Level 1 Business Writing Sample Item
Prompt:
At your office, employees are allowed to skip their morning and/or afternoon breaks to take longer lunch breaks. However, the personnel manager says that employees have been taking too much time on their lunch breaks as a result of this policy. She wants to require all employees to take their morning and afternoon breaks and the standard lunch break. Write a letter to the personnel manager explaining whether or not you are in favor of this proposal and why.
Level 1 Sample Response
I dont think its right for you to take are choice to not use our morning and afternoon breaks to have a longer lunch break! If we have a choice. I think you should writ up people that come back late if ther 3 times or more that have to work late or come in earlie. I hope you take in to thouht! We want you to do whats best. You know whats best. Yes.
Why this is a Level 1 response:
- Sentence construction errors, such as fragments, can hinder understanding (I hope you take in to thouht! If we have a choice.).
- Errors in grammar and mechanics are frequent and interfere with communication. Errors include misspellings such as writ, earlie, and thouht; the incorrect use of there instead of they're and are instead of our; and missing apostrophes in dont, its, and whats.
- Tone, style, and/or language are inconsistent with standard business English (I dont think its right for you to take are choice to not use our morning and afternoon breaks to have a longer lunch break!).
- The writing lacks organization. The response has no transitions or paragraph breaks and seems to skip around.
- Although there is an attempt to communicate ideas, there is only simple development. The response presents basic thoughts against the new policy, with little development.