Evaluation Report: UC Diagnostic Writing Service

The University of California Diagnostic Writing Service (DWS), developed collaboratively by the University of California (UC), California State University (CSU), and Educational Testing Service (ETS), offers 11th-grade students and their teachers the opportunity to use college-level writing exams (prior versions of the Subject A exam for UC and the English Placement Test for CSU) and receive diagnostic feedback on their exam essays from university readers. The goal is to strengthen high school students’ writing skills and increase general literacy. Both Web-based and paper-based delivery systems were used to administer the essay prompts. This report presents results of a formative evaluation regarding the value of the project for teachers and students and its effectiveness for future use and wider implementation.