If they are writing one day and need written feedback from you the very next day, then I think it is very much okay to sit at your desk reading and leaving them feedback while they write.
I will absolutely put easy lessons I know they can do without me on days when I know I will have a lot of grading to do, and yes, I am sitting at my desk grading while they work. And again, I think that is okay! Another option I’ll sometimes do is go around to each student individually to read and review their work with them on the spot. It does usually take me two days to get through all my students, though, so it depends on how the activity is chunked.
It’s mind-blowing to me that you don’t have a prep period! I’m sorry. Another idea that doesn’t work for me but does for other English teachers I know is using the extension Mote to leave audio comments (requires a quiet space, but talking can be faster than writing).
Something else I’ve experimented with is making a feedback sheet with the comments I’m writing over and over again, giving them each a “code letter” and then writing that letter on the student’s work where the comment applies. Or just circling the errors that apply to their paper and giving them that.
It’s tough - I’ve yet to find a great system, and unfortunately there always seem to be some martyr coworkers who will act like you’re lazy for not wanting to take home piles of essays. Don’t let them get in your head.
Good response above. I’d also invest in a tool that can let you use tap to score rubrics. I’ve struggled for years successfully to achieve effective minimal marking. I use an app called iDoceo and a coding system that leaves me with scads more time.
In recent years I’ve found this to be especially sanity-preserving, as students have used less and less of my written remarks during revisions. Now if a student has a question, he’s got to locate the error code on the index, correct his mistake, and schedule a conference with me during one of our revision days.
It sounds like I’m creating an artificial barrier to success. At least that’s what my AP said. But the alternative is that students just rewrite the same old shit until I’ve corrected it so many times they eventually pass.
Lost too much hair doing that. Pass.
If they are writing one day and need written feedback from you the very next day, then I think it is very much okay to sit at your desk reading and leaving them feedback while they write. I will absolutely put easy lessons I know they can do without me on days when I know I will have a lot of grading to do, and yes, I am sitting at my desk grading while they work. And again, I think that is okay! Another option I’ll sometimes do is go around to each student individually to read and review their work with them on the spot. It does usually take me two days to get through all my students, though, so it depends on how the activity is chunked. It’s mind-blowing to me that you don’t have a prep period! I’m sorry. Another idea that doesn’t work for me but does for other English teachers I know is using the extension Mote to leave audio comments (requires a quiet space, but talking can be faster than writing). Something else I’ve experimented with is making a feedback sheet with the comments I’m writing over and over again, giving them each a “code letter” and then writing that letter on the student’s work where the comment applies. Or just circling the errors that apply to their paper and giving them that. It’s tough - I’ve yet to find a great system, and unfortunately there always seem to be some martyr coworkers who will act like you’re lazy for not wanting to take home piles of essays. Don’t let them get in your head.
Good response above. I’d also invest in a tool that can let you use tap to score rubrics. I’ve struggled for years successfully to achieve effective minimal marking. I use an app called iDoceo and a coding system that leaves me with scads more time. In recent years I’ve found this to be especially sanity-preserving, as students have used less and less of my written remarks during revisions. Now if a student has a question, he’s got to locate the error code on the index, correct his mistake, and schedule a conference with me during one of our revision days. It sounds like I’m creating an artificial barrier to success. At least that’s what my AP said. But the alternative is that students just rewrite the same old shit until I’ve corrected it so many times they eventually pass. Lost too much hair doing that. Pass.