Study Guide
Field 172: Bilingual Education Assessment—Mandarin
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Recommendation for individuals using a screenreader: please set your punctuation settings to "most."
Review the IME tutorial video 
and the IME instructions for Mandarin 
. The IME instruction document will be available to you during the actual test.
Directions for Presentational Writing: Mandarin Assignment
For the Presentational Writing section of the test, you will write an essay in Mandarin in response to an assignment.
Read the assignment carefully before you begin to write. Think about how you will organize your essay. You should use your time to plan, write, review, and edit your essay. Your final essay must be typed in the on-screen response box presented with the assignment.
Please note that, if needed, you will be able to type words in the target language in your response using Input Method Editor (IME) technology. You may access specific instructions for IME use by selecting the
button above the response box.
Your response will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- APPROPRIATENESS: the extent to which the response is an essay written in the candidate's own words, states an opinion on the issue presented in the question, and uses language, style, and sociocultural conventions appropriate for the assignment (task, purpose, audience, and context or situation)
- SUPPORT: the extent to which the response supports and explains the stated opinion with the candidate's own relevant ideas or examples
- ORGANIZATION: the extent to which the response is a well-organized and coherent essay that communicates clear ideas, develops a logical conclusion, and uses cohesive devices to connect sentences
- GRAMMAR: the extent to which the response uses a range of appropriate grammatical constructions, time frames, sentence structures, and mechanics (i.e., spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and diacritical marks)
- VOCABULARY: the extent to which the response uses a range of appropriate vocabulary and academic and/or idiomatic language
Your response will be evaluated on the criteria above, not on the position you take. Your response must be written in your own words.
You may use the erasable notebooklet provided to take notes; however, you will be scored only on the response that you type in the response box for the assignment.
Select the Next button to continue.
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Sample Assignments
In this study guide, two sample assignments are provided to assist an examinee in preparing for the actual test. On the actual test, there will be one Presentational Writing: Mandarin assignment to which the examinee will have to provide a response.
Competency 0006
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Sample Assignment 1
Use the information below to complete the assignment that follows.
In your opinion, can online teaching and learning be used for class instruction in a useful and effective way?
In response to the question above, write a well-organized and coherent essay in Mandarin for an audience of educated adults. In your essay, you must:
- state and explain your opinion about the question;
- support your opinion by providing at least two relevant ideas or examples; and
- develop a conclusion that follows from and supports the ideas or examples presented in your essay.
Your response must be written in your own words.
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Sample Strong Response to Sample Assignment 1
Coming Fall 2024
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Rationale for Sample Strong Response to Sample Assignment 1
Coming Fall 2024
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Sample Assignment 2
Use the information below to complete the assignment that follows.
In your opinion, can students' life experiences be used to facilitate student learning?
In response to the question above, write a well-organized and coherent essay in Mandarin for an audience of educated adults. In your essay, you must:
- state and explain your opinion about the question;
- support your opinion by providing at least two relevant ideas or examples; and
- develop a conclusion that follows from and supports the ideas or examples presented in your essay.
Your response must be written in your own words.
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Sample Strong Response to Sample Assignment 2
Coming Fall 2024
Presentational Writing: Mandarin
Rationale for Sample Strong Response to Sample Assignment 2
Coming Fall 2024
Performance Characteristics for Presentational Writing: Mandarin Assignment
The following characteristics guide the scoring of the response to the Presentational Writing: Mandarin assignment.
| APPROPRIATENESS | The extent to which the response is an essay written in the candidate's own words, states an opinion on the issue presented in the question, and uses language, style, and sociocultural conventions appropriate for the assignment (task, purpose, audience, and context or situation) |
|---|---|
| SUPPORT | The extent to which the response supports and explains the stated opinion with the candidate's own relevant ideas or examples |
| ORGANIZATION | The extent to which the response is a well-organized and coherent essay that communicates clear ideas, develops a logical conclusion, and uses cohesive devices to connect sentences |
| GRAMMAR | The extent to which the response uses a range of appropriate grammatical constructions, time frames, sentence structures, and mechanics (i.e., spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and diacritical marks) |
| VOCABULARY | The extent to which the response uses a range of appropriate vocabulary and academic and/or idiomatic language |
Score Scale for Presentational Writing: Mandarin Assignment
A score will be assigned to the response to the Presentational Writing: Mandarin assignment according to the following score scale.
| Score Point | Score Point Description |
|---|---|
| 4 | The "4" response demonstrates effective presentational writing skills. |
| 3 | The "3" response demonstrates generally effective presentational writing skills. |
| 2 | The "2" response demonstrates partially effective presentational writing skills. |
| 1 | The "1" response demonstrates ineffective presentational writing skills. |
| U | The response is unscorable because it is merely a repetition of the assignment, not related to the assignment, not primarily in the target language, or not of sufficient length to score. |
| B | There is no response to the assignment. |