[nobe-l] question about grading

Thu Mar 11 23:44:01 UTC 2010

Definitely good ideas.  And, most schools will have Scantron available.  The problem there is that the sheets for Scantron are somewhat pricy.  If your district is in any kind of budget situation, they are not always going to pay for Scantron sheets.  Mine is having problems, so we don't use them.  Some teachers still do only for final exams, but no one has the luxury of using them for regular assessments.  I obviously do have those who grade my objective materials give me feedback, trends, and patterns.  With 150 students and sixty of them in creative writing classes that turn in work at an incredibly high rate and volume, there are not enough hours in the day for me to mark objective things myself, nor is there valid reasoning in my own teaching situation to spend time on that to the detriment of providing feedback that is extensive and specific on the writings, especially when my helpers are tuned in to providing the info I need on objective things.  It is a balancing act for sure.  You will not know your perfect balance until you have tried and failed and tried and succeeded.  I'm in my eighteenth year and continue tweeking my systems for the betterment of my teaching, for the benefit of the kids, and for the preservation of my own body, mind, and spirit.  After all, if you spread yourself too thin in areas that could be managed more efficiently in other ways, you will burn out and provide weak instruction in all areas, and you will start to hate your job.  Just be assured that you can try something and adjust it if it doesn't feel right for any reason.  Thank goodness that each new set of students conforms to the expectations you give for them that semester.  It is like rebirth each time you get new kids, and if you approach your methods as having that kind of new refinement potential, you are on the road to succeeding with grading.

Kathy Nimmer: Teacher, Author, Motivational Speaker
http://www.servicedogstories.com
http://guidedogjourney.livejournal.com
Even if the shadows of the valley hide your view,
You still must believe in the mountains.

> From: hope.paulos at maine.edu
> To: nobe-l at nfbnet.org
> Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:36:09 -0500
> Subject: Re: [nobe-l] question about grading
> 
> That's exactly why i had the reader read me everything. I have a secondary 
> ed degree focusing in Spanish and rarely used multiple choice questions in 
> my student-teaching. Was teaching the intermediate levels (Spanish II and 
> III). When I have my own classroom, I'll mostly be using electronic versions 
> of tests.
> Good suggestions!!
> Hope and Beignet
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Carolyn Brock" <mmebrock at spiritone.com>
> To: "National Organization of Blind Educators Mailing List" 
> <nobe-l at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 10:57 AM
> Subject: Re: [nobe-l] question about grading
> 
> 
> Hope,
> Remember that a test is an assessment not only of the students but of how
> well the teacher taught the material or wrote the test. Having someone else
> grade the objective questions gives you no feedback on which questions are
> being missed the most often. If large numbers of students are getting the
> same question wrong, then either that material needs to be reviewed, or else
> the question was not written clearly. If you do have someone else score
> objective tests, you might at least have the person keep a tally of which
> questions were missed. (Note that this is not just a blindness issue, as
> many sighted teachers use assistants or student aides to grade objective
> tests.)
> I taught French and English for many years, and I tried to stay away from
> true-false or multiple choice test questions, as they don't allow students
> to show off what they do know. They also encourage cheating. Having an
> assistant read you tests is time consuming but worth it in your knowledge of
> students' capabilities. Of course, Kathy has the best suggestion: have
> students turn in electronic tests whenever possible. Perhaps someday it
> will be possible for all student work to be done electronically.
> Good luck!
> Carolyn
> 
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Kathy Nimmer" <goldendolphin17 at hotmail.com>
> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 2:14 AM
> To: "blind teachers" <nobe-l at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: Re: [nobe-l] question about grading
> 
> >
> > Hi there,
> >
> > If there is tech to read handwriting, I'd love to know about it! Smile! 
> > I have someone grade multiple choice and other objective things via a key 
> > I make ahead of time. I have someone read me handwritten essay questions, 
> > but I also schedule the writing lab when I can for essay tests so they can 
> > print those answers from the computer or e-mail them. Our lab space is 
> > limited, so it doesn't always work, but having readers read handwritten 
> > ansers is a royal pain, I'll admit. It is slow and cumbersome, but it is 
> > sometimes unavoidable. I never have someone read me multiple choice and 
> > such as it takes away time that is better spent elsewhere, and blind 
> > teachers need every second of time they can get, in my opinion. English 
> > is definitely one of the most grading intensive subjects to be teaching.
> >
> > Kathy Nimmer: Teacher, Author, Motivational Speaker
> > http://www.servicedogstories.com
> > http://guidedogjourney.livejournal.com
> > Even if the shadows of the valley hide your view,
> > You still must believe in the mountains.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >> From: faith_manion at hotmail.com
> >> To: nobe-l at nfbnet.org
> >> Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:37:19 -0600
> >> Subject: [nobe-l] question about grading
> >>
> >>
> >> Hello all,
> >>
> >> I have about a year before I begin my student teaching and this semester 
> >> I am teaching several lessons. With these lessons I am giving multiple 
> >> choice tests and writing activities. In the past someone has just graded 
> >> the multiple choice items for me and then read the writing responses out 
> >> loud. Do you guys know any other way to grade papers when they are hand 
> >> written and not typed? Is there any new type of technology out there that 
> >> I am unaware of that will read handwriting?
> >>
> >> Thanks
> >>
> >> Faith Manion
> >>
> >> > Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:43:16 -0600
> >> > To: david.andrews at nfbnet.org
> >> > From: RWest at nfb.org
> >> > Subject: [nobe-l] NFB-NEWSLINER In Your Pocket Now Compatible
> >> >
> >> > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> >> >
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> >> > National Federation of the Blind
> >> > (410) 659-9314, extension 2330
> >> > (410) 262-1281 (Cell)
> >> > <mailto:cdanielsen at nfb.org>cdanielsen at nfb.org
> >> >
> >> > Scott White
> >> > Director, NFB-NEWSLINE®
> >> > National Federation of the Blind
> >> > (410) 659-9314, extension 2231
> >> > <mailto:swhite at nfb.org>swhite at nfb.org
> >> >
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> >> >
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> >> > NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
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> >> > Phone: (410) 659-9314 ext. 2411
> >> > Fax: (410) 659-5129
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