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My college's placement test used some kind of algorithmic essay grader. I found it strange. It checked for typos, vocabulary use, etc. probably.
by jimmaswell 10y ago
My college's placement test used some kind of algorithmic essay grader. I found it strange. It checked for typos, vocabulary use, etc. probably.
- CoryG89 10y agoI would be interested in learning about any algorithm capable of grading an essay. Typos and vocabulary use should only account for a small portion of the grade in my opinion. To me, an essay should be graded based on whether or not it accomplishes it's goal, whether that is to inform or persuade. I've always felt that this is subjective and difficult for even a human to put a real grade on.
- hexane360 10y agoI feel like it would be really easy to game an automatic grader. I mean, it can't understand what you're writing, so if you use good vocabulary and complex sentences, it won't know if you're writing nonsense.
- jimmaswell 10y agoIt was a very basic "essay", only a few paragraphs if I remember right, answering an easy prompt. The goal was probably only to score technical writing ability while disguising it as a normal essay assignment - it wasn't revealed that what you wrote would be graded by an algorithm until afterwards.
- Cerium 10y agoMore info about the one used by ETS: https://www.ets.org/erater https://www.ets.org/erater