After completing this block of instruction, I have determined that I would omit essay questions and concentrate more on word bank and multiple-choice questions for expediency.
I prefer to grade the students work as they turn it in to me. This gives the learner a real time assessment of their progress in the course.
More of a subjective than objective.
I also thought that the underlining on key points in an essay was a great idea,
Aaron, This is true. Of course, if you can automate the process using technology, each student can get instant feedback.
Dr. Melissa Read
Walter, I think this is a fair assessment. Some grading can be a unique opportunity to reinforce course topics. Where it makes sense, we should keep our test questions rigorous and evaluations the same. In situations where we are frequently assessing or where we have many students, we can move to more streamlined formats.
Dr. Melissa Read
Sara, It sounds like you have struck a nice balance between grading efficiently and grading in depth. I like your approach because you gain speed and the students gain depth of feedback.
Dr. Melissa Read
I'm an online instructor so any quizzes or exams are automatically scored. However, I do see the advantages in using under lines on essay questions and using multiple choice questions when possible. Most of my grading occurs with visual design projects. While many objective rules apply, subjective opinions slip in. After all a creative design cannot often be accessed with hardened rules. So, I use a set of separate standards. For example an A project must be portfolio ready. In other words, professional. A B is an assignment that is almost portfolio ready. The work would only require minor adjustments in order to be considered portfolio worthy. Now, the tough part is accessing work below that level. C's typically are sound working concepts but lack craftsmanship skills or possibly solid craftsmanship with weak concepts. D's and F's are very basic efforts. If anyone has a smarter way to access visual work I'm all ears.
I feel quite frustrated. I teach general ed classes. I am not going to give a multiple choice test for political science. It is important to realize that certain courses require essay exams.
Underlining the answer is a good idea.
I am going to grade homework in class with everyone.
Patricia, Excellent approach! Definitely remember to maintain confidentiality by assigning students unique numbers as opposed to using names on exams.
Dr. Melissa Read
I am excited to use the method of distributing the students homework out amongst the class and go through question by question, having the students grade each other's homework all at once, as I had never heard of this method before, but it makes a lot of sense.
This was another grade module! I teach quantitative courses and my main takeaway from this module is to ask students to make their answers as visible as possible for me. I require them to show calculations and not just write the answers but making the answers bold and/or highlighted will reduce grading time. I will also try grading in class, that is, for students to grade each others' work. I can see how we can grade quizzes and tests in class, but some students don't submit homework on time. Although the students who submit late assignments get reduced grades, we can't share answers in class if everyone hasn't submitted. Any suggestion on what to do in this case is greatly appreciated.
Felicia
Great point Linda about student being embarassed if they don't perform well. Perhaps you can assign each student a number/code so students only have to enter their numbers/codes on the assignments that will be graded in class? Just a thought.
Felicia
Dr. Read, I chuckled when I read your post. I provided a similar response to someone else in this forum before reading yours. Assigning unique numbers is great so students' grades remain confidential.
Felicia
I have been teaching for about 3 years and based on the contents of this section I appear to be heading in the correct direction.
I have been drifting my course content toward the multiple choice and true false categories. this appears to work better for the students in that if they don't see the answer to math or similar questions, they need to go back and reconsider their solution process. For me the work is easier to grade. I did like the suggestion of placing an answer column for the student to place their answers as it organizes that portion of the work and makes it easier for me to review.
Dr. Felicia, Great minds and I tend to agree!
Dr. Melissa Read
I have learned the hard way about how time consuming grading can be. After this realization, I bought a pack of red pens that I distribute to the class and check homework, assignments, etc. in class. It saves me a huge amount of time and the students get instant results and do not have to ask what questions they missed.
I find it odd that in one particular class the exams( 50 questions) are multiple choice but the last 5 or so are fill in the blank. This seems to negate the possibility of using a scantron and seems to serve no true purpose.
The majority of our course material is set up for the instructors with lee way with adding supplemental material. The exams and reading assignments are previously designated. The exams are multiple choice and homeowrk, aside from reading is fill in or multiple choice. So, in itself, The exams and homework are easy enough to grade but setting aside the time to grade is the issue. Referring to the previous lesson, I will be prioritizing my "to-do" lists.
I am currently in the process of making all of my homework assignments to be completed on the computer. This has already saved me a HUGE amount of time. I think the suggestion to do 50% computer and 50% written is a great idea.
