Identifies students who write poorly and need special help. Attractive, New color stimulus pictures.       
Donald D. Hammill and Stephen C. Larsen

• Age Range: 9.0 through 17.11 years
• Time: 60-90 minutes

This fourth edition of the Test of Written Language (TOWL-4) is a norm-referenced, comprehensive diagnostic test of written expression.  It determines a students’ particular strengths and weaknesses in writing abilities, documents progress in special writing programs, and measures writing in research.

The TOWL-4 has two forms (A and B) each containing seven subtests representing conventional, linguistic and conceptual aspects of writing. Subtests 1-5 use contrived formats; subtests 6-7 use a spontaneously written story to assess important aspects of language.

TOWL-4 Subtests:

1. Vocabulary — Sentence writing that incorporates a stimulus word
2. Spelling — Sentence writing from dictation, making proper use of spelling rules
3. Punctuation — Sentence writing from dictation, making proper use of punctuation and capitalization rules
4. Logical Sentences — Editing an illogical sentence so that it makes better sense
5. Sentence Combining — Integrating the meaning of several short sentences into one grammatically-correct written sentence
6. Contextual Conventions — Story writing in response to a stimulus picture, with points earned for satisfying arbitrary requirements relative to orthographic and grammatic conventions
7. Story Composition — Story evaluation relative to the quality of its composition

Composites

• Overall Writing — students’ writing ability, measured by subtests that use both spontaneous and contrived formats. Results of all seven subtests are combined for form this composite.
• Contrived Writing — students’ writing ability measured by the five contrived format subtests.
• Spontaneous Writing — students’ writing ability measured by the two subtests that assess and spontaneously-composed essays.

New TOWL-4 features include all new normative data, collected in 2006-2007, with grade-based norms, as well as age-based norms provided. Studies of criterion-prediction validity (with large numbers of participants) have been added. Almost all floor and ceiling effects have been eliminated.

The TOWL-4 Manual includes studies on sensitivity, specificity and false positives.

The TOWL-4 Kit includes 3 Large Colored Picture Cards; 50 4-page Record/Storing Scoring Forms; 25 each of the 12-page Student Response Booklets Forms A and B; a Supplemental Practice Scoring Booklet, and a Manual, in a sturdy storage box.