I agree, but I have to give myself more time to grade my presentations when they are in class. Perhaps I need a better rubric so that it reduces time.
Yes, evaluation time does vary depending on the course content Stephen. This is something important to consider when setting expectations of yourself and communicating them to others.
Yes, that is the balance that must be reached. I admit to having at times wondered about whether I was being as accute as I could be in assessing an exam as time started running short. And, have you noticed, that different classes may take more time in assessments even though all of the tests are the same. I have some classes that I can literally breeze through exam evaluation and then others that become painfully slow. Still, I can't imagine EVER tailoring examd to fit a given class.
I'm curious about on-line testing. Do the students have computer acess in class and are they taking these tests in the classroom or from whatever site they feel like. My only concern here is that they, in fact, are really taking the test and not having someone else do the work for them. I guess I like seeing the name on the exam and some familiar handwriting just to make sure.
"Grading" might be done, but I suspect that there needs to be a fair bit of time allocated in discussing with each individual student how their grades were determined. With a simple written exam, it is far easier to see what is right and what is wrong. How could you possibly construct a grading "key" in the evaluation of oral presentations? Teaching does not begin and end in the classroom.
...and students themselves have need for some sort of assessment if they are to know how they are doing and where they stand. It is not just about "grades" for administrative purposes.
Frankly, I have been doing this for a very long time...more than twenty years now, and, while I believe that you can ALWAYS learn better ways to do things, I am presently fairly pleased with my regimen of exams and assignments. If anything, I have become less concenred about "streamlining" and more concerned about relevancy and the vaildity of content. I suppose that I am bit "old school" in that I percieve teaching as something of a "sacred trust" with my students. I am not here to make things easy on myself, and that I have a real obligation to get things right regradless of the work load that might impose on me as a teacher. Sure, there are times that I would prefer not to sit down for hours and our over exams, but that is a part of the job description after all...yes?
I completely understand what you mean about privacy issues Jonathan! Some instructors get around that by assigning numbers to exams instead of asking students to write their names on them. This way, grading is anonymous.
Yes, typically class size is the constraint to consider. At the same time, learning objectives are also something to carefully consider. If you were teaching speech communication for example, it might not be inappropriate to ask all students to do oral presentations - despite large class sizes.
One of the biggest complaints that I hear from students is that they don't use the textbook enough. So, I like to give homework from the book. However, bookwork is extremely time consuming to grade compared to a quiz or an exam, as students do not organize their work as well when there is not a specific page that they have to write their answers on.
I have tried mutliple things in the past, such as 1) Only giving quizzes and exams instead of homework, 2) Copying pages from the book and having students write directly on those pages, and 3) Only assigning odd-numbered problems so that students can check their own answers in the back of the book before turning the problems in. I still haven't decided what method I prefer the best in terms of what is easiest for me, as they all have some downfalls.
One comment I have is that under NO circumstances would I EVER have students grade each other papers due to privacy issues. I do not even allow students to pick up their own graded papers. I personally hand back papers so that they are sure that their grade is secure. And what about the students who did not do the homework? Then they are sitting in class doing nothing for the entire time that we are "grading" the homework. Yes, it can be review, but I don't see the students perceiving it as such. They simply want to know for the most part whether they got their answer RIGHT or WRONG.
I'm intrigued by the idea of using oral competency assessments. I suppose class size would be the main barometer for whether this type of idea would work? Any thoughts?
Steve
In reviewing the materials for this section, I found that I already do a number of the things that have been suggested. I did like the various websites out there to help with test creation and grading. I have always graded my student's homeowrk by first scanning for the important information and going on from there. I do like the idea of asking the student to highlight or underline the important information to help streamline the process.
The methods discussed in the section over good insight to the grading process. Using consistent grading practices and technology will offer more effective time management. Online testing and discussion forums offer good indications of student learning.
Go ahead and give it a try Karen. It's a huge time saver, especially for big class sizes.
I like the idea of underlining main points in the essays to make it easier to grade. That will make my grading essay assignments so much easier.
I use a number of quizzes/exams that are multiple choice and T/F. I have formulated the answers so that a pattern emerges on the answer sheet that allows me to grade the assessments very quickly.
I also have to grade /assess many food products, I ahve learned to take very small bites and use a rubric that is quite specific.
Yes, the underlining method works great Michael. Do give it a try. In addition to making grading easier for you, it will also help your students focus on ensuring they answer completely and that they support any argument or thesis provided.
Clearly any test that can be graded by a scantron will be a real time saver. I have used a scantron on ocassion. I understand the difficulty with any type of essay question as to time for grading, difficulty of grading, etc. I remember reading an essay by a college freshman who wrote that one of his biggest disappointments was discovering T or F, matching, multiple choice questions, fill in the blank, etc. were used in college. He wrote about how he had assumed essay type questions would be the norm. In his words, the other type of questions seemed so "high school." I do think having the student highlight major points of their essay is a good idea, I had not previously used; but will now.
Dr. Read,
I will format my exams with multiple choice and true/false questions. I would also focus on homework for students to help grade while focusing on a few key questions. Very helpful section.
Dr. Vadell
Yes, answer location makes a huge difference in grading, especially for large class sizes. Go ahead and give that a try Emily.
