Anybody grading papers today?

Our spring semester is in its last week (exams next week), so I'm stuck inside on this gorge-o-licious day (sunshine, upper 70s) grading final papers. I've got several more to do to stay on schedule. I was on a roll for a while, but I seem to have hit a bad spot where every one I open is...awful. So what am I doing? Checking out the TE forums, taking a breather before going back to the salt mines of poor arguments and lazy grammar.

I know I shouldn't complain too much. I love this job, and some days, like today, I get to work at home. Still, the students who just can't be bothered to do it well (and by this point in the semester, I know that's the issue) get me down sometimes, even though they're really in the minority.

Anybody else grading papers today?

I found out late last night that I get to teach a spring semester (May/June) course, so I was up until 2:30 preparing for that. The late notice is because I wasn't their first choice... or their second or third for that matter. I'm okay with that though. I've never taught a university course before and had actually decided to change fields entirely and go back as a student, so getting hired to teach was a nice surprise. Maybe this is someone's way of telling me to stay with my original field for just a little longer.

I grade something every day. :rolleyes:

V.

I am! But it's been a rainy day, so I don't mind, except that it's too hot in my office, and physical plant won't fix it :(

Nope, I'm on the other end. I'm procrastinating writing my last paper for the semester!

Hope you get some papers of a higher caliber soon:-)

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Originally Posted by kat_h

I found out late last night that I get to teach a spring semester (May/June) course, so I was up until 2:30 preparing for that. The late notice is because I wasn't their first choice... or their second or third for that matter. I'm okay with that though. I've never taught a university course before and had actually decided to change fields entirely and go back as a student, so getting hired to teach was a nice surprise. Maybe this is someone's way of telling me to stay with my original field for just a little longer.

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Good for you! Have fun with it.

Show 'em that you were a good choice :)

This is the time of semester where I'm glad I *don't* have to grade papers... just try to encourage students through the home stretch. SYmpathizing wiht especially the graders of writing, and wishing more teachers held students to (well-explained) standards 'cause it makes it easier for me to try to do the same.

We have spring vacation this week (I know it's not when the rest of the world has it, but we also have a week off in February that no one else has). For the first time in 18 years, the weather has been gorgeous!
I am doing my midterm grades, which are due May 1. I've finished with 2 classes and am procrastinating on the other 2. Of course, I am going to have a big problem when I go to imput them into the computer program because I am a sub. Three times the IT person told me I was set and 3 times I could not get into the program. Of course the thing was tenuous the whole 8 years before, too.
Thankfully, I didn't schedule any big writing pieces to be graded during this week.

Is the question AM I, or SHOULD I?
I should be grading, but I'm not. We have a three day weekend because tomorrow is a built in snow day that we didn't need to use (woo hoo!).
Only one month left, and I'm just as excited as the kids (5th graders). May is always just a month of crowd control and torture (for all of us ;)).
I love my job, but I take home less papers every year. I've found that it'll all get done eventually, and even when I bring things home, I rarely get around to doing them. If it doesn't get done at school from me coming in early or staying late, it's not going to get done at home.

Enjoy your grading. Errrrr... I meant to say: I hope the grading gets done quickly!

I too grade papers (about 130) just about every day. I have just 25 more days to go until summer vacation!

Well, I should have been grading papers, but I had to accompany a couple of girls at the state music festival. I'm not the greatest on piano so all of my time was spent practicing! That means I have a TON of papers and lesson plans to catch up on this weekend.

I don't have papers to grade, but I'm cleaning up grades and writing our final lab and written exams. The semester is over in a couple of weeks and I'm looking forward to getting rid of the students for a while!!!

Arghhh... 7 weeks to go. State testing is next week. My students have been passing around penis drawings. My bully is still lying to me. His lies are so lame too. I've got a couple of girls who are becoming drama queens.


Summer can't come soon enough. :)

V.

Your post made me laugh, Veronica. I don't think that anyone except another middle school (5th-8th) teacher would understand.
I have 7 more weeks, too, but it will go fast. We are finishing up reading "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and then we are going to practice for a performance of the play. And we will also do some creative writing. In between, they have to take state tests in math, go for their high school visit (8th grade is at the high school), and a few other special end of the year things.

Good luck with the state tests, V and Crankin. We did ours 2 weeks ago, and since then the kids have just checked out. "We don't actually have to learn anything new now since the tests are over, do we Mrs. Brown"- to which I respond "No, kids, we'll just play BINGO for the next 5 weeks- NOT!"

Penis drawings, ahhh... pubescent humor. My kids are eaten up with the MASH thing lately (I did that when I was in middle school 20 years ago- I didn't know they still did it now). No body part drawings yet, but I haven't given up the idea of seeing one. It's bound to happen. :p

I've never given birth, but I'm convinced that May has got to be like labor/childbirth. You forget the pain so you'll come back and do it all over again. ;)

depends...if by "grading papers" you mean discovering that one of my upper level students PURCHASED her final paper from an online source :confused: and I now have to figure out whether to take her up on charges of Academic Fraud or just fail her paper...then yep...grading away! :mad:

Don't they realize??? If it was that easy to go online and purchase the paper, don't you think it's going to be just that easy for me to google the first line of your paper and come up with the one you bought? I've now made a habit of choosing sentences from every paper I get to punch into google - just to be sure...very sad.

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Originally Posted by NJBikeGal

Don't they realize??? If it was that easy to go online and purchase the paper, don't you think it's going to be just that easy for me to google the first line of your paper and come up with the one you bought?

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That's just it--they don't realize! Or they get in a time crunch and just don't care. And I even TELL my students that I have access to plagiarism detection software (my school subscribes to Turnitin.com), and they STILL think they won't get caught.

On the up side, I'm maybe halfway through my Victorian Lit classes' papers, and haven't found any infractions yet--a few awful essays, but none plagiarized or bought.

Wow- that's just stupid! In this day and age (makes me sound like I'm 90), you'd think they'd realize that you can spot a bought or plagiarized paper so easily. They're putting their academic career in jeapordy because of what? Laziness? Time crunch? How sad. :(

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Originally Posted by Tri Girl

Wow- that's just stupid! In this day and age (makes me sound like I'm 90), you'd think they'd realize that you can spot a bought or plagiarized paper so easily.

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Right--and that's another thing. You've been reading a student's mediocre writing all semester and suddenly she comes up with this piece of beautifully polished prose with a well argued claim and a sophisticated vocabulary? What do they think we are--stupid?

:rolleyes:Dear.God.Yes.

Grading exams for the last of my classes. Hope to be done today. Oy.

Freshmen are *stupid* about plagiarism. I had a paper that had several paragraphs lifted from a website. I asked the student to define the terms that were plagiarized. The student coudn't. Then s/he said, "I don't know what source I used." I said, "Google these three words. That's how I found it.":rolleyes:

I remember being a first year and not having a clue how to footnote. I completely overdid them. I was so terrified of academic misconduct that I had at least one footnote on every sentence. I also didn't ever use ibid in the footnotes so my pages were half footnotes. That was actually deliberate because the 19 year old version of me didn't know how else to create a 12 page paper. I remember a prof writing on my bibliography page that the "content was impressive but the format was unacceptable." The next year I discovered style guides and sorted out the format. The year after that I actually learned how to think for myself and research a good paper, although I still find writing them difficult.

I can't understand undergrads not citing their sources. At the very least it's padding for the paper. Now that there are programs like Endnote and RefWorks there's no excuse for bad formatting. If a student is copying and pasting a webpage it's just as easy to copy and paste the URL. Then the prof will just thing the student is a clueless kid who doesn't understand how to write a paper. That is far better than the kid is a liar and a cheater.

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Originally Posted by kat_h

I was so terrified of academic misconduct that I had at least one footnote on every sentence.

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Hee Hee! I have students like that. :p Better than erring the other way.

I should add that a goodly number of students I teach at least show signs of caring about how they cite stuff by emailing me and asking questions about them. I don't get too crazed if the stuff is at least in the Works Cited, but when it's not...:mad:. Sometimes the words they steal are left in the font they cut and pasted from a website, so there are two different fonts in the paper.:rolleyes:.

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Originally Posted by teawoman

Sometimes the words they steal are left in the font they cut and pasted from a website, so there are two different fonts in the paper.:rolleyes:.

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Okay, that's just funny.

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Originally Posted by ehirsch83

Nope, I'm on the other end. I'm procrastinating writing my last paper for the semester!

Hope you get some papers of a higher caliber soon:-)

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Same here, I've got 2 left as well, one for each class. I've done well on all the others, can't see why I can't finish strong although I'm ready for summer break. Jenn

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Originally Posted by kat_h

I remember being a first year and not having a clue how to footnote. I completely overdid them. I was so terrified of academic misconduct that I had at least one footnote on every sentence. I also didn't ever use ibid in the footnotes so my pages were half footnotes. That was actually deliberate because the 19 year old version of me didn't know how else to create a 12 page paper. I remember a prof writing on my bibliography page that the "content was impressive but the format was unacceptable." The next year I discovered style guides and sorted out the format. The year after that I actually learned how to think for myself and research a good paper, although I still find writing them difficult.

I can't understand undergrads not citing their sources. At the very least it's padding for the paper. Now that there are programs like Endnote and RefWorks there's no excuse for bad formatting. If a student is copying and pasting a webpage it's just as easy to copy and paste the URL. Then the prof will just thing the student is a clueless kid who doesn't understand how to write a paper. That is far better than the kid is a liar and a cheater.

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You're right. I can deal better w/ bad formatting b/c of not much practice or instruction vs. a plagarized paper. I work for a college in the library and go to school there too. The honor code is quite strict and I've even heard other profs nail their students saying they won't get turned in this time. Some just don't get it. It's not that hard to cite a paper. If I can do it they can too. They should ask for help. btw I'm working on the Chicago method again after a long absence. I use both MLA and Chicago on a regular basis. Jennifer

I guess I should follow up on this, eh?

Anywho...I confronted the student, who immediately admitted to having purchased the paper. Then proceeded to break down into tears about how ashamed she felt and how she was grateful that I caught her. I failed her paper, which means she got a D in the class. As a major in my dept, it essentially means she failed the class (won't get credit for it), but I didn't go further than that. She was TERRIFIED. I'm hoping that my explanation of how simple it was for me to catch her and what could have happened if I had pushed the issue of academic dishonesty will be enough to keep her on the straight and narrow in the future. Oh, and I made her rewrite the paper for no credit...just to prove to her that she could do it without resorting to something so STUPID! There ends the saga!