Day 3 - 106 -- Ordeal of Grading

I've often worried that this job might promote binge behaviour. It certainly does during the grading of midterms, assignments, and finals. Some people work in the office for several days, but I want to get this task over with. Improved consistency with marking for a single question comes when I can grade each question across all exams -- one at a time.  Once the process begins, a rhythm arrives as you enter that grading zone. Once the mood begins to turn, that is when it is time to stop for a short break or until the next day. Being in a foul mood does not bode well for grading <smile>.

Grading becomes ever present. If I stop for the night, I dream of adding and counting. It is odd, but being all consuming means that it is with you until the end -- bitter or sweet. I grade blind -- I don't know who wrote the exam as I grade it. It is wonderful to find unique responses that show they really understand the concept, rather than the verbatim responses that often come from a class other than the one I'm grading. That shows a loss of focus and often occurs closer to the  end of the exam for those who wrote the questions in the order they were presented in the exam sheets. When the last question is completed, I learn their identities as I add up the sections and calculate the grades.

Grading is a very strange feeling of isolation and anxiety. In a way, the responses reflect how well I did my job throughout the term.  A song that deals with numbers, trying to get through an ordeal and being in a type of stupor -- seemed to fit the situation of this week and next. Love the opening guitar riff <smile>. Enjoy!

25 or 6 to 4 -- Chicago