Assessing Writing Skills in ESP: Alternative Assessment Tools
Assessing Writing Skills in ESP: Alternative Assessment Tools

Summary/Abstract: This paper is organized in two main sections i.e., a theoretical and an experimental one and it focuses on the benefits entailed by alternative or authentic assessment strategies and instruments in the development of ESP (English for Specialized Purposes) writing skills, in particular for the students majoring in Economic Sciences. In its turn, the theoretical section is divided into three main parts. The first part of the theoretical background briefly tackles the concept of assessment, in particular the assessment of writing skills. The second part presents several types of writing assessment tasks (mainly based on imitative, intensive, responsive and extensive writing). The third part brings into the limelight several alternative assessment strategies (i.e., self-assessment, peer-assessment,portfolios, interviews, projects, exhibitions, learning journals, concept maps) and their benefits in connection to the learning process and to the students’ writing skills. The experimental section presents the design of an experiment aimed at demonstrating that alternative assessment strategies adapted to the ESP classroom contribute to the development of the students’ writing skills, increase their awareness of the learning process and boost their motivation. Moreover, it is expected that the students from the experimental group get more involved in their own learning process, exhibit more autonomy and knowledge sharing.

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