1. A method of grading an essay using an automated essay scoring system, the essay being a response to a test prompt, comprising: deriving a set of predetermined features from the essay, wherein the predetermined features comprise one or more features that are independent from the test prompt; evaluating the feature set with a scoring equation; generating a raw score for the essay from the scoring equation; and processing the raw score for the essay, wherein on an adaptive cutoff algorithm is utilized to assign the raw score to a score category.