The computer also is programmed to scan for the elements present in a well-supported essay, said Richard Swartz, an executive with Educational Testing Service, which developed e-rater.

Developers say they understand why teachers would be skeptical. But, they insist, computers already drive cars and detect cancer, so they can certainly handle grading students' essays.

Perelman recently tried out a computer essay grading program made by testing giant Educational Testing Service. "Of the 12 errors noted in one essay, 11 were incorrect," Perelman says.

Computer grading will destroy our schools Feeding essays into a computer program tells students: No one cares what you have to say ...

Artificial Intelligence Essay In 200 Words AI refers to the development of computer systems that can perform tasks easily while requiring human intelligence like problem-solving, learning and ...

A writing professor at MIT has developed a computer program that writes a college essay in one second, after you input a few key words and it actually scores pretty well on an online grading ...

That's easy. But now, machines are also grading students' essays. Computers are scoring long form answers on anything from the fall of the Roman Empire, to the pros and cons of government regulations.

Students work on computers in Henderson, Nev. Several states including Utah and Ohio use automated grading on student essays written as part of standardized tests. Listen More States Opting To ...

But she says the computer scoring has proven "spot-on" and Utah now lets machines be the sole judge of the vast majority of essays. In about 20 percent of cases, she says, when the computer detects ...