Students dislike writing essay examinations as much as teachers dislike reading them. Perhaps no alternatives to the essay exam exist, but certainly the task can be lessened by altering the format of the essay exam. In an education class at a California university, students select in advance one essay question from a list of several, and field test their rough drafts in a peer revision group. They then rewrite their essays and submit them to the instructor with the rough draft and the peer group comments. Each question is composed of three parts: (1) the message, or subject matter to be assessed; (2) the voice, the point of view and emotional tone the student must assume in conveying the message; and (3) the audience, the specific individual to whom the student is writing. The interrelationship among the message, voice, and audience makes the essay examination experience more challenging and moves it into the realm of real-world communication. Instructors evaluate each essay on a ten-point scale and students then show the instructors' comments to the peer evaluators for contrast with theirs. Over the course of two or three essay examinations of this type, the peer evaluation group members become more helpful to one another. This use of voice and audience constraints in the writing of essay examinations turns an otherwise torpid activity into a vital learning process. (Examples of questions with the voice, audience, and message delineated are included.) (HTH)