Sounds like a great system Karyn. I like how you're including time saving question formats like matching with other ones that more deeply test knowledge - like short answer.
I will definitely ask the students to highlight important areas that they consider critical to essay questions. The tests are sent to us form corporate so we don’t have the ability to change the quizzes or exams content or format.
Good strategy Daniel! Even when we can't change the format of the exams, we can still control how students interact with them. I like the way you're leveraging what you have and at the same time, creating a grading system that will work best for you.
I teach an all lab class and we have developed a spreadsheet to keep trac of their lab grades. It divides their lab projects in different sections with so many points per each section. With a total of so many points per week. You can easily keep trac of their grades and show the students the grades for each section of the project letting them know their weak and strong points are. We also have a total of 5 tests per session to help make sure they understand the material and store that in an electronic gradebook making it quick and simple.
While I like essay form exams, I know how time consuming it is to grade them, and this gets really exhausting. From here on out I'm going to try the multiple choice/true-false method of testing, to make it easier on me and my students.
Currently I am unsing T/F and Multiple Choice. I have the students fill in the answers to the left on a designated line so that I can quickly use a grade key to grade.
I don't plan on changing my format.
My curriculum is designed for me by the institutions for whom I teach. I have no control over their format.
Sounds like a fantastic system Richard. I like your combination of a homegrown method that seems to be working well and use of modern technology that has been productized to make grading easier. Way to find the solution that works best for you!
For homework, I will have students grade each others'.
Using students to assist in grading is always productive. A previous professor in an education course used the students to practice teach and to develop exams and grade them as part of the course.
This was very effective and demonstrated several examplse of assessment during the course.
I seem to have things down as far as homework and tests. However, my biggest time consuming assignments are research papers. I have thought about discontinuing them, but it would not benefit the students. I am slso technology challenged and really need to get up to speed with the technology available. We do have a computerized system at work to enter grades and download assignments missed. Addtionally, I liked the idea of discussion groups. I think this continues the community atmosphere of the class and can streamline multiple questions.
Typically I do utilize the same test materials from term to term. I update as necessary when the course materials change. Now that I am aware of test tools on line, I will definitely investigate them. I will also investigate opportunities to utilize test creation and grading tools on line. Time savers are definitely a long desired necessity.
My homework already follows the suggestion of having students grading in class. I do number the homework sheets they have to fill out. By making a key with each student's name with a number, it keeps the results anonymous.
I think that having the students put the answer in the margins of the exam will save me some time. Thanks for the suggestion.
I have answer keys for all my quizzes and exams and at least the exams are always multiple choice. The quizzes are usually a combination of matching and fill-in-the-blanks. It takes me no time at all to grade them, and I usually have them graded by the time the students get back from their 10-15 min break. For hands-on work, I use www.rcampus.com to make online rubrics, and then I enter the students grades for each section of the rubric and the website calculates the total grade for me. It is super easy and quick. I also use www.engrade.com as my online gradebook. Its free, and the students can check their grades anytime.
I have actually made my own forms for the various classes which I break down the various grading evaluations. This works very well for me and I am able to get the final averages and final grades almost immediately upon the corrections of the final tests.
I do not give a lot of essays and it isn't because of time with grading but when I give an essay I enjoy taking the time to read them because it let's me into each of my students and I can understand them better
Sounds like you have a great system Nikki! Thanks for sharing these tips on great websites. I know other instructors in this course will benefit.
Thanks for the tip Robert. Sounds like a great system and one that other instructors in this course can use. I particularly appreciate your focus on anonymity. So important!
I am not in control of the exam format at our school. Our program director does not allow us to have a say in the matter. The program director makes standard tests/exams.
That sounds stressful Trena. I might still (respectfully) escalate suggestions to your program director every now and then. Sometimes good ideas find their way in!
