Page 117 - Composition in Convergence The Impact of the New Media on Writing Assessment

84 CHAPTER 3

• Uploaded and electronically graded (holistically scored) stu-
dent essays
3. Institutional or classroom limitations or issues that affect stu-
dent performance
• Institutional pressure to increase technology use or informa-
tion literacy requirements in the writing classroom
• No institutional support for increasing or maintaining tech-
nology across campus
• Poorly configured or equipped computer labs or classrooms
or no access to computer lab or class at all
• Prior student experience with or access to computer equip-
ment
4. Programmatic or curricular goals or concerns that affect stu-
dent performance
• Emphasis on collaborative work versus emphasis on individ-
ual as a producer of a product
• Outcomes assessment driven versus instructor-developed
assessment
• Conflicting current-traditional versus social constructionist
pedagogical philosophies in programs and departments or
between teaching faculty
• Widespread institutional support for computer-based com-
position versus limited or no support
5. Social contexts that can affect student performance
• Racial, economic, or gender barriers that make technological
access difficult for many student populations
• Real or perceived societal push for all youth to gain techno-
logical skills
• Current political climate that stresses accountability at all
levels of instruction

Knowing the types of assessment and institutional situations in
which faculty find themselves frequently helps instructors make better
decisions and explanations for the grades or responses given to student
work. As Peeples and Hart-Davidson (1997) suggested, instructors
who envision themselves as participant-developers of student expertise
in general instead of distanced evaluators of an individual's knowledge
see a change in the instructor-student relationship.
This type of teacher understanding becomes important for ac-
knowledging and promoting student authority and ownership in