ABSTRACT
In approaches to writing assessment, the United States differs from many, if not most, other countries. Outside the United States, written examinations are a well-established part of the culture (Foster & Russell, 2002). European countries, for example, use examinations involving extended writing for school purposes, both to screen students for admission to college and to test them for content knowledge once they arrive there. The BAG (baccalaureate) exam series in France, the A-level examinations in England, and the Abitur examinations in Germany all require extended writing and serve as gatekeepers to higher education. And in most European countries, “extended writing is the main-often the only-method of examining students” (Foster & Russell, 2002, p. 25).
