Do you pass back homework once it has been graded? I've been talking with another teacher at my school who doesn't return anything. Once it makes it to her inbox, the kids never see it again unless it's a special project and they request it back. Her reasoning behind this is that most students a) never look at the paper except to see the score at the top, b) she liked to save some work to use in conferences, and c) often give the paper to peers who were absent so that they can copy it. I did hand back papers last year in hopes that students would use them for review and practice. Unfortunately, it seemed that most of the papers ended up in the recycling box or shoved into the bottom of a backpack. What are your opinions on this subject?
I should add that this policy is only for assignments which were gone over in class, so the student should already know their score. It's not for quizzes and tests.
I gave back the graded papers and required the students to keep them in their agendas. Sometimes I gave quizzes that consisted of: Find your homework from October 14, and copy the question and answer; this is Number 1. Number 2: find your pronoun quiz dated January 19, and answer question six. . . etc. This rewarded students who obeyed me, rewarded students who became somewhat organized, and penalized students who disobeyed me by not saving their papers. Eventually, most of the students started obeying me and saving their papers. No notes? What a shame. Next time, obey the teacher. I do have a question: why would a teacher NOT return graded papers? That seems so lazy and unprofessional to me. Parents want to see them, and a graded quiz or homework paper can then become a 'note,' and notes can be used on tests. If you want conference evidence, xerox the papers. Students deserve to see how well or how poorly they've done when something is graded and used to calculate their final grade.
I like this question, because the truth is the kids really just care about the grade and rarely refer back to their homework to study. I know that one of my Educ. profs always spouted off "Immediate and Specific Feedback"...which makes sense. I know that is especially useful when writing English/history papers. I'm not totally sure how to answer that because I hadn't thought about it much. I'd like to think, yes, hand it back...but how can I design my curriculum, so they kids will WANT to hold onto it for future reference?
Oops, I didn't see your second post until I'd already posted. Sorry. I still believe all papers should be returned, though.
I try for a turnaround time of 2 days... a whole lot more challenging once my own kids came along. My kids get everything back. I never re-use tests or quizzes. There's no reason for them not to get their work back. And a LOT of kids stop by extra help to go over a test they've blown.
When I return papers, I also pass around the latest greatest grade sheet for them to check their grades and my data entry. Their papers, with a grade in my writing/pen, is their proof of having turned in a paper. If I don't give them back, how can I hold them responsible? And of course, in my perfect world, they are looking at every comment and correction and learning incredible amounts of information that could not be learned in any other way.
I used to be horrible about returning papers. Then this year, I started this whole "Grade Day Friday" idea with my kids (I talked about this a little on an earlier thread). Anyway, Fridays are dedicated to going over their work for the week. I make it a point to meet with every kid and go over what they've done for the week. I saw a *huge* improvement in quantity and quality of work. Even if I didn't have time to closely grade every single assignment, just the fact that they knew I was going to hold them accountable made them take their work more seriously. Even on assignments in which I just gave completion grades, sometimes I would point out spelling or grammar mistakes. The kids made a conscious effort to fix those as time went on. I was amazed. Secondly, I have been in grad school for the last 2 semesters, and I will tell you nothing makes me angrier than a prof who doesn't bother to return my work. It's rude! I work hard on my assignments, and I need to know if I did them correctly. One professor I have right now hasn't graded a single thing, and the course is over on Friday. I'm horribly frustrated. That has also made me more committed to grading my students' work in a timely fashion. It's how I expect to be treated!
so...my question still stands in alignment with Cassie's concern...should we be passing all this back, and making them hold onto the stuff, if they MAY (maybe they will) not be caring about our comments on the papers if they're just looking at the grades? i dont know if that just made sense
As a graduate student, I didn't always review every last detail of the notes my professors left on my papers. Perhaps that was foolish of me, but knowing they were there for me to look over gave me ownership of learning from my mistakes. If I chose not to learn from them, and my prof gave me feedback that I could have used to do better in subsequent assignments - that was on me, not him or her. I think it should be the same for our students. They need that responsibility.
I hand everything back too. However, I have been known to keep conference evidence. But, I even give that back at the conference. I am taking an online course right now and check every day for any comments the instructor might have made about my work.
You're making an awful big assumption that most kids don't care about the work they've turned in. I don't think that's true. A majority of students care to know how well they did, and most look to see what they missed. I would think it's human nature. Perhaps the papers end up in the trash because they've looked at it, absorbed it, and don't need or don't want anymore input from the teacher. If it offends you (as it does me) to find papers in the trash, then do what I do. Pull it out and hand it back to the student the next time you see them. Tell them that it bothers you, and if they are going to trash it, then do it in someone else's room. I would then take the time to ask if they understood why they missed what they did. After all, you're modeling concern about education and show that you (the student) should value and care about learning.
I was the type of student who kept all my stuff just in case for all sorts of reasons- checking my grade, making sure my grades in general were correct, to reference material and some things I just kept. I like the idea of quizzes in regards to keeping up with stuff... especially used in addition with binder checks (or as binder checks).
I return everything. I had an English teacher who never returned anything and I hated it (and her for that matter;she was lazy, unorganized and booring). Personally, I think its pretty lazy never to return anything.
Almost all of my student's work is done in their interactive notebook, so it HAS to be returned for my class to function. Because it is in the notebook it is not on the floor or in the trash, and the students have it to review for tests and to review past units (I give them warm ups and anything we've studied is fair game.) Loose work goes into an envelope in the back. Quizzes get glued in. Unit tests we review in class and then I file - although, I'm rethinking that - Mamacita, you're right, I could just copy the answer sheet for the "conference worthy" tests. Maybe glue those in the notebooks as well with the autopsy. Hmmn. Major projects are presented, graded, and photographed for the portfolio and then go home. Major pieces of writing are graded/shared/portfolio'd. (All classes are required to keep a portfolio.) Just my two cents, but I think that if kids don't see work back and graded, they conclude that it doesn't matter to you and thus to their grade. If it doesn't matter, they don't do it OR they don't worry about doing it well - too many other more pleasant alternatives.
AHB - click here also, if you do a search on the forum for "interactive notebooks" you'll come up with a number of threads
Check this link for examples: http://interactive-notebooks.wikispaces.com/ We all have different ways of doing them, but we love them and find them highly effective for student learning and understanding. Here are links to discussions on them on this site: http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=24910&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=37918&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=34739&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=39968&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=40118&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks http://forums.atozteacherstuff.com/showthread.php?t=39312&highlight=Interactive+Notebooks
I pass back graded papers for several reasons: 1. If it was important enough to assign, it is important enough to grade, and it is important enough to give them back. 2. It is their responsibility to file them in their folders ( I give them time) I let parents know right from the start that while they can always check the grades on line, if they want to see WHY they got that grade, they only need to check their child's notebook. 3. If I say an assignment is missing and they insist they did it, all they have to do is produce it as proof. There have been occasions where I have missed recording an assignment, especially if it was due to absences or late. If they can produce the assignment, I add 2 points for "inconveniencing them". 4. I will base quizzes and tests on their homework. There are even times when I will tell them they may use all of their returned assignments on a test or quiz. We clean out all folders one week after report cards go home. I understand the rationale of saving them for conferences. But if there is something important enough to save, I make a copy of it. The only thing I keep are the tests, but only after the students have had a chance to see them and we have gone over them. I know some teachers who rarely pass back work, not because they are lazy, but because they get tired of seeing them stuffed in desks, lockers, binders, and on the floor ion the hallway, so they just put them in the recycle bin. I don't agree with not giving them back, but at least they have an ecologically sound reason. :lol:
I think all papers should be passed back. The whole point of assigning work is to assess learning, and without knowing what he or she got wrong, the student probably won't know how to improve. Taking a folder grade or having the students make a portfolio would make it easier for kids to keep up with them, and they would be accessible to the teacher.
I have a question....What do you do when your students take the passed back work and (A) leave in in the room (B) throw the work away or (C) leave it in the "out box" for days?
I disagree that it is lazy. Grading papers is not hard, but it is time-consuming. I recommend establishing some rubrics that will shorten daily work grading time.
Wig, thank you for the links. I also like your take on things- very level headed. I hope I can aspire to be so organized.
Well, I teach in a small school so all the teachers on the same page. They have index sheets in their binder - one for each subject. Our copy machine punches holes and we have hole punches in the classrooms. When I pass out the papers, they file them in the proper place immediately (theoretically anyway - :lol: )
Thanks for all the great input! I guess I didn't make things all that clear in my original post about a couple of points. Of course, I would never NOT let a student see their finished work, my comments, score, etc. That is an important part of the learning process, and I agree that they need to know how they've scored and how they can improve. I was mainly referring to work graded in class which is turned in for a complete/not complete grade. In class, the student would have seen errors and learned how to correct them, and could ask specific questions about the assignment. Since they're going over the assignment with the teacher, they will obviously know how they've performed and they will know their score. The thing with my colleague is that after she collects these assignments to enter the complete/not complete score in the gradebook, she doesn't pass them back because students will plagiarize. They will give the worksheet with all the corrections to a peer who had been absent for the original assignment so that the peer can copy the assignment and present it as his original work. My colleague believes that by not returning these papers, students will have one less opportunity to plagiarize, and it will save on unwanted papers accumulating in the student's backpack. Does this make more sense? Does it change anyone's feelings? (If not, that's okay! I'm just trying to figure out if this is a policy I should adopt.)
If you're going over the work in class with students- say a homework assignment that you gave and you're not going to put an actual grade in the grade book, why take it up at all for it to be handed back? I have a friend who only puts quizzes and test grades in her grade book and that's what gets passed back to the kids. I used to keep a homework log and just for my own knowledge keep up with who did and who didn't. That way if a parent called and said they don't understand why their child did so poorly, I could at least check the log and that usually explained things. But, I think I'd summarize that if you count/grade it, people want it back. It's their business what they do with it after it leaves you.
Well it gets collected because it does go in the grade book as either a complete/not complete score--basically as 100% or 0%. My colleague believes (and I agree) that it's not fair to grade on practice (which is what most homework is, especially in foreign language), but I do think that students need to be accountable for making an effort and for doing what is asked of them. If they try, they get credit; if they don't try, they don't. The place to shine is on quizzes, exams, and big projects where they can show that their efforts have paid off. The big issue is that they're giving the corrected work to peers so that peers can use it to cheat. I just can't think of a better way to curb that type of cheating.
Grading student work is part of our job. That it is also "time-consuming" is not a factor; we signed up to do the job, and to choose NOT to do all aspects of it is lazy. I stand by the word.
Cassie, if the concern is that the work is going to be "recycled" later that day, another poster, Alice I think, runs a highlighter through it. You could also hold it for the day and return it the next day - too late to copy then if you don't take late work. Absent students could either be excused from the assignment as it was practice or given an alternate one.
I now understand better about her reasoning, but I still feel that it's just not a good idea. I'd pass them back and I like the idea of the folder for future reference. Kids who were absent can take a different form for the test (graded assignment from the book, essay on what is learned, etc would cut down on having to create double tests.)
Any assignment that is marked for completion (0-3 pts) gets averaged into one grade for the quarter. While it is not an authentic assessment, it is still part of the learning process. One grade generally will not make or break a final grade, but the kids don't know it. :lol:
