IELTS Writing Revision Platform with Automated Essay Scoring and Adaptive Feedback

TL;DR

This paper develops and evaluates an IELTS writing revision platform with an automated scoring system and adaptive feedback, showing improvements in essay scores and highlighting the importance of combining automated tools with human instruction.

Contribution

It introduces a transformer-based automated essay scoring system with adaptive feedback tailored to IELTS, improving scoring accuracy and feedback effectiveness over rule-based methods.

Findings

Transformer model improved scoring accuracy (MAE 0.66, R^2 positive)

Adaptive feedback led to statistically significant score gains

Surface-level feedback was more reliable than structural interventions

Abstract

This paper presents the design, development, and evaluation of a proposed revision platform assisting candidates for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) writing exam. Traditional IELTS preparation methods lack personalised feedback, catered to the IELTS writing rubric. To address these shortcomings, the platform features an attractive user interface (UI), an Automated Essay Scoring system (AES), and targeted feedback tailored to candidates and the IELTS writing rubric. The platform architecture separates conversational guidance from a dedicated writing interface to reduce cognitive load and simulate exam conditions. Through iterative, Design-Based Research (DBR) cycles, the study progressed from rule-based to transformer-based with a regression head scoring, mounted with adaptive feedback. Early cycles (2-3) revealed fundamental limitations of rule-based approaches: mid-band compression, low accuracy, and negative $R^2$ values. DBR Cycle 4 implemented a DistilBERT transformer model with a regression head, yielding substantial improvements with MAE of 0.66 and positive $R^2$. This enabled Cycle 5's adaptive feedback implementation, which demonstrated statistically significant score improvements (mean +0.060 bands, p = 0.011, Cohen's d = 0.504), though effectiveness varied by revision strategy. Findings suggest automated feedback functions are most suited as a supplement to human instruction, with conservative surface-level corrections proving more reliable than aggressive structural interventions for IELTS preparation contexts. Challenges remain in assessing higher-band essays, and future work should incorporate longitudinal studies with real IELTS candidates and validation from official examiners.