An analysis of the use of Criterion in a writing classroom in Japan

Criterion is a web-based writing assessment system developed by English Testing Service (ETS) which automatically provides learners with feedback as well as a score on essays that are written using the system. This descriptive study examined 28 Japanese adult students’ TOEFL writing essays to explore what Criterion can and cannot do with regard to providing feedback on the essays. Criterion’s critique function was compared with a human instructor’s error feedback focusing on five error categories: verbs, word choice, nouns, articles, and sentence structures. The results revealed that Criterion experienced difficulties in detecting errors in all of the five categories. Through the study, it is suggested that Criterion should be implemented into a classroom with a team of teachers rather than as a standing-alone evaluation tool.