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STATE OF TEXAS ASSESSMENTS
OF ACADEMIC READINESS
(STAAR)

English I, II, and III Writing
Victoria Young
Director of Reading, Writing, and
Social Studies Assessments
Texas Education Agency

STAAR Test Design
2

Revision and editing assessed in separate sections
of the test—each section worth 24% of total test
score
Students will write two one-page essays (26 lines
maximum) addressing different types of writing
English I−literary and expository
English II−expository and persuasive
English III−persuasive and analytical
Essays will be weighted equally—each essay 26%
of total test score
No “gatekeeper” (automatic fail of the writing test
for a 1)
Dictionary policy expanded

STAAR Writing Prompts
3

Expository, persuasive, and analytical
prompts contain a stimulus and are
scaffolded:

Read, Think, Write, Be Sure to −

STAAR Writing Prompts—Scaffolding
4

Read: A short synopsis of some kind or a
quotation

Think: The synopsis or quotation generalized
and reworded

Write: An even more focused rewording

Be Sure to−: 5 bullets here (stating a clear
thesis, organizing your writing, developing it,
choosing words carefully, proofreading)

STAAR Writing—What We’ve
Learned So Far
5

Trends based on the 2011 STAAR English I
assessment and English II and III field tests
Synthesizing across the Read, Think, Write.
Some students scored 1s and 2s because they
could not move from the stimulus (the “Read”)
to the generalization (the “Think”) to the
charge (the “Write about”). Students who did
not synthesize information across the prompt
tended to have these problems:
getting stuck in the stimulus
ignoring the charge and writing only about
the “Think” statement

Learned So Far
6

Form/purpose match. Many students scored 1s and
2s because their overall organizational structure
and form did not match the purpose for writing or
were weakly matched. Some students started out in
the right form but then “drifted” into another
purpose:
TAKS personal narrative instead of expository
or persuasive writing
expository rather than persuasive writing
summary of reading or personal response
instead of analytical writing

Learned So Far
7

Thesis. Having a thesis is essential in writing a
focused and coherent expository, persuasive, or
analytical piece. Literary pieces also need a
narrow focus.
The effect of one page. High scores require an
economical use of space: tight, specific, logical
development—no wasted words. Short, effective
introduction and conclusion also a must. Bottom
line: Both planning and revision are absolutely
essential since students don’t have the space to
“write their way into” a better piece.

STAAR English I Expository
8

READ the information in the box below.

In 1955 medical researcher Jonas Salk introduced an
effective polio vaccine. At the time polio was
considered the biggest threat to public health, yet
Salk refused to profit by patenting the vaccine
because he was more concerned with preventing
disease than with personal gain.

Although many people work to benefit themselves,
some people choose to put others first. Think
carefully about this statement.

9

Write an essay explaining whether people should be
more concerned about others than about
themselves.

Be sure to—
clearly state your thesis
organize and develop your ideas effectively
choose your words carefully
edit your writing for grammar, mechanics, and
sentences

10

Humanity has a funny way of contradicting itself
sometimes. All children are taught to share and put
others’ needs before our own. Somewhere down the
line we realize that the very people who preach
these things to us don’t follow their own rules. It is
very important in society today to remember the
bigger picture, which often includes doing things to
help others with no benefit to yourself.
People use each other for personal gain all the
time. A glorified outlook on this way of life is all
around us. In media people are more concerned
with which Hollywood star is going out with which

11

millionaire rather than the thousands of people
dying of hunger in third world countries. As
consumers we see this life and wish to be like that.
Doing something for monitary gain is just like
money itself: easily expendable and transient. But
doing something to help others leads to emotional
or moral gain. The memmories and feelings you get
from helping others won’t ever go away. It’s worth
something to you. Worth more than money ever
could be.

Handwritten version is 22 lines.

STAAR English I Literary
12

Literary prompts (English I) also contain a
stimulus and are scaffolded.
English I Knowledge and Skill Statement:
Students write literary texts to express their ideas
and feelings about real or imagined people,
events, and ideas.
STAAR based on SE 14(A): write an engaging
story with a well-developed conflict and
resolution, interesting and believable characters,
and a range of literary strategies (e.g., dialogue,
suspense) and devices to enhance the plot
Literary responses can be real or fictional.

13

Look at the photograph.

PHOTOGRAPH

Write a story about the power of imagination. Be sure
that your story is focused and complete and that it
has an interesting plot and engaging characters.

14

The hair on the back of Kevin’s neck stood on end.
He could feel the goosebumps go down his arms and
legs. The slightest change in wind made his feet
tingle. He had climed mountains before, but nothing
quite like this. He stood on the edge of a great
adventure.
He had been climbing through the dense forest of
trees for six days and seven nights. The journey had
been rough and he was now running on only one
package of dried noodles. He looked out past the
clouds to the small flickering lights that carresed the
black earth down the valley. He thought of his mom
back home, worrying for him. She had given him a
giant bear hug before he left, along with a note about

15

being careful. Oh how he missed her. It seemed like
years since he had had one of her famous peanut
butter and banana sandwich’s. This jump was for her.
Cautiously he went up on his toes and felt the breeze
in his hair. And then he fell.
He fell for what seemed like eternity. The wind
whistled past his face and his hands and legs flailed
in the air. He felt totally free, until he hit. He hit the
ground hard. He slowly rose off the ground and
looked onto his own back porch. There his mom stood
smiling. “How was your adventure?” she said calmly.
Kevin only grinned.

Handwritten paper is 26 lines.

STAAR English III Persuasive
16

Read the information in the box below.

Some argue that our so-called information age is really
an “interruption age.” With smart phones in hand, we
spend much of the day texting, tweeting, and surfing the
Web. Rather than concentrating on big issues, we fill our
heads with the trivia and gossip that interrupts our
attention. So much information passes our way that we
have trouble remembering any of it.

Do you believe that instant communication is helping or
hurting us? Think carefully about this question.

17

Write an essay stating your position on whether you
believe that we live in an information age or an
interruption age.

Be sure to—
state your position clearly
use appropriate organization
provide specific support for your argument
sentences

18

Texting has become like breathing. We do it
constantly and can almost not function without it. With
the huge amount of technology and instant
communication we have today, our dependency on our
smart phones, computers, etc. has become detrimental
to human beings. The vast amount of useless
information available to us has become harmful to us
socially as well as intelectually.
The “information age” has changed the way we
interact with each other. Our dependency on technology
to communicate with each other is so great that holding
a simple conversation with a person has become
impossible. In restaurants and other public places,
couples and groups of friends have their phones out –
texting, calling, twittering, facebooking, you name

19

it. It’s become an obsession. Not only have our toys
affected the way we communicate, but they have also
affected the way we think.
People’s past times today are commonly spent on the
internet or on their phones rather than with a book or
with family. We’ve lost interest in the things that
stimulate our minds and turned our attention towards
things that preoccupy us, filling our heads with useless
information. Our focus has turned away from the
beneficial and towards the unimportant.
As cool as modern technology may be, it has caused
our world to change completely – and not for the better.
Our time has become constantly wasted.
Handwritten paper is 26 lines.

STAAR English III Analytical
20

A combination of expository writing and
interpretation of one aspect of a literary or
expository text
Analytical prompts contain a literary or
informational text (approximately 350−450
words), which students must analyze
Score based on the student’s ability to
interpret the text and support it with
relevant textual evidence (15C) AND
quality of the writing (criteria under
expository writing in 15A)

21

Excerpt from essay “When the Going Gets Tough, Try
Plan B” by Norm Kamikow

Think carefully about the historical facts Kamikow
uses to support his argument that people should
have a backup plan.

22

Write an essay analyzing whether Kamikow’s use of
history effectively supports the importance of
having a backup plan.

Be sure to—
clearly state your thesis
organize and develop your ideas effectively
provide relevant and specific evidence from
the text
sentences

23

In his essay, Norm Kamikow argues that people should
have a backup plan. He uses the American Revolution as a
quintessential example for his purpose, saying that the
British lost the war because they were inflexible and were
not prepared while the Americans were victorious because
of their adaptability. However, there are a couple obvious
flaws in Kamikow’s support of his argument.
Kamikow states that the British had “only plan A in
[their] strategic arsenal” and they felt that giving the
Americans a “smart blow” would end the colonial unrest.
When the British realized that there would be no “quick
triumph,” they “didn’t have a plan B ready to go” and
therefore lost the war. However, Kamikow also states that
the British were assured of the “wealth and might of the
invincible British Empire.” If public opinion in Britain truly
believed that Britain was invincible, backing out of the

24

American Revolution would have been seen as a sign of
weakness. This would have led to unrest at home and be
seen as a reason for other countries to attack Britain if
Britain changed its policies every time “the going [got]
tough.” Even though the Revolution led to a humiliating
defeat for the British, they had no choice during the war
but to continue fighting.
In addition, Kamikow states that the colonists were
“quite adept at adapting.” However, he never provides any
concrete examples of the adaptations that the colonists
made, casting doubt on the true adaptability of the
Americans.
While having a backup plan can be important,
Kamikow’s historical facts do not provide a sound
historical base for his argument.
Handwritten essay is 26 lines.

In a Nutshell—Lower Score Range
25

Typical problems we’ve seen in papers falling in the
lower score range (1s and 2s)
Wrong organizational structure/form for purpose
Weak, evolving, or nonexistent thesis
Wasted space: repetition, wordiness, extraneous
details or examples, looping/meandering,
meaningless introductions and conclusions
Inclusion of too many different ideas for 1 page
General/vague/imprecise use of language or
inappropriate tone for purpose
Essay poorly crafted
Weak conventions

In a Nutshell—Higher Score Range
26

Typical strengths we’ve seen in papers falling in
the higher score range (3s and 4s)
Strong match between structure/form and
purpose
Explicit thesis and sustained focus
“Narrow and deep” development—no wasted
words or space Think quality over quantity!
Introduction and conclusion short but effective
Specific use of language and appropriate tone
for purpose
Essay well crafted
Strong conventions

Important STAAR Resources
27

New STAAR Resources webpage with
assessed curriculum
definitions of readiness and supporting
standards
test blueprints
test design schematics
sample writing passages and questions
sample reading selections and questions
writing and reading rubrics
dictionary policy

28
CONTACT INFORMATION

Victoria Young
Director of Reading, Writing, and Social
Studies Assessments
Texas Education Agency
512-463-9536
victoria.young@tea.state.tx.us

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