NAPLAN writing test robo-scoring rewards "verbose gibberish"
A plan to implement automated essay scoring for NAPLAN writing tests in Australia was branded "a direct attack on the teaching profession" and a r eward for producing "verbose gibberish". A CARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) had strongly advocated for the automated mark ing of NAPLAN (National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy) writing tests , claiming it was as reliable as human markers. However, the proposal faced significant backlash from teachers' unions, who launched a campaign against automated essay scoring. NSW Education Minister Rob Stokes described it as "a direct attack on the teaching profession" and retired US professor Les Perelman, commissioned by the NSW Teachers Federation, warned that computers would reward "verbose gibberish" and fail to properly assess creativity, irony, and artistic writing. The limitation, Perelman argued, could potentially lead to students being rewarded for producing lengthy, nonsensical content rather than demonstrating true writing proficiency. New South Wales (NSW) Education Minister Rob Stokes strongly opposed the initiative, describing it as "a direct attack on the teaching profession" and asserting that it had no place in NSW schools. ➕ December 2017 . T he Education Council, comprising all state and territory education ministers, determined that automated essay scoring of NAP LAN writing tests would not be used. It also stated that any future changes to this position would be informed by further research into automated essay scoring and would require a decision from the Council. Automated essay scoring Automated essay scoring (AES) is the use of specialized computer programs to assign grades to essays written in an educational setting. It is a form of educational assessment and an application of natural language processing . Source: Wikipedia 🔗 System 🤖 NAPLAN automated essay scoring 🔗 Operator: Developer: NAPLAN Country: Australia Sector: Education Purpose: Score essays Technology: NLP/text analysis; Machine learning Issue: Accuracy/reliability
- Date it happened
- 2017-10-01
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