Remodeling writers’ composing processes: Implications for writing assessment

Abstract

Reaching a better understanding of the composing process is essential to improving writing assessment practices. This paper reports a remodeling attempt of written text production processes. The author argues for remodeling writers’ cognitive processes through reviewing the changing conceptualizations in six notable global writing process models (Chenoweth and Hayes, 2001, Flower & Hayes, 1981, Hayes, 1996, 2012, Kellogg, 1996; Leijten, van Waes, Schriver, & Hayes, 2014), and discussing the modeling gaps yet to be addressed. Literature-based evidence suggests that there is a need for reconceptualizing the multi-role translating/text production/formulation process in these models, and for explicating the roles of the search for content, reviewing and monitoring processes. Based on analyzing a set of think-aloud protocol data, the author proposes a model in which the written text production process is composed of seven components, and provides detailed descriptions of the strategies each component includes. The paper ends with discussing how this model may contribute to developing the writing ability construct and to building more valid measures for assessing writers’ cognition.