CBEST Writing Examples

CBEST Writing Examples

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CBEST Writing Score Scale

The CBEST Writing Test is scored on a four-point scale that reflects your ability to present, organize, and develop ideas in clear, effective prose. Below is a rubric showing what each score level requires.

Score 4: Well-Formed Writing

  • Main Idea and Focus: Clearly presents and maintains focus on a central idea or viewpoint; reasoning is sound.
  • Organization: Ideas are logically arranged, and the meaning is clear.
  • Support and Development: Supports generalizations with relevant, detailed, and specific evidence.
  • Word Choice and Usage: Precise vocabulary; careful and accurate usage.
  • Sentence and Paragraph Structure: Includes syntactically complex sentences and coherent paragraphs; minor mechanical errors may be present.
  • Topic Relevance: Fully addresses the topic with language and style suited to the audience and purpose.

Score 3: Adequately Formed Writing

  • Main Idea and Focus: Presents a central idea with general maintenance of focus; adequately reasoned.
  • Organization: Ideas are usually clear and effectively organized.
  • Support and Development: General support for assertions, though support may be uneven.
  • Word Choice and Usage: Adequate vocabulary and usage, with some errors that do not obscure meaning.
  • Sentence and Paragraph Structure: Occasional errors in paragraphing and sentence structure that do not significantly distract or confuse.
  • Topic Relevance: Generally addresses the topic; language and style are appropriate for the audience and purpose, though one task may be neglected or incomplete.

Score 2: Partially Formed Writing

  • Main Idea and Focus: Presents a central idea but often loses focus; simplistic reasoning.
  • Organization: Some attempt at organizing ideas, but largely ineffective and unclear.
  • Support and Development: Supports are partial, with irrelevant or insufficient details.
  • Word Choice and Usage: Often imprecise and distracting.
  • Sentence and Paragraph Structure: Frequent distracting errors; relies on short, choppy sentences.
  • Topic Relevance: Incompletely addresses the tasks, using inappropriate language or style for the audience and purpose.

Score 1: Inadequately Formed Writing

  • Main Idea and Focus: Fails to state or maintain focus on a central idea; lacks coherence.
  • Organization: Poorly organized, resulting in unclear meanings throughout.
  • Support and Development: Assertions are unsupported or severely underdeveloped; details are confusing.
  • Word Choice and Usage: Imprecise and severely distracting.
  • Sentence and Paragraph Structure: Serious and numerous errors.
  • Topic Relevance: Demonstrates little to no understanding of the tasks; inappropriate language or style.

Special Cases

  • U (Unscorable): Off-topic, illegible, not in English, or too short to assess.
  • B (Blank): No response provided.

CBEST Essay #1

We’re providing this free essay prompt and a sample constructed response. If you’d like to write and submit your own response, enroll in our full CBEST test prep and use our AI essay grader.

Prompt: Reflect on the statement: 'With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone.'

Directions: In an essay intended for an educated adult audience, discuss whether you agree or disagree with this perspective. Support your viewpoint with logical arguments and specific examples.

Sample Constructed Response

This is a personal statement; keep your response honest and based on your own experiences.

I agree with the statement, "With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone." Through my experience of teaching English as a Second Language in Seoul, South Korea for one year, I learned that wisdom is gained not by getting older, but through meaningful engagement with others.

When I taught at an English language school in Seoul, I stepped outside my comfort zone. Living and working in a culture where English was not the primary language provided me with significant insights about cultural differences, communication, adaptability, and personal resilience. For instance, navigating daily life taught me patience and empathy toward people from back home who originally came from another country. This experience gave me a greater sense of flexibility, open-mindedness, and respect for diverse perspectives.

After that year of teaching abroad, I returned to California to enroll in the Multiple Subjects Teaching Credential program. I noticed that my year-long experience abroad had accelerated my personal growth. To no fault of their own, people who continued the same routines—same hobbies, same friends, same jobs—had not grown in those same 365 days as I had.

Ultimately, this international experience confirms my belief that wisdom is actively gained by saying yes to life’s challenges and opportunities. Aging alone, without seeking meaningful experiences, does not necessarily lead to wisdom.

You can also view and edit this sample response on Canva .

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