df 3/09
Electronic Grading Instructions
By: Doug Fantz
Each year at Agnes Scott, the ITS department orders one million sheets of paper. Reduce paper use and printing by encouraging or requiring electronic submission of papers! It’s easy and BETTER to grade them electronically.
Pros |
Cons |
Save Trees! Reduce printing! |
Compatibility issues –docx files |
Better grading? Faster grading More space for comments More comments More legible comments More consistent comments Clarity in grade assignment |
Current Blackboard version doesn’t allow folder creation in digital dropbox |
You have a record of the graded paper, when it was submitted, and the grade |
Paper feels good |
You don’t have to lug around papers |
You need a computer to grade |
Easier submission to Turnitin |
You might be asked to give a brown bag presentation |
Other things I can’t think of |
Students don’t always appreciate the pros |
Blackboard and the Digital Dropbox
- students can submit files on your Blackboard site using the Digital Dropbox feature
- I didn’t have to instruct them how to do this.
- The dropbox stamps each submission with a date, and the student can check to make sure it was submitted
- Students can title and include a comment for each submission
- Students cannot change it once it is submitted
- I usually download each file to my harddrive and title each appropriately (i.e. JohnsonTW#1)
- I chose to use this instead of email for FYS. Now I use email
Grading Features of Microsoft Word - there is a good online movie illustrating these tools at http://www.screencast.com/users/Dr.Coop/folders/Jing/media/88f6a9c2-d35d-4cb7-b59f-ff319a6c4f52
- Track Changes
- Access under “Tools-Track Changes”
- The preferences can be changed under “Tools-Options”
- All of your comments, changes, etc. are indicated by balloons or different colors
- Macros
- If you have common edits, you can get Word to repeat them with the click of a button.
- To generate a special grading toolbar
- Go to “View-Toolbars-Customize”
- Click on the “Toolbars” tab and click “new”
- Name it and press OK
- Drag your empty toolbar to where you want it
- You can make this toolbar disappear when it is annoying by deselecting it under “View-Toolbars”
- To record a series of commands
- Go to “Tools-Macros-Record New Macros”
- Execute the set of commands that you want to repeat in the future
- Press the stop rectangle
- To add a new macros to your toolbar
- Go to “View-Toolbars-Customize”
- Click on the “Commands” tab and click on “Macros”. Drag your macros to your new toolbar
- Right click on the new command in order to change its name, button, etc.
- To assign a key combination (e.g. “Alt-S”) to a macros
- Go to “Tools-Customize”
- Click the “Commands” tab, and click “Keyboard”
- Under “Categories” select “Macros” and select your macros choice
- Under “New Shortcut Key” type in the key combination that you want (Alt combinations are likely to be unassigned and are good choices)
- Click “Assign”
