1. Responding to student writing A few tips

2. Peter Elbow, “About Responding”  Students learn from extensive writing. Do they learn from our comments?  Comments are frequently misunderstood.  Be humble in your comments.  The right way to comment: What will help this student on this topic on this draft at this point in the semester?  Consider a “cover letter” that gives you information about where the writer thinks she’s at.

3. Peter Elbow, “About Responding”  Be clear (in advance) about what you think is important qualities of this assignment. Comment on those qualities.  Read the whole paper without comments. Make checks by the parts that are most problematic. Remember: 2-3 major problems are all that students can address.  Don’t get caught in “little spasms of unhelpful irritation.”  Avoid the “voice of God” comments, since students know that another reader/teacher may respond differently.  Ask students to write a response to tell you what they “hear” in your comments.

4. Erika Lindemann's Strategies for Response  Read the paper once without marking.  Identify one or two problems.  Assume that there's a logic to what appears on the page (even if it isn't your logic). Formulate tentative hypotheses to explain the problem you want to focus on.  Examine what the student has done well.  NOW you’re ready to start commenting.  Avoid labeling problems unless you also give students a way of overcoming them. (The “No AWK rule”)  Don’t circle every mechanical problem. Show one or two instances (so they can “see”) and then have them search for other instances.

5. Rubrics! AKA: Your new best friend.

6. Rubrics: How to create a rubric?  Think about your outcomes. What are the goals of this assignment?  Once you think about your outcomes, then you can translate them into your “criteria” for assessment.  Think about your varying levels of success. (Excellent/Average/Poor/etc. or 5/4/3/2/1)  Add descriptive language for each level. (What makes something an “average” or “3” in this category?)  Put your criteria and evaluations into a grid.

7. An example of a writing rubric