Grading is one of those teacher tasks that is a constant. We are always grading. There is no way around it. But, there are ways that we can make it go a little faster so we can focus on teaching. To help get grading out of the way, I compiled a list of 7 Genius Grading Tips for Secondary Teachers.
How to Make Grading Easier: Organize Work to be Graded
Before we can actually get to grading, it helps tremendously to be organized. As secondary teachers, we have so many options for organizing the work that students turn in. Some teachers even have a system where students turn their work into the apparatus they use to organize.
Here are some organization options:
- Letter Trays
- Sterilite Drawers
- Drawer Carts
- Folders
- Hanging File Folders
As a secondary teacher, give each class period its own place for each option. Meaning each class period gets its own drawer, tray, folder, etc. Be sure to label your organization option with each class period.
Personally, I like to use hanging file folders. My system includes two sets of folders. On my desk, I keep the folders for work that comes in. In the front of my classroom, I keep the folders for the work that I need to return.
Grading Tips: Batch Grading
Batching isn’t just for lesson plans! Batching can very easily be applied to grading. To batch grading, grade all of one assignment at a time. If you have 5 classes that all took the same quiz, it’s actually faster to grade the quizzes from all 5 classes in one sitting. (Just be careful not to mix up quizzes from different classes.)
When you batch your grading, you are able to grade faster because your brain is able to really focus on the process. In fact, after giving yourself so much time to concentrate on one assignment, the answers become part of your short term memory.
Do you give your students multiple versions of exams?
You can also batch by grading just one version at a time. I do this with tests and quizzes. So before I start grading, I sort them into separate piles. One pile for version 1, and a pile for version 2. I do this one class at a time. Although, if I can, I like to grade version 1 for all of my classes before moving on to version 2. I just need to give myself lots of space for all the piles this method creates.
How to Make Grading Easier: Using Piles Effectively
Creating piles plays an important role in grading for me. Beyond the multiple versions, putting papers into piles helps me to organize papers before I grade them. This strategy is great for grading open-ended questions, and it’s what I use when grading formative assessments, such as exit tickets.
Before I start actively grading these assignments, I scan them. As I scan them, I start creating piles. Assignments with everything correct get their own pile. Typically, there are commonalities in incorrect answers. So, as I scan for mistakes, I place assignments with the same mistake into their own pile.
Benefits of Using Piles
Having piles of the same mistakes allows me to assess how many students have the same misconceptions. It also streamlines any data collection I need to do based on errors.
When it comes to grading, it streamlines the process of correcting. I like to underline, circle, and draw arrows to where mistakes happened. Sometimes I write comments. With all of the similar mistakes in one pile, I am adding the same corrections and comments to every paper in the pile. It makes it much faster because I don’t have to think about what I need to write each time.
Tips for Grading Essays Faster
Take this advice with a grain of salt. I’m a math teacher, and I rarely grade student writing. I am merely repeating the advice I’ve heard many times.
To streamline essay grading, don’t grade every aspect of writing. Focus on 1 or 2 components when possible. This can depend on your school’s requirements, but if you’re able to assign essays and not grade every little thing, do it.
You can still correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc., but you don’t have to calculate them into the grade every single time. Try focusing on what’s most important for the prompt you give.
Also, let students know what you’re looking for. Just like grading essays is a lot for you, writing essays is a lot for them. Knowing what the most important aspect is will be beneficial to them as they write.
Tips for Grading Papers: Be Selective
Do not grade everything. I repeat: Do NOT grade everything. Be selective. Only grade the assignments that accurately reflect your students’ learning.
If your district demands that you add a certain number of grades each week or quarter, do that. But don’t go crazy trying to grade everything just to meet a quota.
In my grading tips video, I go into more detail. I also explain what I do regarding students that won’t complete work unless there is a grade attached to it. You can view that video here.
Grading Tips for Late Work
Late work is frustrating, I know. Before you worry about grading late work, make sure you have a well-defined policy for accepting late work. Oftentimes our late work policy is dictated by our school or by our department. If it’s not, and you get to make up your own policy, make sure it’s fair. And make sure your policy is clearly stated for your students to understand.
Batch Grading Late Work
When you have late work to grade, batch when possible. To make batching possible for me, I let late work pile up throughout the week. (Listen, if it wasn’t a priority for students to get it done on time, it’s not a priority for me to grade right away.)
Before grading, I gather all of the answer keys I will need. When I sit down to grade late work, I grade all of one assignment first. Then, I’ll grade all of the next assignment. Just as I described batching before, it goes faster when you focus on just one assignment at a time.
As I grade assignments, I record the grades into my paper gradebook, and then I add the grades to our online grade management system.
Add Grading Late Work to Your Schedule
Grading late work is just one more thing to add to your to-do list. I totally get it. Grading late work only once a week makes it more manageable for me. Since I update my online grades weekly – every Friday, I put grading late work on my schedule for Friday.
Grading Tips for Teachers
In speaking of entering grades, make sure to add that to your schedule too. I like to batch enter grades into our online grade management system. Every Friday, I go in and add the grades from the week.
This helps students and parents to know when to expect grades to be updated. This also eliminates emails and phone calls asking about grade updates. (Also, a huge time-saver!)
The only exception I make is for tests and quizzes. For some crazy reason, students think that tests are automatically graded when they turn them in. Usually, I like to grade tests and quizzes the same day that I give them. And then, I will add those grades online by the end of the day to avoid students asking me for their grades all day long. (A huge sanity-saver! For all of us.)
Digital Grading Tips
For this post, the focus was on general grading tips. If you are grading digitally, I have a previous blog post all about my digital grading system. You can read all about it here.
Much like lesson planning, grading is an inescapable teacher task. Luckily, by implementing a few of these tips, you can streamline your grading to make it faster and easier.
