Awaiting a new wave: The status of state writing assessment in the United States

•Document analysis of websites across all 50 states in the United States was conducted.•46 out of 50 states (92%) were primarily using on-demand essay assessment.•98% of state writing assessment was scored externally.•No state utilized portfolios for writing assessment.

Large-scale state assessment is in a time of flux in the United States. The Common Core State Standards have been widely adopted, resulting in most states developing or adopting new writing assessments. This article presents results from document analysis of websites across all 50 states conducted in 2015 to determine writing assessment formats and scoring practices. Drawing on the dichotomy of psychometric and sociocultural assessment approaches, three major classifications for writing assessments are used to categorize assessments: indirect psychometric, direct psychometric, and direct sociocultural, with these aligning with multiple choice tests, traditional “direct writing assessment” or on-demand essay assessment, and portfolio assessment, respectively. Findings indicated that 46 out of 50 states (92%) were primarily using on-demand essay assessment, often in conjunction with multiple choice and short answer items, and no state was utilizing portfolios for writing assessment. Regarding scoring, 98% of state writing assessment was scored externally with no involvement of the classroom teacher. Overall, there was no evidence that forms of direct sociocultural assessment were occurring at the state level. The current study offers a snapshot of recent state writing assessment in order to inform the next wave of writing assessment in the United States.