Using Graded and Non-Graded Assignments in the Classroom

1. Using Graded and Non-Graded Assignments in the Classroom Shirley A. Jackson Sociology Department SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

2. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? When developing your course syllabus, do you: • Use a template from a previous section of the same course? • Use a template from a previous, but different course? • Consider how your course structure may be related to the how often the course meets, when you might complete the grading of assignments, etc.? • Consider how your selected readings might shape the kinds of assignments you develop? SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

3. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? When developing your course assignments, do you: • Use the same assignments from a previous section of the same course? • Use the same types of assignments (i.e., quizzes, take-home assignments) you’ve used before regardless of the course? • Review what’s new in your department or discipline in developing assignments? • Consider using assignments that encourage student in-class participation? • Consider using assignments that are designed solely to be completed out-of class? SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

4. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? • Consider how changing the format of your course may make the course more interesting for you. • Why is this important? • Students need to be challenged • Professors need to be challenged by their students • If you are bored with the information, how might this impact your students? SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

5. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? • When teaching the same course over and over again, our lectures and assignments can become rote. • Consider how new readings, films, lectures, and technology can positively impact the kinds of assignments we design. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

6. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? Think about a course you’ve just taught, are teaching now, or will be teaching in the fall. • If you have already developed your syllabus, what are your expectations of what students should learn? • Now, what are your expectations of what they will learn? SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

7. Selecting Assignments: “Same Old, Same Old” Or Something New? • In the remaining slides, I discuss different kinds of graded and non-graded assignments. The examples are not meant to be comprehensive. You may have assignments that are not included here. • I also note whether they examples are graded or non-graded. You may want to devise your own assignments and vary them according to your specific course goals and the needs of your students. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

8. Graded and Non-GradedAssignment: Mini–Papers • Get students involved • Consider how involving students in the learning process can be helpful in getting them to reinforce what they know while also being responsible for sharing what they know with their peers. • One way to accomplish this is through the use of Mini-Papers. These can be graded or non-graded. • Mini-Papers can be timed so that you are able to use a certain amount of time on this activity before moving on to the next. Timed in-class assignments can also help students to keep focused on the task at hand. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

9. Mini-Papers • Mini-Papers can be varied in form. Here are three examples: • Questions the students ask and answer. Students can ask questions that are placed on the board. The students or the instructor selects several of these for all students to answer. • Questions each student asks and answers their own question. This allows the professor to see how students “think” about the material. Are their questions too simplistic? Too broad? Use their questions as a springboard for learning how to prepare for future assignments such as exams. • Questions the professor poses and the students answer. The students receive a handout with the question(s) to be answered or they are placed on the board or overhead. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

10. Mini-Papers • Questions can be: • drawn from the readings to help keep students “on task” and on track with your lectures • drawn from the lectures/discussions/films, etc. to make sure students are either taking notes (which you may allow them to use or not) or can reflect on what they have just seen or heard. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

11. Mini-Papers • The purpose of a mini-paper is to provide students with opportunities to show what they know, and of course, what they don’t know. • Students learn how to develop their questions so they are prepared for take-home assignments and exams, especially essay exams. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

12. Non-Graded Assignment:Peer Reviews • When giving students writing assignments, particularly, in W-courses, provide opportunities for students to work on evaluating the work of their peers. • These peer reviews can be done during class-time. They can involve written responses by both the peer review and the student who is being reviewed to response. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

13. Non-Graded Assignment:Peer Reviews • If you decide to grade peer reviews, be sure to pose questions that require more than simply “yes/no” responses. Your questions should encourage thoughtful commentary on the part of the reviewers. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

14. Peer Reviews • Peer reviews can be used to teach students how to give feedback to their peers. • This feedback should be well thought out and clear, thus, the process assists students to write their reviews so they are clear, organized, and helpful. They are able to focus their comments on those things that might be missed if they simply relied on providing feedback on a presentation (which is also suitable for the peer review process). SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

15. Peer Reviews and Response Papers • The Peer Review Paper can also be followed up by Responses Papers. • Reviewers respond to the work of their peers. The students who has been reviewed responds to the peer reviewer. Thus, the process is circular. Each student ends up with two written assignments. • The reviews and the responses to the reviews can be used to help students revise work that would have ordinarily gone straight to the professor. It helps students to prepare more carefully because the multi-layered review process allows for twice the feedback. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

16. Graded Assignment:In-Class Essay Exams/Quizzes • If you have submitted proposals for W-course approval, you are probably aware that much of the work students submit must be in revised, presumably, take-home assignments. I assert that in-class essay exams and quizzes should be counted toward the minimum word requirement as not all writing assignments are designed to be revisable. • In-class essay exams and/or quizzes can prepare students to use their time wisely and depending on the wording of the questions, may help students show what they know, and not simply what they have memorized. • Again, I grade exams and have only recently (this summer) returned to “pop” quizzes which I will be grading. However, some of you may prefer to give quizzes that are not graded. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

17. In-Class Essay Exams/Quizzes • In-class essay exams/quizzes can promote writing skills by encouraging students to move away from relying on course notes or readings as they write. • In-class essay exams/quizzes help promote student learning by critiquing what they have learned and how it might apply to the question or questions being asked. • If you are teaching a time-condensed (during the summer) or “short-course” (during the school year), quizzes, and specifically “pop quizzes” may help students to keep on track with the readings. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

18. In-Class Essay Exams/Quizzes • If you are teaching a time-condensed (during the summer) or “short-course” (during the school year), quizzes, and specifically “pop quizzes” may help students to keep up with the readings. This can help both student and instructor in the long-run. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

19. Conclusion • Consider how you think about the course material and how your students think about the course material. • Are you expecting students to have acquired certain “abilities” through the assignments by the end of the course. • Assignments should reflect what you want students to learn. They should not be merely “busy work”. In essence, they should be purposefully designed. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

20. Some Final Thoughts • Are your students expecting they should be able to “memorize” rather than “know” the material? • How might your assignments encourage “knowing” and increase a specific set of skills or abilities in your students? SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

21. Some Final Thoughts • Regardless of what kinds of assignments you use – graded or non-graded, in-class or out-of-class – it goes without saying that feedback on how you will count the activity toward the student’s final grade (is it part of a participation grade, for instance?) is an important part of the feedback process. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009

22. Some Final Thoughts • Finally, consider how much time you are willing to devote to graded versus non-graded assignments. Are you able to give feedback in a reasonable amount of time? If not, consider this in developing the types of assignments that are most appropriate for your specific course or students. SCSU Teaching Academy - June 3, 2009