Managing the Marking Load: 5 Tips for Middle School Teachers

 

If the marking load is not managed properly, it can become impossible for middle school teachers to manage their marking bins. Here are my best tips for helping teachers manage the marking load. 

5 Tips for Managing the Middle School Marking Load

Set manageable marking goals for yourself on how much and when to mark. 

How much?

When the students hand in a major project, my goal is to mark five items at school and five items at home. 

When?

Find a specific time that works for your schedule. Some of my friends swear by arriving at school early and marking in the morning, while others like to stay for a bit after school and mark then. Others use these times to prep for their lessons (photocopy, cut/paste, etc.) and then mark for their whole planning time. Whatever you choose, be consistent! 

It works—I promise. For years, I would look at all these super teachers and wonder, “How do they do it?” Then I asked them. They told me they planned out their days, including when they would mark student work. GENIUS! If you write it down, you are more likely to stick to it. 

Mark quick assessments and quizzes first. 

I regularly have my students do quick assessments. I mark these pieces first to ensure that they have achieved concept attainment. These assessments/quizzes also allow the students to monitor their own achievement and ask for help or enrichment if needed. 

Not all work needs a letter grade. 

If the assessment I have the students do is for practice before a final assessment, I often mark it with a check system and provide descriptive feedback. 

• Check minus = good effort, but please see the teacher for more help.
• Check = right on track; keep practicing. 

I explain this system to students the first time I hand something back. They quickly get used to reading my comments and looking for a check instead of immediately looking at a letter or percentage grade. I keep track of these checks in my mark book to see which students need extra help or are ready to move on to a new concept. 

Streamline your assessment process with these printable assessment posters designed to make grading efficient and student-friendly. These visual tools help clarify success criteria for students, saving you time and reducing questions about grades. With quick-reference strategies like the Check Minus, Check, and Check Plus system, you can provide meaningful feedback without getting bogged down in the details. Learn how you can make assessments clear, efficient, and impactful by getting your free assessment posters when you sign up for the 2 Peas and a Dog email list.

Keep checklists in your marking book.

Every time I hand back a major assignment, I make a checklist (based on my descriptive feedback for that assignment) on what the student’s next steps should be, for example, proofreading for spelling, punctuation, and run-on sentences or making deeper connections to the text. 

I create my checklists in a word processing program and shrink them down so I can fit 8-10 checklists on a page. I write a different student name on each checklist and then check off what my descriptive feedback was on their assignment. When I write report cards, I now have all my anecdotal evidence organized and ready to be written as strengths and next steps. 

Organize your marking bin.

I keep the newest items at the bottom and the oldest at the top. This is a visual reminder of what needs to be marked first, second, etc. I also have a different folder for each rotary class I teach to ensure their marking remains separate from that of the other classes. 

For even more strategies to manage the marking load, check out this post: Manage the Teacher Workload: 9 Efficient Grading Techniques. You might also want to read this post: Tips and Tricks to Help You Improve Your Assessment Skills. 

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