotourism may have negative impacts.

First, the reading passage claims that ecotourism promotes environmental conservation by raising awareness and funds for protected areas. Conversely, the lecture argues that the influx of tourists often leads to environmental degradation, such as pollution and habitat destruction, which outweighs the conservation efforts. Second, while the reading asserts that local communities benefit economically from ecotourism through job creation and income, the lecture counters that the majority of profits are taken by foreign investors and large companies, leaving minimal financial benefits for local residents. Additionally, jobs created are often low-paying and seasonal.

Finally, the reading highlights the educational opportunities ecotourism provides for tourists, enhancing their understanding of environmental issues. The lecture disputes this, stating that the educational impact is frequently superficial, as tourists often focus more on recreation than learning.

In conclusion, while the reading passage portrays ecotourism in a positive light, the lecture highlights several drawbacks, including environmental harm, limited economic benefits for locals, and inadequate educational impact on tourists.

TOEFL Writing Task 2: Independent Writing

The Independent Writing Task requires you to write an essay expressing your opinion on a given topic. This task assesses your ability to present and support an argument in a clear, organized, and grammatically correct manner. Here’s a breakdown of the task structure:

• You will be given a prompt that asks you to express your opinion on a specific topic or issue.
• The prompt will often be framed as a question or a statement that you need to agree or disagree with, providing reasons and examples to support your opinion.
• Duration: 30 minutes
• Length: At least 300 words
• Content: Your essay should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Sample Independent Writing Essay

Prompt: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? “In today’s world, it is more important to work quickly and risk making mistakes than to work slowly and make sure everything is correct.” Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

In today’s fast-paced world, the pressure to work quickly and deliver results promptly is ever-increasing. However, I believe it is more important to work slowly and ensure that everything is correct rather than rush and risk making mistakes. There are several reasons for this viewpoint.

Firstly, accuracy is important in many fields, especially those involving technical or specialized knowledge. For example, in the medical profession, a single mistake can have serious, even life-threatening consequences. Surgeons, pharmacists, and lab technicians must prioritize precision to ensure patient safety.

Secondly, mistakes often lead to wasted time and resources. When work is done hastily and errors occur, the time spent correcting these mistakes can be substantial. For example, a software developer who rushes to write code may introduce bugs that require extensive debugging and testing, delaying the project. Moreover, the quality of work tends to suffer when speed is prioritized over accuracy. High-quality work reflects well on an individual or organization, promoting trust and credibility.

In conclusion, while the ability to work quickly can be advantageous in certain situations, the importance of working slowly and accurately cannot be overstated. Ensuring correctness prevents costly mistakes and enhances the overall quality of work, leading to better outcomes in both professional and personal endeavors. Therefore, it is better to work at a slower pace and ensure accuracy than to rush and risk errors.

TOEFL Writing for an Academic Discussion Task

The writing portion of the TOEFL exam has changed as of July 2023. The TOEFL independent writing portion has been replaced by a new writing test for an academic discussion problem. You have ten minutes to write an academic essay for the TOEFL, during which you must express and defend an opinion in an online classroom. Your response can be as long as you want it to be, but ideally, it should be at least 100 words. Below is a summary of the second writing task on the TOEFL:

• You will be given a prompt that presents a scenario, issue, or question related to an academic topic.
• The prompt will often include different viewpoints or positions on the issue.
• Duration: 10 minutes
• Length: At least 100 words

Sample Question

• A marketing course is being taught by your professor. In your post, address the professor’s query. As you respond, you should:
• Express and support your own viewpoint
• Contribute to the conversation using your own words.
• A well-written response will be at least one 100 words long.

Professor: Hi everyone in class!  We’ll talk about how social media influencers affect customer behavior next week. A new class of celebrity has emerged as a result of the growth of social media sites like YouTube and Instagram: the social media influencer. These influencers can affect consumer behavior by promoting goods and services and have large fan bases. I have the following query for the discussion board:

Do customers get much from social media influencers?  Why not, and why not?

Jack : Social media influencers, in my opinion, have a big influence. Young people are more likely to purchase goods and services that these influencers promote when they begin to look up to them and believe what they have to say. But since some influencers might recommend goods, they don’t really use or believe in, I also think there are some questions regarding the accuracy of these endorsements.

Emily : Influencers on social media don’t seem to have much of an effect on how people shop. The majority of people are intelligent enough to make their own purchase decisions based on their needs and tastes, even though they may have big supporters. Also, it might be difficult to determine which influencers to believe because there are so many of them advocating various items.

Sample Answer

This is one possible answer to the question that was asked.  It speaks directly to the other pupils’ reactions.  As you can see, it explains and rejects the points they raised.  This strategy is the simplest for certain test takers.

Though I believe there is more to social media influencers than meets the eye, this is a difficult issue to discuss.  I completely agree with Emily’s assertion that people are too intelligent to be swayed by them.  I would also add that, twenty years ago, we might have been convinced to buy something we didn’t need by a charming person, but I don’t think it happens as often these days.  This is because we can use blogs, consumer magazines, and social media to extensively research anything we are interested in.

These informational resources enable us to identify products that precisely meet our needs, preventing us from being convinced by the exaggerated arguments made by social media influencers. Jack brought up the important point that young people are particularly susceptible, but he omitted the fact that parents now spend time teaching their children responsible internet usage habits. Young individuals are therefore less inclined to choose their purchases quickly.

Scoring Criteria for TOEFL Writing

The TOEFL writing score is 0–30. In the TOEFL writing score, raw scores are determined before scaled scores. The raw score for the TOEFL writing part ranges from 0 to 5. Thus, the TOEFL essay writing score ranges from 0 to 10. Scaled scores with a range of 0 to 30 are created from evaluated raw scores. The average writing score on the TOEFL is 24, which is considered a respectable result. A table showing the conversion from AW score to scaled score for the TOEFL writing test is mentioned below:

TOEFL Writing Preparation Tips

By following the below tips, you can improve your writing efficiency and effectiveness under timed conditions:

• Understand the Format : Familiarize yourself with the Integrated and Independent tasks, and review scoring criteria.
• Practice Regularly : Write daily, simulating test conditions with timed sessions.
• Analyze Samples : Study high-scoring essays to identify effective techniques and avoid common mistakes.
• Plan and Structure : Outline your essays before writing, ensuring a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.
• Expand Vocabulary and Grammar : Learn academic vocabulary, practice grammar exercises, and use complex sentences.
• Seek Feedback and Revise : Get feedback from peers or teachers, and revise your essays to correct errors and improve clarity.

How are you Graded?

Your TOEFL essay scores are determined by two evaluation systems:

• Firstly, a human grader assesses your essays according to the official ETS rubrics, assigning a holistic score ranging from 0 to 5. Holistic scoring means considering the essay as a whole, focusing on content, organization, and language use. Research suggests that human graders contribute 50% of the score for the independent task and 66% for the integrated task.
• Secondly, the ETS “e-rater” software evaluates your essays, primarily focusing on structure, grammar, punctuation, and vocabulary. Research indicates that it contributes 50% of the score for the independent task and 33% for the integrated task.

Ultimately, you receive two human scores and two e-rater scores, one for each essay. These scores are combined and converted into a whole number from 0 to 30, which is included on your score report. Each essay carries equal weight in the final score calculation.

Gaining a good score overall and proving your English language ability need you to master the TOEFL Writing component. You can greatly enhance your writing abilities by understanding the exam structure, practicing frequently under timed situations, examining well-scoring essays, and obtaining constructive feedback. Developing your academic vocabulary, improving your grammar, and organizing your writing well will also assist you in producing responses that are well-organized, logical, and clear. By putting these ideas into practice, you will improve your TOEFL scores and improve your writing skills in general, which will help you succeed in school and your career.

Also Check:

• What is the hardest part in TOEFL?
• Can I retake TOEFL exam 3 days or 12 days?
• Can I take TOEFL from home?

TOEFL Writing Section- FAQs

What are the two tasks in the toefl writing section.

The TOEFL Writing section includes the Integrated Writing Task, where you respond to a reading and a lecture, and the Independent Writing Task, where you write an essay based on a prompt.

How is the TOEFL Writing section scored?

Each essay is scored on a scale of 0-5 for development, organization, language use, and task fulfillment. These scores are averaged and converted to a scaled score of 0-30.

How can I improve my TOEFL Writing score?

Practice regularly, analyze high-scoring essays, expand your vocabulary, and seek feedback. Focus on clear organization, correct grammar, and varied sentence structures.

What should I include in the Integrated Writing Task?

Summarize the main points from the reading and the lecture, highlighting their connections and contrasts. Use specific details from both sources in your response.

How much time do I have for each writing task?

You have 20 minutes for the Integrated Writing Task and 30 minutes for the Independent Writing Task. Plan, write, and leave a few minutes for proofreading.

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