What is a rubrics? Rubrics means "a list of rules" against which something is rated or measured. For TOEFL, there are speaking rubrics and writing rubrics. ETS did not make up these rubrics. They are universal rules of proficient argument development going all the way back to Aristotle. For this discussion, let's focus on ETS's independent writing task rubrics.
Sounds really official - The Independent Writing Task Rubrics! Don't worry. Translated, it simply means, "personal essay writing rules." If you follow the rules (the rubrics), your independent essay will demonstrate proficiency. Wait! What does proficiency mean? Proficiency means "skill and knowledge."
Okay, so let's say you scored 5 on your independent essay. Why? Because in your essay, you demonstrated proficiency (skill and knowledge). Because you demonstrated proficiency, you didn't break any rules. You played the TOEFL writing game perfectly and scored big. Great!
Now let's say you got a 2.5 on your independent essay. That means you broke a few rules, lots of rules - big rules. Okay, so how do you go from 2.5 to 3 to 4 to 5? Easy. Follow the rules. Do standardized TOEFL texts teach you the rules? No. Do they teach you how to apply the rules? Sorry. Instead, standardized TOEFL say, "Look at this example of an independent essay. It is a 2.5. Trust me. Now turn the page." Unfortunately, standardized TOEFL texts do not tell you why the example independent essay is a 2.5. There is no rhetorical analysis. Instead, these texts leave it up to you (the test-taker) to compare your essays to ETS's rubrics. Sounds easy? Right? Wrong. Why? Because ETS's independent writing task rubrics are difficult to understand, for test-takers and instructors alike.
Why are ETS's rubrics hard to decipher from a scoring point of view? I think ETS is being purposefully vague. ETS is not in the business of helping you get a high score. ETS is in the business of designing tests. Period. That means TOEFL texts must teach the rules of writing to test-takers. Unfortunately, standardized TOEFL texts do not teach test-takers how to interpret ETS's writing rubrics. Instead, these same texts say, "Do this! Do this! Do this!" but they don't tell you why from a scoring perspective. Now think: How can you get a high writing score if you don't understand the rules of the game? It's like having a car accident because nobody told you how to drive. Frustrating? You bet.
That, in my estimation, is a central flaw in standardized TOEFL texts: they do not teach speaking and writing rubrics specific to the TOEFL game. However, my text, Speaking and Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT, does.
Before writing Speaking and Writing Strategies, I asked myself: How can my TOEFL students get the highest possible speaking and writing scores? What is the first step? The first step is understanding the rubrics (the rules). If you don't understand the rubrics - if you don't read the driver's manual - you are guessing. You don't want to guess. Your future is too important.
Want to learn more? It's all in the book.
