Carol Gering

A month ago (can it really be that long???) I posted an idea for pre-grading sheets. I’ve now used the technique for two different project assignments and am ready to share my reflections on this method.

Did it save me time?

This was my original intent. I can confidently report that it has helped to streamline my grading on large projects. It’s not foolproof and I still have to spot check for common problems (your pre-grading sheet says you used spell check, so why do I see 23 spelling errors when I run a spell check?), but it definitely helps me to locate problems more quickly. As a side benefit, it quickly clues me in to places where students misunderstood vocabulary or tasks associated with the assignment. For example, I found that some students couldn’t tell me what leading they used for body text because they either didn’t understand the term leading, or because they didn’t know how to identify it in the software application. I would never have discovered that by looking at their completed projects.

Did it improve the quality of their projects?

Absolutely! As Heidi commented on my earlier post, I created some pieces of the pre-grading sheet as a guideline. For example, I included a checklist of the required elements of the project and asked them to check off all the things they included. While I’ve always listed the required elements of project assignments, the act of checking items off on the pre-grading sheet seemed to help students be more thorough. It also provided a subtle reminder (or hint) about aesthetic qualities that I consider important.

Did it help students think more critically about their own work?

I believe it did. Further, it was enlightening to find out what they thought they did well on, what they would do differently next time, and what they felt they had learned while completing the project. This provided another feedback loop for me—to discover what I’m communicating effectively (or not so effectively, as the case may be).

Continuing evolution

The pre-grading sheets have been successful, and I’ll definitely continue using them. One of the things that made project grading difficult and time-consuming for me in the past was the belief that I needed to provide aesthetic feedback on all student assignments. I’ve switched my tactic a bit on that as well. I now show students’ completed projects on screen during class time. This gives an opportunity for classmates—as well as me—to critique the design verbally. I can then focus my written feedback on technical skill. I believe this has improved the quality of feedback as well as my efficiency in grading.

I’m reading a book—new to me, but ten years old—titled Effective Grading: A tool for learning and assessment. I didn’t glean much from the first seven chapters, other than a few new structures for grading rubrics. Midway through the book, however, I’ve come to a chapter on “Making Grading More Time-Efficient” that has sparked some ideas. Of the nine principles listed in this chapter, one really caught my attention: Use what the student knows. I plan to try it in my Desktop Publishing class next week.

My primary assessments in the Desktop Publishing course are projects. The next assignment due is a one-page magazine article. These projects are always time-consuming to grade; it takes a while to review each of their computer files to see how they’ve implemented the requirements before writing feedback. As Effective Grading points out, I may be spending a lot of time trying to discover things my students already know. (”I knew I didn’t have that lined up properly” or “I knew I used too many fonts in this design.”)

The strategy I’m about to try is a Pre-Grading sheet that each student will turn in along with their assignment. In addition to saving me time, I hope it will help students learn to self-evaluate more effectively. Seems like an ingenious idea to me—but not all my ideas turn out to be as brilliant as I envision. I’ll let you know how it goes. You can view my pre-grading sheet on Issuu.