There is a ton that I need to get done before we start up on Wednesday. First and foremost is figuring out what I am teaching. We ended a unit just before break, and now need to move onward. There are some social studies topics coming but I need to lay them out. I've also got to decide what novel study books will come next. I had 9 books going this past round, but still have a few in my library that I haven't used. Additionally we have a book room to access. Question is which books and why.
Just to make things interesting I have some work to score. These are the videos that the kids made. They shouldn't take that long, but it needs to get done. I need to start with a clean plate.
Lots coming, I just need to do it. Here's to getting it done.
Showing posts with label grading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grading. Show all posts
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Sunday, January 15, 2012
The Take Home Bag
I would venture a guess that almost every teacher is familiar with the "take home bag." It is the bag of stuff you bring home with the hopes of working on it at home. Sometimes this gets done, and other times it is left in the bag. The bag is the burden of many teachers trying to give feedback to their kids, get stuff graded, and figure our where their kids are. I've virtually sworn this off.
For my first 2.5 years I brought everything home. 75 writing prompts? Yep, they go in the bag. "I'll grade a couple after dinner." Grading happened less than 1/3 of the time. Worse, the contents of the bag were the source of anguish as I felt like each passing day I was letting my kids down. A day more was a day further removed from the assignment, making feedback less and less relevant. At some point I just couldn't continue to do that as it was failing my kids, and was making me feel awful.
Opting to not grade isn't an option (nice double negative, right?!). Instead I've broken down my grading. I have 75 kids, since we swap kids in our grade level. I will do 10-15 at a time. During the week I strive for 10-15 a day, and then 2 or 3 sets of 10-15 on the weekend. For example, I have a pile of 70+ writing assessments. I went into the weekend with 35-45. It is easier to sit for 10 than 30+. I get tired as I keep going, and fatigue isn't good for scoring... so I take a break. It makes life a little easier, and works me towards getting kids feedback at a faster rate.
During the week this works too. We've got report cards coming up, which means 25 comments. How about 4-5 a day? 5 a day means that they are done in a week. It also means that each comment is fresh, and not at the end of your wits end. Your comments are more authentic, and likely of greater value instead of (alright 3 more to finish all of them... or, another 10..etc).
If you are bringing home the bag of papers every night this might be an option for you. Try it and let me know.
For my first 2.5 years I brought everything home. 75 writing prompts? Yep, they go in the bag. "I'll grade a couple after dinner." Grading happened less than 1/3 of the time. Worse, the contents of the bag were the source of anguish as I felt like each passing day I was letting my kids down. A day more was a day further removed from the assignment, making feedback less and less relevant. At some point I just couldn't continue to do that as it was failing my kids, and was making me feel awful.
Opting to not grade isn't an option (nice double negative, right?!). Instead I've broken down my grading. I have 75 kids, since we swap kids in our grade level. I will do 10-15 at a time. During the week I strive for 10-15 a day, and then 2 or 3 sets of 10-15 on the weekend. For example, I have a pile of 70+ writing assessments. I went into the weekend with 35-45. It is easier to sit for 10 than 30+. I get tired as I keep going, and fatigue isn't good for scoring... so I take a break. It makes life a little easier, and works me towards getting kids feedback at a faster rate.
During the week this works too. We've got report cards coming up, which means 25 comments. How about 4-5 a day? 5 a day means that they are done in a week. It also means that each comment is fresh, and not at the end of your wits end. Your comments are more authentic, and likely of greater value instead of (alright 3 more to finish all of them... or, another 10..etc).
If you are bringing home the bag of papers every night this might be an option for you. Try it and let me know.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Numeric Grades and Feedback
Everyone has been there. You worked really hard on a paper, a test, a resume, or something. You submit it and wait. What are you waiting for? You are waiting for the thumbs up or thumbs down that tells you whether you did a good job, or tells you where you stand. Was there feedback given aside from the yes/no/a-ok? Did you read it?
My hunch tells me you didn't genuinely read the feedback. You were content with the A, the B or B-, got it, didn't get it. That was enough feedback for you unless you needed to improve it to jump through a hoop. From there you moved on because you had new things to tackle. You're busy and stopping to really read the comments or feedback takes time, as does integrating the feedback into your habits to make change. I could be wrong, and therefore be guilty of projecting my own educational experience on others. But I don't think so.
Typically I drift to the philosophical question: Why is that? Why does that happen? That doesn't move the needle for me. I have a hunch from my own experience, and I'm comfortable going with that for the time being (that hunch: feedback is a critique on your work, and the truth can be hard to face... whether bad or good. It is easier to get the evaluation and move on). What I am concerned with is the following: How do we change habits to get kids to utilize feedback so they can improve their skill set? Said another way, how do we get kids to not worry about the 3 on the top of the paper and to read the comments for understanding? I say "not worry" because embedded in that question is the fact that kids need to know where they are at. At times they need the 2 or 3 on the paper that symbolizes whether they met the standard (and therefore being on the right track). The 3 provides the comfort that comments don't.
I don't see comments and grades as naturally incongruous. I don't think it is an either or debate. As currently constructed they are, but they don't need to be. That's what I want to tackle next.
My hunch tells me you didn't genuinely read the feedback. You were content with the A, the B or B-, got it, didn't get it. That was enough feedback for you unless you needed to improve it to jump through a hoop. From there you moved on because you had new things to tackle. You're busy and stopping to really read the comments or feedback takes time, as does integrating the feedback into your habits to make change. I could be wrong, and therefore be guilty of projecting my own educational experience on others. But I don't think so.
Typically I drift to the philosophical question: Why is that? Why does that happen? That doesn't move the needle for me. I have a hunch from my own experience, and I'm comfortable going with that for the time being (that hunch: feedback is a critique on your work, and the truth can be hard to face... whether bad or good. It is easier to get the evaluation and move on). What I am concerned with is the following: How do we change habits to get kids to utilize feedback so they can improve their skill set? Said another way, how do we get kids to not worry about the 3 on the top of the paper and to read the comments for understanding? I say "not worry" because embedded in that question is the fact that kids need to know where they are at. At times they need the 2 or 3 on the paper that symbolizes whether they met the standard (and therefore being on the right track). The 3 provides the comfort that comments don't.
I don't see comments and grades as naturally incongruous. I don't think it is an either or debate. As currently constructed they are, but they don't need to be. That's what I want to tackle next.
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