UNFAVORABLE RESULTS IN GRADING ESSAYS, PARTICULARLY THE COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMINATION BOARD GENERAL COMPOSITION TEST, LED TO THE STUDY. IT WAS EXPECTED THAT PROGRESS IN OBJECTIVE EVALUATION OF ESSAYS WOULD BE MADE, BY MEANS OF A FACTOR ANALYSIS OF THE JUDGMENTS OF A DIVERSE GROUP OF COMPETENT READERS IN AN UNSTRUCTURED SITUATION. IT WAS HOPED THAT SOME QUALITIES AMENABLE TO OBJECTIVE TESTING WOULD EVOLVE AND THAT MORE PRECISE OBSERVATION OF THE REMAINING QUALITIES COULD LEAD TOWARD CLOSER AGREEMENT IN SCORING ESSAYS. ABOUT 600 SHORT PAPERS WERE SECURED FROM FRESHMEN IN THREE COLLEGES REQUIRING THE COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMINATION BOARD TESTS. TEN REPRESENTATIVES KNOWN TO BE CONCERNED WITH STUDENT WRITING, FROM EACH OF FIVE FIELDS, PARTICIPATED AS READERS. THE READERS USED THEIR OWN JUDGMENTS AS TO WHAT CONSTITUTES WRITING ABILITY, SORTED THE PAPERS INTO PILES ACCORDING TO MERIT, AND WROTE BRIEF COMMENTS ON LIKES OR DISLIKES ABOUT THE PAPER. CLASSIFICATION OF COMMENTS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE DATA RESULTED IN 55 CATEGORIES OF COMMENTS WHICH WERE IN TURN REDUCED TO FIVE FACTORS--IDEAS, FORM, FLAVOR, MECHANICS, AND WORKING. FACTOR ANALYSIS WAS APPLIED. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT THE TASK OF READERS MAY BE SIMPLIFED BY RESTRICTING ATTENTION TO IDEAS, FORM, AND FLAVOR. MECHANICS AND WORKING CAN BE MEASURED MORE RELIABLY AND SYSTEMATICALLY BY OBJECTIVE TESTS. ADDITIONAL STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO PRODUCE MORE PRECISE OBSERVATIONS OF THESE FACTORS TO LEAD TO PROGRESS TOWARD AGREEMENT ON COMMON STANDARDS.