Job Discussion Forums

[The Ever-changing Cleric]

Anyone got a better method of approaching this problem? For some of the more straightforward assignments, I've thought of giving the assignment one week, and the following week showing the slide and let them correct their own, record the marks they gave themselves, and then spot checking weekly to make sure they're actually being honest about it. Of course, this couldn't be applied to composition writing or more complex work.

Any ideas appreciated

[happigur1]

The homework assignment I gave out last year was fairly simple so I scanned through them. It's usually easy to pick up mistakes, etc.

If you have non-essay type homework, you could assign the homework and pick one or two of the problem to grade and give the students all or nothing or partial. Of course, don't tell the students which number you will grade. So let's say you give students ten fill in the blank. When you collect them, grade #4 and #5 and students can receive either 0 or 50 or 100% (or you could also give students credit for turning it in as well).

I personally like peer grading as well but I try to mix up the papers so students do not grade their own homework or their friends' homework (or in your case, you could return the following week and have other classes grade other classes' homework.)

Hope this helps a bit...

[Hansen]

I would require students to write one perfect sentence. For most of the students, that would take several weeks. Those who got it right could write a new sentence each week.

If your students can write a correct sentence or two or three and then a paragraph, you've accomplished quite a bit.

An approach like this keeps the out of class correction time to a minimum.

[sharpe88]

I don't think this is a good approach for intermediate students and above (perhaps not even for beginners). Connecting thoughts together is more important than writing one perfect sentence. It must be pretty boring to write one sentence for weeks on end.

[Silent Shadow]

That is way too many students to handle for writing.

My advice for the future is to have no more than 120 students for writing (three or four classes). That's my personal limit. Even then I would stagger it by only giving assignments every two weeks.

400 writing students? Virtually impossible!! Your school is being totally irresponsible and unreasonable in giving you that amount. With that amount of students it's very difficult to give any decent, meaningful, feedback unless you didn't sleep, eat, have sex or do anything else outside of your class time, but mark papers!

[nobleignoramus]

My approach is to ask students to mutually proofread their writing and to add their signatures; they then 'share' in the 'spoils', i.e. good or not so good marks.

It teaches them to be a lot more careful, plus it opens their eyes to mistakes they do not really care about since their teachers correct rather than mark their mistakes.

And, as a bonus for myself, my workload diminishes enormously... Honestly, teamwork under such circumstances kills many birds with one pebble. It really teaches students to be more responsible.

[Hansen]

Sharpe, Read the post. After they write a perfect sentence, they start on the next one. It's kind of like connecting thoughts.

Writing a perfect sentence doesn't require much: "I like to watch television." "I like listening to music." "I like to watch television and listen to music." "I like watching television and listening to music."

I have many students who are incapable of expressing themselves correctly at this level. Some students can write a paragraph with few mistakes.

This exercise is offered in view of the FTs desire to minimize work outside of the classroom. If you want to read and correct a paragraph from 400 students, have at it. In my situation, many of the paragraphs would be nearly incomprehensible. Correcting 400 each week would be close to impossible. It would be a very undesirable way to spend my time.

[Beyond1984]

"Anyone got a better method of approaching this problem [of marking tons of essays]?" The Ever-changing Cleric

I'm in a similar situation, as the Academic Writing teacher at my College did a runner, leaving me with about 350 students.

My College is part of a Chinese University that awards MA and Ph.D. degrees in English.

Chinese candidates for the doctorate in English, who already have Master's degrees, will be my markers.

Ever-changing, if your College has a Writing Center you might be able to arrange for its staff to mark for you.

I'm with Hansen [on this thread] ... have the students come to the board and write the topic sentences of their paragraphs, and as you correct them you can add to your list of Rules for Writing.

I have about 15 rules, and will instruct my assistants to check to see if the students are following them.

You will have to mark the students' final exam; I recommend that your students write two paragraphs, each of 4-7 sentences maximum.

"Brevity is the soul of wit," wrote The Bard.

Hope this helps.

-Wen Lin

"How does it become a man to behave toward this American government today? I answer that he cannot without disgrace be associated with it."
-Henry David Thoreau, "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience," 1849