Teaching Political Science Sections

Grading

Let the students know...

...what you will expect and the criteria you will use to grade.

Discuss the elements and organization of a good essay before they write!

Let them know if you will be looking for a thesis statement and an argument. If possible use examples from the material. The classes you will TA for are introductory level classes – students, especially laboratory scientists, will not necessarily know how to organize and essay. Tell your students that you expect to be able to read their writing – and that a correct answer that you cannot read is worth nothing!

Read several exams before you start assigning grades

You will need to get a feel for the exams. When you are done with the class re-read a few of the exams you graded first - (to make sure your standards didn’t change along the way).

Be objective as possible

Decide in advance what matters for a good answer and attempt to make some rules you can follow – X number of points for getting point A, X number of points for citing a source from the reading, etc. If it is possible for them to take several positions make sure that you are not giving preference to opinions with which you agree.

Limit your comments

If you write too much on their exam they won’t get as much from it as if you made only one comment. Remember, less is more here as well. Give them comments on something which they can actually improve. If at the end of the paper or exam you find you have too many comments you may want to indicate in what area you believe they should concentrate their efforts.

Grammar

To correct or not to correct, that is the question. Don’t let it bog you down, this is not your primary task. I generally find one type of error that I will correct and leave the rest. For example, if a student has a problem with noun-verb agreement I will generally make small corrections throughout the work so he or she learns to recognize the problem.

Sandwich your final comments

Good – Bad – Good. Find something good to say, even if you have to resort to something like.. "I would have never considered this interpretation…" – then criticize constructively, and finish with something positive. Students care what you say more than you might think, they can either feel your comments are helpful or they can resent your remarks. If they believe that you believe they can improve they will give it a shot. If they get the impression you think they’re stupid they have no reason to try to improve. . Positive feedback is as, if not more, important than negative feedback.

Write legibly!

If they cannot read what you have written they gain nothing. Most students are not going to seek you out to have you decipher your comments! If many exams would generate the same comments you may want to type a general comment sheet and include it with the returned exams.