BASIC SKILLS TEST
WRITING WORKSHOP
February 17, 2016
Martino Hall Room 309, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Dr. Ramos
“CORE” TEST STRUCTURE
• 100 minutes
• One 40-minute selected-response section w. 40
Qs & two 30-minute essay sections
• The Breakdown:
Text Type, Purposes &
Production
6-12 Selected-Response 60% of
Exam
Qs
& the 2 Essays
Language & Research
Skills for Writing
28 – 34 Selected
Response Qs
40% of
Exam
• Test measures academic writing skills needed
for a successful career in Education.
BE FAMILIAR WITH THE TEST!
See pages 5 – 12 of CORE Academic Skills for
Educators: Writing (download from Mrs.
Gibson’s Wiki page—see last slide)
• Selected-Response items involve:

USAGE
 SENTENCE CORRECTION
 REVISION IN CONTEXT
 RESEARCH SKILLS
•
USAGE Qs
• Recognize errors in:



Mechanics
Structural & Grammatical Relationships
Idiomatic Expressions or Word Choice
• Will need to recognize sentences that have NO
errors, too!
SENTENCE CORRECTION Qs
• Choose most effective way to restate a certain
phrase or sentence in standard written English
• Phrase or sentence may be most effective as
written
• Knowledge of formal grammatical terminology
NOT required!
REVISION IN CONTEXT Qs
• Recognize how a passage can be strengthened
through editing and revision
• Consider development, organization, word
choice, style, tone & conventions of standard
written English
• Some passages will be most effective as is
and require no changes.
RESEARCH SKILLS Qs.
• Recognize effective research strategies
• Recognize different elements of a citation
• Recognize information relevant to a specific
research task
• Assess the credibility of sources
USAGE Q Practice
• Read the directions!
Decide whether any of the four underlined parts has an
error in grammar, word use, punctuation, or capitalization.
IF SO, select the underlined part that must be revised to
produce a correct sentence. If there are no errors in the
sentence as written, select “No error.”
• No sentence has more than one error!
• TRY TO ANSWER EVERY QUESTION!
LET’S PRACTICE!
1. For a writer, the rarest privilege is not merely to
describe her country and time but to help shape it.
No error
2. Plagued by robbers, Paris in 1524 passed an
ordinance requiring citizens to burn candles _ in
windows fronting on the streets. No error
During the test, you will click on your choice.
SENTENCE CORRECTION Practice
• Read the directions!
Some part of the sentence or the entire sentence is
underlined. Beneath each sentence you will find five
ways of writing the underlined part. The first one
repeats the original, but the other four are different. If
you think the original sentence is better than any of
the suggested changes, select the first answer choice.
Otherwise, select one of the other choices.
• TRY TO ANSWER EVERY QUESTION!
LET’S PRACTICE
As a consumer, one can accept the goods offered to
us or we can reject them, but we cannot determine
their quality or change the system’s priorities.





As a consumer, one can accept
We the consumer either can accept
The consumer can accept
Either the consumer accepts
As consumers, we can accept
During the test, you will click on your choice.
REVISION IN CONTEXT Practice
• Read the directions!
The following passage is a draft of an essay. Some
portions of the passage need to be strengthened through
editing and revision. Read the passage and choose the
best answer for each question. Some questions ask you
to improve particular sentences or portions of sentences.
In some cases, the indicated portion of the passage will be
most effective as is and will require no changes.
• TRY TO ANSWER EVERY QUESTION!
• Read the WHOLE passage before answering
Qs!
LET’S PRACTICE
(1) Many people have a narrow idea of what is involved in
being a scientist. (2) Most students surveyed in a recent
study, for example, assumed that all scientists work
indoors in a lab and approach their work in a serious,
deliberate manner. (3) But apparently, these students
hadn’t read the story of how acoustic biologist Katy
Payne came to study elephant sound.
(4) Payne’s work with elephants is now welldocumented in popular and scientific articles, but it
did not begin in a conventional way. (5) Therefore,
Payne wasn’t working in her lab, doing fieldwork, or
even thinking formally about science.
(NOTE: This passage continues. READ ALL OF IT BEFORE YOU
ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS!)
LET’S PRACTICE
In context, which is the best version of the
underlined portion of sentence 5 (reproduced
below)?
Therefore, Payne wasn’t working in her lab, doing
fieldwork, or even thinking formally about science.

(As it is now)

However

In fact

In effect

To be clear
RESEARCH SKILLS Practice
• Read the directions!
The following questions are a test of your familiarity
with basic research skills. For each question, choose
the best answer.
• TRY TO ANSWER EVERY QUESTION!
LET’S PRACTICE
Which is the main purpose of reviewing the
references in a research article when one writes
an academic paper?

To check that the authors did their own
research

To identify additional relevant sources

To learn how to write citations correctly

To verify that the authors did not cite
themselves

To avoid reading other sources on the same
topic
GOOD WORK!
• For expanded explanations of the answers to
the questions we just practiced, see pp. 13-28 of
the CORE Academic Skills for Educators:
Writing (download from Mrs. Gibson’s Wiki
page—see last slide).
• This resource contains more practice items for
each kind of Selected Response Items as well!
• Now, let’s turn to the 2 written
essays!
GENERAL TIPS FOR THE ARGUMENTATIVE
and EXPLANATORY (Source-Based) ESSAYS
• Each essay is scored holistically, or on the
basis of its total quality.
• You will not know what question will be asked
and must decide, on the spot, how to respond.
• The evaluators are trained to judge overall
quality rather than to count errors.
• Do NOT write on a topic other than the one
specified!
• How well you write is much more important than
how much you write, but it’s best to write more
than one paragraph.
OTHER TIPS!
• For the Argumentative Essay:

Read the topic carefully.

This essay is based on your own reading,
experience, or observations.

Spend a little time considering the topic
and organizing your thoughts before you begin
to write.

You will have 30
minutes to write.
OTHER TIPS!
• For the Explanatory (Source-Based) Essay:

Read the two short passages carefully.

Plan and write an essay in which you identify the
most important concerns regarding the issue and
explain why they are important.

Draw on information from BOTH sources! You
may also draw on your own experiences,
observations, or reading.

Be sure to CITE the sources
whether you are paraphrasing or
directly quoting.

You will have 30 total minutes!
A HIGH-QUALITY ARGUMENTATIVE
ESSAY
Aim for a score of “6”– earned by writers who:
 state or clearly imply a position or thesis
 organize and develop ideas logically, making
insightful connections between ideas
 clearly explain key ideas, supporting them with
well-chosen reasons, examples, or details
 display effective sentence variety
 clearly display facility in the use of language
 make very few errors in grammar, usage, and
mechanics
WRITING AN ARGUMENATIVE ESSAY
THAT EARNS A “6”
Perhaps you are thinking . . .
“WE KNOW WHAT’S EXPECTED, BUT WE NEED
TO KNOW HOW TO WRITE THAT KIND OF
ESSAY!”
Let’s turn to Handout #1 about the academic
language tools that function to create a highquality argumentative essay.”
WRITING A HIGH-QUALITY EXPLANATORY
(SOURCE-BASED) ESSAY
Aim for a score of “6”– earned by writers who:
 insightfully explain why the concerns are important,
supporting the explanation with effective links between the
two sources and well-chosen reasons, examples, or
details
 incorporate info from both sources to identify and explain
important concerns about the issue discussed in the
sources
 organize and develop ideas logically
 display effective sentence variety and facility in the use
of language
 cite both sources when paraphrasing or quoting
 make very few errors in grammar, usage, & mechanics
LET’S STUDY AN EXAMPLE
• Let’s look at Handout #2 from the CORE
Academic Skills for Educators: Writing study
companion (pp. 38-40).
• The two sources are about copyright laws and
protections.
• First, we’ll read the sources.
• Then, you’ll work with a partner to compare
essays that earned a “5” and a “4.”
• What differences in the essays do you notice?
• How can studying these examples help you to
prepare to write this type of essay?
FINAL WRITING TIP!
REMEMBER, ABOVE ALL . . .
WRAP UP!
• Be sure to download the CORE Academic Skills
for Educators: Writing study companion
• Find this tool on Mrs. Gibson’s Wiki site (near the
bottom):
https://kgibsonteachlearn.wikispaces.com/Basic+Skills
+Tests
• SPEND TIME determining which items may be
difficult for you!
• Share study resources with your peers!
• Seek assistance when you need it!
“There is no elevator to success; you have to take
the stairs!”