I met a girl a couple of months ago who was a PhD student. We got talking about teaching, and she mentioned how she enjoyed teaching but hated grading. Not because of the time and the effort but because of the responsibility of deciding someone's fate and potentially having to fail them.
I started grading essays for my course today. For a few minutes, I was tempted to look up the students by their numbers and see whom I was grading. Wisely, I decided against it. It is more ethical to grade anonymously because the moment you know whom you are grading you set expectations which can influence your grade.
I got through about 10 essays today and it was easier than I had imagined. Tiring, but it wasn't an endless series of dilemmas. One instinctively knows what grade to give and, frankly, I don't have the time to agonize endlessly over it. Yes, you have to be careful with your feedback so that you don't expose yourself to grade protests. Obvious stuff like saying an essay was excellent but just grading it as a 60 is asking for trouble.
But I discovered that I like evaluating essays and providing feedback. At least, I only have to pass judgement and not improve it, as I had to for the short while that I was an editor.
I started grading essays for my course today. For a few minutes, I was tempted to look up the students by their numbers and see whom I was grading. Wisely, I decided against it. It is more ethical to grade anonymously because the moment you know whom you are grading you set expectations which can influence your grade.
I got through about 10 essays today and it was easier than I had imagined. Tiring, but it wasn't an endless series of dilemmas. One instinctively knows what grade to give and, frankly, I don't have the time to agonize endlessly over it. Yes, you have to be careful with your feedback so that you don't expose yourself to grade protests. Obvious stuff like saying an essay was excellent but just grading it as a 60 is asking for trouble.
But I discovered that I like evaluating essays and providing feedback. At least, I only have to pass judgement and not improve it, as I had to for the short while that I was an editor.
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