How to Grade Papers and Test Efficiently as Teachers

Grading student work is an on-going headache that every teacher faces repeatedly. There is no way to be a teacher and not assess student work, but there are ways to speed up the process so that you are as efficient with your time as you can possibly while still providing feedback.

Focus on the Details of Your Grading Environment

What teacher hasn’t graded a few papers while sitting at a red light or on hold with the cable company? Every little bit helps, but to be efficient with grading, you need to upgrade the space where you do your grading. This means having a big enough surface to spread out your papers. It means keeping a supply of smooth pens that suit the task rather than having to scrounge around in your drawer every time. Make sure your chair is supportive and comfortable. If you have trouble viewing papers at different distances or going back and forth between papers and the computer screen, consider getting lens replacement for your glasses because nothing will wear you down faster than tired eyes. Finally, have a task light available that illuminates your workspace well.

Start With Organized Papers

It’s well worth the time to organize papers into the correct assignment and class. Although most teachers employ a set of “turn in” baskets that divide classes or subjects, there is always a handful of late papers from different assignments mixed together. Before you grade anything, distribute those papers to their rightful stack. This will keep you from having to look for the answer key that you have already put away.

One useful organization system is to place a piece of bright card stock paper between each class and then use a binder clip or giant rubber band to bundle one assignment of the same type together. The answer key can be clipped right in with the work.

Create an Answer Document

Precious time is wasted flipping through stapled packets of paper especially when only a couple of answers are on each page. Create a separate answer document that students write on to cut down the amount of papers you touch for each student. For some assignments, the answer document need only be a half page thus allowing you to also save paper. For work that contains both multiple choice and written answers, each type of question can go on a different side of the paper allowing you to grade each independently depending on how much time you have to devote to grading at that moment.

Code Remarks

Some notes teachers make over and over again, so why not create a coded remarks system that means less writing for you? Create a simple number or letter code with your most used remarks like J = “add details” or 6 = “misspelled word” and give a copy to students to put in their binders. Keep a copy handy with your grading materials. Every time you come across a misspelled word, write in “6” instead of rewriting the word, for example. This system will take a little bit of time to memorize, but it will save you time in the long run if you only have to jot down one character rather than an entire explanation.

Grade Selectively

Give yourself permission to grade selectively. There is no law that says just because you gave a 20-question assignment that you must grade all the answers. Choose the answers that best reflect mastery of the curriculum and grade those items specifically.

There is also no law that says you must grade every assignment you give. Although meaningful feedback to students is important, it’s also impossible to give it for every assignment. Instead, read through a sample of about 10% of work for an assignment that you don’t intend to grade and present group feedback the next day. Your comments and criticisms will be timelier than if you returned the work two weeks later after the unit was over.

Although grading is a necessary evil of teaching, it does not need to be a beast. Creating an organized system with shortcuts can save your sanity and provide timely feedback for your students.