Implementation report #3
Plan for implementation: effective assessment with grading rubric
I'm teaching an introductory biology course where most students are freshmen or sophomores with little to no scientific writing experience. One of the primary goals of this introductory lab course is to teach students to write scientifically. Teaching students with various scientific writing backgrounds is challenging, and grading the writing assignments is even more difficult because an instructor needs to be consistent while grading. That is, student's work should be evaluated using a standard method that is consistent throughout the class. A goal of this implementation is to create and apply a grading rubric for the course. As a head TA, I was involved in creating grading rubrics for the course assignments closely with my TA supervisor before the semester began. Because the course I am teaching has 13 different sections, we (all TAs) need to make the teaching and grading consistent across the sections.
Activity plan:
Students were introduced to a grading rubric for all writing assignments that they were asked to complete. All grading rubrics were available for students to review a few weeks in advance. Moreover, I would walk students through the grading rubric, clearly explain each grading sections' expectations (e.g., style of writing vs. contents). I also provided common mistakes students came across in the past. Students were expected to apply the grading rubric to their writing assignments.
Plan for assessment
Because students reviewed the grading rubric before the writing assignment was due, they were expected to apply the rubric to be sure that they include all critical components required for a specific task. I would grade student assignments based on the grading rubric students had. For each writing work, I would start my comment section to summarize the points students received from each grading section. Then, I provided detailed comments on things students did right and wrong. My specific comments would start with a positive comment describing what students did an excellent job on the assignment. Then I would provide comments for students to improve their future writing assignments. I would review all graded terms to ensure that I followed the grading rubric and was consistent with my comments provided to the students before I published the grades.
Examine implementation
Overall, I found the grading rubrics an excellent tool for an effective assessment. The instructor applied the same grading criteria to all student's writing assignments. I also found that the grading rubric helped students improve their writing qualities. Most students who reviewed and applied a grading rubric to their writing assignments tended to higher performance and received a significantly higher grade than students who did not. It is not too difficult to determine whether or not the students used the grading rubrics. Those who at least checked the grading rubric once likely provide all required components stated on a grading rubric to their work, while students who never looked at the grading rubric. My challenge of using the grading rubric is that few students do not bother checking the grading rubric even though the TAs repeatedly review the rubric as a class. In the end, those who didn't care about using the grading rubric are likely the ones who would complain after their poor grades are released.
Reflection
I found the grading rubric is helpful and is an effective way to assess student's learning outcomes. It provides a standard way of grading to make the assessment and evaluation fair for all students. The grading rubrics also help the instructor see where students in the class most likely are struggles. There are six different grading sections for in insect group proposal grading rubric: overall organization, literature review, background information, research goal, methods, and variables. Overall, students in the class did well on most sections. Still, about ½ of the class got low grades in the literature review and variables. This grading result could imply that students might need extra clarifications on writing literature review and defining variables (independent, dependent, and controlled variables). As the TA, I also needed to review my teaching materials whether or not they are clear.
Despite the grading rubric's enormous benefits, I cannot force all students to apply the grading rubric to their writing assignments. They do not care. Then, they would come and complain a day later after their grades are released. Another situation can be tricky when students' performance falls somewhere between the two categories on the rubric. I would consider adding more grading categories to cover more details on the grading criteria, primarily to reduce the future grading gap.
Plan for implementation: effective assessment with grading rubric
I'm teaching an introductory biology course where most students are freshmen or sophomores with little to no scientific writing experience. One of the primary goals of this introductory lab course is to teach students to write scientifically. Teaching students with various scientific writing backgrounds is challenging, and grading the writing assignments is even more difficult because an instructor needs to be consistent while grading. That is, student's work should be evaluated using a standard method that is consistent throughout the class. A goal of this implementation is to create and apply a grading rubric for the course. As a head TA, I was involved in creating grading rubrics for the course assignments closely with my TA supervisor before the semester began. Because the course I am teaching has 13 different sections, we (all TAs) need to make the teaching and grading consistent across the sections.
Activity plan:
Students were introduced to a grading rubric for all writing assignments that they were asked to complete. All grading rubrics were available for students to review a few weeks in advance. Moreover, I would walk students through the grading rubric, clearly explain each grading sections' expectations (e.g., style of writing vs. contents). I also provided common mistakes students came across in the past. Students were expected to apply the grading rubric to their writing assignments.
Plan for assessment
Because students reviewed the grading rubric before the writing assignment was due, they were expected to apply the rubric to be sure that they include all critical components required for a specific task. I would grade student assignments based on the grading rubric students had. For each writing work, I would start my comment section to summarize the points students received from each grading section. Then, I provided detailed comments on things students did right and wrong. My specific comments would start with a positive comment describing what students did an excellent job on the assignment. Then I would provide comments for students to improve their future writing assignments. I would review all graded terms to ensure that I followed the grading rubric and was consistent with my comments provided to the students before I published the grades.
Examine implementation
Overall, I found the grading rubrics an excellent tool for an effective assessment. The instructor applied the same grading criteria to all student's writing assignments. I also found that the grading rubric helped students improve their writing qualities. Most students who reviewed and applied a grading rubric to their writing assignments tended to higher performance and received a significantly higher grade than students who did not. It is not too difficult to determine whether or not the students used the grading rubrics. Those who at least checked the grading rubric once likely provide all required components stated on a grading rubric to their work, while students who never looked at the grading rubric. My challenge of using the grading rubric is that few students do not bother checking the grading rubric even though the TAs repeatedly review the rubric as a class. In the end, those who didn't care about using the grading rubric are likely the ones who would complain after their poor grades are released.
Reflection
I found the grading rubric is helpful and is an effective way to assess student's learning outcomes. It provides a standard way of grading to make the assessment and evaluation fair for all students. The grading rubrics also help the instructor see where students in the class most likely are struggles. There are six different grading sections for in insect group proposal grading rubric: overall organization, literature review, background information, research goal, methods, and variables. Overall, students in the class did well on most sections. Still, about ½ of the class got low grades in the literature review and variables. This grading result could imply that students might need extra clarifications on writing literature review and defining variables (independent, dependent, and controlled variables). As the TA, I also needed to review my teaching materials whether or not they are clear.
Despite the grading rubric's enormous benefits, I cannot force all students to apply the grading rubric to their writing assignments. They do not care. Then, they would come and complain a day later after their grades are released. Another situation can be tricky when students' performance falls somewhere between the two categories on the rubric. I would consider adding more grading categories to cover more details on the grading criteria, primarily to reduce the future grading gap.
The insect group proposal grading rubric was available to students three weeks before the assignment due date.
Student grades are categorized by grading sections provided in the grading rubric. Based on this diagram, students, on average, had the least scores in the literature review section.