Author: H-Survey Co-Editor Bill Cecil-Fronsman <hsurvey@acc.wuacc.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 09:02:19 -0600
I just gave back a batch of exams in my US-2 class. Several of the students complained about my policy of waiting until the end of the hour to give them back. My reasoning is that since I am not willing to spend time "going over" the exams (so that I could have time to spend on new material), I prefer to wait until the end of class. I'm wondering how other people handle this.
Bill Cecil-Fronsman
Co-Editor, H-Survey
Author: "Hsiung, Dave (HSIUNG)" <HSIUNG@Juniata.Edu
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:21:25 -0600
Dear H-Survey Colleagues,
I also return exams at the end of the hour. That way, we can get going on new material at the start of the period and students have a couple of days to look over their work (reminding themselves of what they wrote) and my comments. That can't be done by handing exams back at the start of class-- at least not without taking up a huge chunk of time. I also tell students that I don't want to talk with them about their test for the next 24 hours-- until they have a chance to think about their work and my comments. After that, we can talk as much as they want to.
May I piggy-back a related question to Bill's original query? How many of you offer to re-read an exam when a student appeals the grade s/he received? If you do so, do you make it a "complete" re-reading, where the grade can _drop_ as well as rise? My policy is that the grade can only go up, because I don't want to make provisions that might discourage students from seeing me about their work (and the possibility of a grade dropping might dampen such student-teacher interaction). I'm interested in hearing what the rest of you do.
Best regards,
Dave Hsiung
Juniata College
hsiung@juniata.edu
Author: z8m02@ttacs1.ttu.edu
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:23:22 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 09:26:53 -0600 (CST)
I wrestled with this dilemma, too. I decided that, for me, the easiest
proceedure was to give them back at the beginning of class and spend
time going over the exams.
--the students are antsy anyway, better to give them back at the beginning.
--after they see the grades, they are usually quiet and attentive for the
rest of the class, writing down EVERYTHING you say.
--I go over the exams a) so they can understand my hastily scribbled
comments, and b) It really cuts down on the number of unnecessary grade
challenges, If I tell them what I expected up front, they usually know
where they fell short of the mark--thus I have more time to go over those
students' exams that are really mis-graded.
I also tell students how I grade after the first exam, tell them I don't like to hear, "Well, you gave my friend 5 points for the same answer and only gave me 3, why?" I tend to grade holistically--If I'm nitpicky on one section, I usually lighten up on another. That is to say I look at the exam as a whole. The students seem to appreciate this more, too. Plus, I always give them at least a few points for trying to answer something, even if they get it wrong.
Gene Preuss
Texas Tech
Author: Tom Spencer <tspencer@indyunix.iupui.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:25:18 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 10:35:31 -0500 (EST)
Hi all --
I too wait until the end of class to return exams. I explain to my students that we need to have a normal class on that day and that another few minutes not knowing their grade won't hurt them and move on -- quickly. Some complain about this but they put up with it.
Furthermore, I have another reason for not returning exams until the end of the period. I did it once as a Teaching Assistant (the very first exam I graded in my career) and all of the folks who were upset with their grade paid no attention in class that day and you could tell from their body language that they were upset and it distracted me from paying full attention in class as well. I made that mistake once. I never made it again.
Let me go a step further with my policy on exams. I also refuse to talk about an exam on the same day I return it. I tell my students that they need to read the comments carefully and try to understand them. I tell them that during the first few minutes after an exam is returned they are more likely to react emotionally about it rather than thinking about it. I tell them that during this period they are more prone to rash acts like rushing the podium shouting "You son of a bitch" and that that sort of appeal is not likely to get much of a sympathetic reaction from me. (I honestly use those words and usually get a fair amount of laughter from the class. I think it helps to defuse a potentially tense situation.)
Furthermore, if my students want to talk to me about their grades I encourage them to do so. If they want to challenge a grade I tell them that they need to try to make an argument AGAINST the comments I have made. Telling me "You're too hard" isn't likely to get them very far. Every now and then a student has a real beef and I will change an exam grade.
This policy has served me well over the last several years as a teaching assistant at two different universities and during this last year as an instructor. I have now used this policy at four different universities and so far have heard no complaints.
What do other instructors do when dealing with these potentially sticky situations?
Adjunct Instructor, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis
Adjunct Instructor, Butler University E-mail Address: tspencer@indyunix.iupui.edu IUPUI Office Hours: 2:30-3:30 p.m., MW, Cavanaugh Hall 243A, Phone: 274-2252 Butler Office Hours: 10-11 a.m., MW, Jordan Hall 305C, Phone: 940-9862
Personal Web Page: http://ezinfo.ucs.indiana.edu/~tmspence
Author: jimrice@cwu.EDU
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:25:48 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 07:37:06 -0700 (PDT)
Bill Cecil-Fronsman wrote:
I just gave back a batch of exams in my US-2 class. Several of the
students complained about my policy of waiting until the end of the hour
to give them back.
I couldn't agree more. Unless you're prepared to spend the entire class session debriefing on the exam, don't hand them back until the end of the class. But is this a common complaint? How did your students respond to your explanation?
--Jim Rice
Central Washington University
Author: Karen Hoppes <hoppesk@mail.clackesd.k12.or.us> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:26:50 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 07:54:13 +0100
I don't give back exams at all. I print out a grade sheet for students -- most students want to know what they got and that is about all. I then file all tests in Student Portfolios. Any student who is concerned about a grade can look up the test and if he/she feels the grade was incorrect can request that I re-read and re-grade. We then conference about the test. Now, this process looks like you would have many students challenging grades -- but the reality is that I have had 1 or 2 students a year only. I've been doing this for 10 years and so far there hasen't been a problem.
Karen E. Hoppes, Ph.D.
Lakeridge High School
Lake Oswego, OR
hoppesk@mail.clackesd.k12.or.us
Karen E. Hoppes, Ph.D.
Lakeridge High School
Lake Oswego, OR
hoppesk@mail.clackesd.k12.or.us
Author: Tom Clemens <clemenst@isx.hjc.cc.md.us> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:27:37 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 10:51:19 -0500
I always give them back in the beginning of the class and spend time going over them. That way the students know that I think the exams are important and correcting them is part of the learning process. I ask for any questions or arguements, but also allow students to approach me in private if they wish. To me, exams aren't just a measurement, they are a teaching tool also. Pardon me if I sound too "preachy."
Tom Clemens
Hagerstown Jr. College
Hagerstown MD 21742-6590
301-790-2800 X298
A nation with no regard for its past will do little worth remembering in the future" A. Lincoln
Author: Mark Byrnes <mabyrnes@davidson.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:28:30 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 11:12:02 -0500 (EST)
I always wait until the end of the class to hand back any graded assignment. Otherwise, some students will inevitably spend the class looking it over, or being distracted by how well/poorly they did.
I also invoke the "24 hour rule": I'll be happy to talk with you about your grade, beginning 24 hours from now. I've not had an unpleasant encounter over a grade since I started this practice.
Mark S. Byrnes
Department of History
Davidson College
Davidson, NC 28036
(704) 892-2442
Author: Kelly Woestman <kwoestma@clandjop.com> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:29:34 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 10:13:10 -0600
Like Bill, I give exams back at the end of the hour. I leave about 15-20 minutes (of a 50-minute class) for them to look over them and ask individual questions about essay grading, etc. Students often learn more from what they missed and finding out what the right answer is compared to what they answered correctly the first time.
Kelly Woestman, Pittsburg State
kwoestma@clandjop.com
Author: Richard A Straw <rstraw@runet.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:33:50 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:17:39 -0500 (EST)
I used to always wait until the end of the class to give back exams, but have recently given in to the students' intense desire to see them at the beginning of class. I've noticed absolutely no difference in their reactions or subsequent attentiveness in class. I say give them back at the beginning if that's what they want.
Richard A. Straw 540-831-5873
History Department rstraw@runet.edu Radford University
Radford, Va. 24142
Author: Pippin Michelli <michelli@stolaf.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:34:23 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:08:41 -0600 (CST)
Like Bill, I always give exams back at the end of the class - and have met with complaints about this in the past. To pre-empt these, I now announce at the beginning of the relevant class that I will give the papers back at the end, that there are no disasters among them (if that's true!), that I am willing to discuss them later, but that I now want them to concentrate on the class in hand. This seems to have worked so far. No more complaints either at the time or in evaluations.
Pippin Michelli
St Olaf College
Author: vmccombs@frodo.okcu.edu
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 09:16:08 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 15:27:54 CST6CDT5,M4.1.0,M10.5.0
I differ from Bill in handing exams back at the beginning of class. Yes, it does delay my getting into new material, but I go over the test as a teaching tool, pointing out common errors, making general comments about what was lacking in the essays, etc. Specific questions I take up in my office, and I encourage students to seek me out if they don't understand or agree with their grade. I require the students to return their tests to me, but they certainly can study it all they want in my office. As to rereading a test, I generally give students a point or two, more if they are deserving, by seeking me out and discussing their tests. I figure the lesson they learn in initiative and confronting their difficulties is worth that. In the end, this may be one of the more valuable lessons they take away from the survey course. I wish more students would question me as the discussion that follows is also part of the learning process.
Virginia McCombs
Oklahoma City University
vmccombs@frodo.okcu.edu
Author: "Robert F. Pace" <rpace@longwood.lwc.edu> Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 09:16:50 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 17:14:14 -0500
I essentially agree with all of the arguments for giving back the exams at the end of the hour, but I give them back at the beginning anyway. My reason for doing this is simple: I remember what it was like to be in their shoes--desparate to know how I did (or more precisely, how the professor judged how I did). I figure that the students fall into one of three categories: 1) Good students who are "anal" about their grades and full of anxiety about maintaining a high GPA and therefore distracted throughout the class period (this was me); 2) Poor students, who wonder against wonders how poorly they actually did; and 3) Those in the middle who aren't that anxious either way. So I cater to groups one and two and hand back the exams at the beginning. I start by giving general distribution info., then encourage all students to come talk to me about the exams DURING OFFICE HOURS, then I hand them back without further discussion in class. I then begin on the material at hand and have not noticed too many distracted students. I know that some may not give their full attention to the material that day, but it is no longer the anxiety of anticipation that holds them back, but their own choice in where they place their attention (as it is every other day).
Regarding re-grading or re-reading the exams, I follow the general idea that I often make mistakes, but the student has the responsibility to show these mistakes to me and argue for a better grade. Like Bill Cecil-Fronsmon, I never change the grade in the student's presence, but take a few days to think about his or her argument. In the five years I have followed this general plan, I have only had maybe one or two students per year challenge their grade, and I can only think of a few instances where I raised it. Usually, students don't come to challenge the grade, but to get a fuller explanation for it. I cherish these moments, because they always turn into teaching opportunities in a one-on-one setting. Generally, students who come to talk about their exams do better the next time.
Robert F. Pace, Ph.D. Internet Address: Assistant Professor of History rpace@longwood.lwc.edu Department of History and Political Science Longwood College Phone: 201 High Street (804) 395-2220
Farmville, VA 23909
Author: Mark Davis <mdavis@uwc.edu>
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 11:06:06 -0600
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 97 11:44:33 CST
Wow -- I seem to be in a tiny minority of people who return exams at the beginning of class. I go a little early, begin passing out before the class begins and finish as people arrive. I make a general comment or two, congratulating those who have done well, and prodding those who have not to do something about it. I then go on without going over the exam. I have never had a problem. If students want to sulk, it is their business; if I keep them waiting in anticipation, then it seems I am the cause of any lack of attention.
Mark Davis,
UW Baraboo
Author: Jim Funkhouser (funkhouser@edison.cc.oh.us) Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:29:06 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 97 11:10:00 EST
Edison Community College
Like Bill Cecil-Fronsman, I return exams at the end of class. Since I do not rehash the test in class, giving it back at the start of the class is a distraction: students will spend several minutes leafing through it instead of giving attention to the day's work and a few will sulk through the whole class.
My students are free to raise questions about any aspect of the tested material in subsequent classes after they have had a chance to read their exams. But I encourage them to see me individually--on some tests I write "See me. We need to discuss this." While the hours I've spent this week talking with students have been wearying, I'm convinced that treating the individual test and test-taker is more effective than any blanket review in class.
Since my exams are cumulative, students needs to correct errors and misconceptions and fill in gaps. Instead of doing it for them in class, I expect then to do it and thereby to be more likely to really learn it. (That's active learning!) And I'm available to help them after they have made the effort.
Author: Bob Cucciniello <bcucciniello@mfi.com> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 14:29:57 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 97 10:42:09 PST I saw your question about giving tests back. Yes, I always hated waiting too! I guess that is why I do it differently. I take the first 25 minutes of the class - Remember it is a night class that meets for three hours - to go over the test. Not in great detail but just on questions which seemed to stump some people. I do go over what I was looking for in the essay questions. The catch is though, that I do all of this BEFORE I hand out the exams. It was annoying, going over the exams with everyone's head down looking at his or her own paper. I found that you can keep their attention and hear a pin drop if you go over the exam before you hand it out. Then I call each name and they come up and get the exam. At that time I put the grade in my roll book. They then have the next five minutes to go over the exam and ask questions. In essence, I start the class thirty minutes late. But, I do not give them a break so, I really only lose 15 minutes!
Author: Yolanda Bellisimo <yolanda@bie.org> Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 09:17:38 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 14:06:40 -0800
Perhaps I'm missing something here, but why would it possibly take the WHOLE class period to review an exam, if you chose to give the exams back at the beginning of class rather than at the end? I give the exams back at the beginning of class and ask select students to read their answers to specific essays (I know who I am going to ask in advance). I then explain to the class why that was a good answer. An essay test that had three essay questions and took an hour and a half to take will consume about 20 minutes of class time to review. I consider this time well spent because feedback is one of our most valuable learning tools as is comparing your answer to the one read in class.
Yolanda Bellisimo
yolanda@bie.org
College of Marin
Kentfield, CA
Author: SusanI371@aol.com
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 09:18:16 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 19:03:04 -0500 (EST)
I usually do EVERYTHING in writing..
I work out a key for any objective part, and I sometimes actually cut out some good answers to questions.. then I write up commentary-- not whole answers but comments that get to frequently made mistakes... sometimes I even make a list of frequently misspelled words-- sometimes warning of dire consequences for similiar mistakes on the next test.. "Ammendment.....canidate...." ect.
I wait until toward the end of class, maybe ten minutes to go... then I hand exams back with an individual copy of the key and all the other stuff ... usually I hand out the key and then begin giving back the exams so they have something to read. I tell students they may leave or stay and I'll happily answer questions. This has the effect of thinning out the room immediately so that the one kid who's hysterical is much easier to deal with... Any kid who has a question about the scoring of the exam, I instruct to write the issue on the top of the exam and hand it back with a request to re-examine ("I think you didn't give me five points on an identification I wrote out of order.." "I don't understand why I didn't score more points on my essay" I reread these later and hand them back-- occasionally I raise a grade. I make it a policy never to lower a grade on these handed back exams. If students think I made a mistake I don't want them feeling that I'll hunt around for some excuse to justify my error...Usually I'm not wrong but admitting that it happens occasionally seems to raise me in their estimation.
So that's how I do it. Students all complain, but the truth is a lot have privately admitted that it works. They much prefer it to sitting through some boring going-over-exams and getting out of class early makes up to some extent for the wait. Once they see how it works they generally see that it really had advantages.
Susan Ikenberry
Washington, DC
Author: funkhouser@mv3195.edison.cc.oh.us Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 12:49:33 -0600
Date: Fri, 28 Feb 97 12:31:35 EST
from: Jim Funkhouser (funkhouser@edison.cc.oh.us) It seems that the opinion is divided about whether student's are more affected by waiting for tests or having the results. I'm sure both are true, varying with individuals.
This string drew so many responses; to me, the impressive thing about the responses is the emphasis on using the examination to advance learning, regardless of when they are returned. That reflects the improvements in contemporary college teaching, I think.
When I was an undergraduate in the dark ages, few instructors offered assistance. One of the most disillusioning experiences for me as a naive student was to take a couple of tests to my prof to find out how to improve them. They had come back to me with a letter grade and nothing--literally nothing--else; not another mark in sight. Truth to tell, prof had not read them; the exams received a blanket grade. He did do me the honor of deigning to read mine and said maybe they deserved a higher grade, but that's the way it is. It did great things for motivation and I resolved when I began to teach that no student would receive that kind of treatment.
If every student followed up an invitation to discuss their tests and their studies, it would be overwhelming, but I agree with the writer who pointed out the rewards of such direct contact and instruction.
jf
Author: MERRIMAN@NKU.EDU
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:30:13 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 11:20:11 -0400 (EDT)
Regarding the returning of exams, I always wait till the end of class for a more practical reason -- If I give them back earlier, the students spend all their time looking over the exam, rather than listening to the new material. I do, however, make some comments over the exams at the beginning of class -- grade distribution, general strengths and weaknesses, etc. -- so that the class doesn't worry until the end how the exams generally were.
Scott Merriman
Northern Kentucky University.
Author: "John Avelis Jr." <javelisj@ncsa.uiuc.edu> Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:30:42 -0600
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 10:32:17 -0600 (CST)
I am not willing to spend
time "going over" the exams (so that I could have time to spend on new
material), I prefer to wait until the end of class. I'm wondering how
other people handle this.
I do pretty much the same thing, and for the same reasons. The extremely tight time constraints of a survey course preclude reviewing the exam. I tell students that they are perfectly free to come in before or after school to review the exams and note their mistakes; few, however, take me up on it.