Writing Assessment Woes

Unlike last time, I wasn't lurking around the Litserv for too long before I found a post that really screamed at me.  The title of the post was "debate on writing assessment", and it kind of reminded me about a conversation we had as a class a day or two ago.  Can we really "grade" written assignments?  And with the recent change in the SATs by getting rid of the written part of the test, it kind of made sense to me that teachers and students would both begin to question whether or not we can really grade written assignments like we currently do.  

Is it possible for we, as readers, to be "too subjective"?  My opinion on one subject could be VERY different from yours.  For example, I really couldn't give a toss about whatever happened on last week's Walking Dead.  On the other hand, you could respectfully tell me to screw off because of my excitement for Game of Thrones coming back in less than a month.  (I really am excited, but please don't hurt my feelings).  The same can be said about writing assignments.  I used to hate writing argumentative essays back in high school, because I would always think of how the teacher would grade me, based on whether or not I agreed or disagreed with his or her opinion on a subject.  

See how this is kind of getting into dicey territory?  

More than not, posters in the thread shared the same fear, just because writing assessments have become a little bit of a beast with many heads.  As an aspiring writer myself, I know just how subjective folks can be when it comes to reading.  I just can't wrap my head around the idea of grading someone on a standardized test like the SATs or GREs (which I experienced a month or two ago) and didn't really appreciate being put on the spot for an hour, looking at a prompt for the first time and being expected to write about the topic right out of the gates.  I know for a fact that I didn't produce the best writing I could've done, if I was given a heads up on what I would be writing about.