gtPathways W-GTA Orientation: Grading and Responding to Undergraduate

Writing

Sue DoeAssistant Professor of English

Colorado State UniversitySue.Doe@colostate.edu

Overview of OrientationPart One• Introduction to the CSU gtPathways Writing Integration• A Sample Assignment—Overview, Initial Read, Holistic Criteria and RanksPart Two• Initial Grading of the Paper—Use Course-Provided Scoring Sheet• Develop and Apply Holistic Criteria• Analytic scoring—strategies and choicesPart Three• Commenting/responding to student writing• Common problems students have with academic writing; grading and

responding as part of the instructional team• Interventions through peer review, conferences, office hours• Resources:

– International Student Writing– TILT Teaching Certificate and Other Resources– Writing Center

Part One

• Introduction to the CSU gtPathways Writing Integration

• A Sample Assignment—Overview and Holistic Sorting

Local Writing Resources• http://writing.colostate.edu

– Google search possible on virtually any writing topic. Over 100K pages of writing information, most authored at CSU.

– Writing tools available through Writing Studio-keep track of your drafts, your biblios, your reading, etc. Same tools available for undergrads and others

• http://writing.colostate.edu/gtPathways– specialized resources to support your efforts with your assistantship

• The Writing Center and WAC – Visit Eddy 6 (The physical writing center) or submit papers electronically

for feedback– Request a workshop on any writing subject

What it is, where it came from

gtPathways

State Guaranteed Transfer: gtPathways

• gtPathways Curriculum Adopted as part of the CCHE (now CDOE) Academic Affairs Policy I, Part L: Statewide Transfer Policy.

• Built upon concepts found in the Student Bill of Rights (a.k.a, the King Bill), § 23-1-125 C.R.S: “The Commission, in consultation with each Colorado public

institution of higher education, is directed to outline a plan to implement a core course concept”

“The core of courses shall consist of at least thirty credit hours, but shall not exceed forty credit hours”

“Individual institutions of higher education shall conform their own core course requirements with the guidelines developed by the Commission…”

Adams State College: Faculty Senate agreed to adopt gtPathways curriculum for institutional general education curriculum

Fort Lewis College: Restructuring entire general education curriculum to meet gtPathways requirements; modifying junior-level writing courses to meet gtPathways requirements (i.e., 200-level)

University of Northern Colorado: Charting the Future; reducing general education course offerings to 60-70 courses; restructuring curriculum to meet gtPathways curriculum

Colorado State University: Integrating writing into general education AHUM and SOCS courses (25% of grades in writing assignments); adding 3 credit hours in AHUM

Major Changes to Colorado Colleges and Universities

One Policy Goal of gtPathways

Students shall have assurance of:

“A quality general education experience that develops competencies in reading, writing, mathematics, technology, and critical thinking through an integrated arts and science experience.”

What Matters in College Writing?

• Write for a few minutes about – the qualities of writing that you believe all first-year college

students should develop—essential abilities they’ll need– your beliefs about student writing ability right now and what

that belief is based on– the kinds of support students need to improve– where, how, and when writing instruction should be given in

college contexts• Put your name on this piece of paper as you’ll be

turning it in. Bring to front table at the end of session today or at a break.

• Discuss your beliefs with 2-3 neighboring people

Select Paper 1, 2, or 3

If your last name begins with A-H, take a copy of P1If your last name begins with I-R, take a copy of P2If your last name begins with S-Z, take a copy of P3

Intro to Anthropology Assignment

Pick a question to write about:Option #1) Katherine went to Mali to address the issues of

childhood malnutrition. A)What did she discover to be the primary causes? B) How did she come to these results? (i.e., What questions did she ask?

What data did she collect?)Option #2) Malian life is very different from American life.

A) What are some of the biggest differences Katherine encountered? B) Did Katherine embrace or resist these differences? Explain your

answer.

Guidance About Source Use While you don’t need to formally cite my lectures, please use language such

as “according to lecture” or “as discussed in class” to alert me to class-specific material. Please remember, any concepts taken from the textbook the ethnography, or RamCT must be cited with an in-text citation and bibliography entry.

Examples of how to cite a chapter/article from the textbook:Labajo, J. (2003) Body and voice: the construction of gender in flamenco. In

T. Magrini (Ed.) Music and gender: perspectives from the Mediterranean (pp 67.86. Chicago: University of Chicago Press

Tollifson, J. (197).Imperfection is a beautiful thing: On disability and mediation. In K. Fries (Ed.), Staring back (pp. 105-112). New York: Plume.

Additional InstructionsWrite a 3-5 page response. Be sure to:• Provide a short introduction (3 sentences or so)• Include specific details from the ethnography• Incorporate vocabulary and concepts from lecture and the textbook.• Use 1-inch margins and 12-point font• Staple your pages together• Do NOT include a title page or title. Simply put your name and question number

in the right-hand corner of the first page• Double space the paper• Follow APA citation and bibliography guidelines

– Use proper in-text citation– Include a bibliography– Obtain information on APA format at

http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/researchsources/documentation/apa/

Hierarchy of Rhetorical Concerns

Audience, Purpose, Occasion

Focus: Thesis, Reasons, Unity/Coherence

Development: Reasons, Evidence, Explanation

Style/Mechanics/Conventions: Readability, Care and Polish, Patterns of Error

Hierarchical Concerns Detailed

Audience • Who is the writer’s audience? Is this an

academic audience? What are the expectations?

Purpose• Is this piece of writing intended to inform?

Analyze? Explore? Summarize? Argue? Development• What kinds of evidence does the audience

expect? Does the context demand clarification through examples, data, etc.?

Hierarchical Concerns continuedOrganization• Is the writing organized in a coherent way?• Do transitions guide the reader through the logic of the paper?Style and Conventions• What style is appropriate for the context in terms of audience

and purpose? What register or level of formality Is appropriate? (For instance, can the writer use “I” in this context?)

• Are there locations where the writing is hard to follow or comprehension is disrupted? If so, can I discern why?

• Are there patterns of error showing any of the Top Five error patterns: 1) subject–verb agreement, 2) run-on and fragmented sentences, 3) unclear or incorrect pronoun agreement, 4) verb tense inconsistencies, 5) weak comma use

Holistic Process• Before you begin reading the sample papers,

read the assignment information• In groups of three, do a “read-around” of the

set of three papers you now have. Sort High, Medium, and Low.

• As time allows, discuss the papers with your partners

High Medium and Low

What are the standards you would apply to a minimally satisfactory (C-level) performance for this paper? Would the LOW paper meet these standards?

Homework Review1) In general, does the High Medium Low sorting method

lend itself to a 6-point holistic scoring scale?

2) What parts, if any, from this scoring rubric would work with the essay assignment we’re examining?

During Break

With Care, Read the “Rubric for Holistic Scoring of a Thesis-Restricted Paper.” Bring this rubric back to training tomorrow.

Be prepared to discuss: 1) How does the High Medium Low sorting method

lend itself to a 6-point holistic scoring scale?2) What parts, if any, from this scoring guide would

work with the essay assignment we are examining?

PART TWO

• Scoring and Grading Using Various Methods• Working for consistency—either faculty-led or

GTA-led norming sessions• Grading consistency (for yourself across a stack of

papers and also across a group of GTAs or faculty) is possible but isn’t easy or safely assumed to occur

• Agreed-upon priorities are essential• Spot-checking by peers or others is desirable

Sort, Read, and Comment (or Stop, Drop, and Roll)

Apply the sorting strategy for a set of papers. While this sounds like a time-consuming extra step, it actually saves you time in the long run.

The Sorting Strategy– Sort into three stacks—high, medium, low– If possible, stack within categories (High + and High -) so that you

have 6 stacks– Read with hierarchy of concerns in mind– Provide an end comment that is forward-looking and focused– Substantiate end comment with a few marginal comments

Grading—Becoming Part of the Instructional Team

• Consistency and fairness• Criteria-based grading vs. norming• Time management through Hierarchies of

Rhetorical Concern• Holistic and Analytic Evaluation • Grading and Responding—Two Tass

GRADINGRemember: you are only assigning a grade; students earn those grades.

You do not GIVE grades. They do not GET grades.

Consider using a 24-hour moratorium and a conference appointment system for grade protests

Ask Your Faculty Supervisor:

Will there be calibration or norming sessions to identify standards and/or achieve reliability?

Are you allowed to return a paper ungraded in the case of careless or unacceptable work with a 24-hour window of opportunity before default to F?

Are revisions allowed? If so, what are the processes?

Grading For What Matters—Purposes of Assignments

What is the TASK being required by the assignment—to inform, to explore, to convince, to describe, to compare, to summarize, to persuade? Find the VERB or VERBS and you’ll know the task.

Is this • a thesis-provided paper for which students must defend of refute? • a problem-solution paper in which students are given a problem or

question that demands a thesis and support? Is • a data-provided paper for which students are expected to analyze and

explain? • a genre-provided paper, in which students are expected to follow an

organizational structure or format in an accepted form, such as a memo, case study, lab report, or executive summary?

• write-to-learn or write-to-engage writing for which students are expected to explore and/or develop their thinking rather than to produce a polished paper?

• an in-class essay, reflecting comprehension of course material?

Intro to Anthropology Assignment

Pick a question to write about:Option #1) Katherine went to Mali to address the issues of

childhood malnutrition. A)What did she discover to be the primary causes? B) How did she come to these results? (i.e., What questions did she ask?

What data did she collect?)Option #2) Malian life is very different from American life.

A) What are some of the biggest differences Katherine encountered? B) Did Katherine embrace or resist these differences? Explain your

answer.

Grading RubricItem Points

AvailablePoints Earned

Answers Part AOption 1) causes of malnutritionOption 2) biggest cultural differences

40

Answers Part BOption 1) methods of discoveryOption 2) embrace or resist

40

3 pages minimum 10

Includes specific details from the ethnography 20

Incorporates concepts from lecture/textbook 20

Includes in-text citations 10Includes a bibliography 10E-Copy Submitted

On time?

Total Points Earned 150

Holistic Grading

Ranking 1-6Think of 3 as minimally acceptable—aims of assignment are being met but only marginally. “Gestures” toward sound approaches are there, but student will need a great deal of assistance. This is a student who might be considered “at-risk” but also offers a tremendous opportunity for development through GTA impact.

Use scoring tools to assist with grading

Consider Three Approaches1. benchmark and anchor paper approach2. traditional analytic rubric with dimensions 3. continuum approach

Approach #1: Anchor PapersConsider writing an evaluation paragraph or narrative that explains

what’s necessary to earn a C paper on this assignment. In other words, what MUST a paper accomplish to be deemed “adequate” and to exceed this lowest, acceptable standard for this assignment?

--The C paper has a clear thesis or focus, shows a satisfactory degree of development /support of points, and is reasonably easy to read/follow

--The B paper does everything the C paper does but goes further to provide deeper development of points, a more satisfactory selection of evidence, a coherent structure/organization, and a more compelling set of insights

--The A paper does everything the B paper does but goes further to provide a more unified, fully developed, and polished paper that is a pleasure to read because it offers good insights that are expressed well

It can be useful to distribute or post this explanation

Approach #2: Traditional Rubric

Component Parts• Assignment itself• Dimensions/priorities/criteria • Scale with levels of achievement. Levels can be

continuums or reflect categories such as “proficient,” “competent,” “needs work.” Can associate levels with points*

• Space for specific comments* Be careful to not create a checklist effect. Remember that meaningful quality indicators will be indicated so the simple presence or absence of a feature is insuficient.

Traditional Rubric with both Holistic and Analytic Features

Dimension Excellent Competent Needs WorkClarity and accuracy of article

summary Focus of response—clear thesis

Development, Organization & Coherence of

Response Readability, Mechanics,

Source Citation

Grade: ___ Overall Comment:

Course-Provided Grading RubricItem Points

AvailablePoints Earned

Answers Part AOption 1) causes of malnutritionOption 2) biggest cultural differences

40

Answers Part BOption 1) methods of discoveryOption 2) embrace or resist

40

3 pages minimum 10

Includes specific details from the ethnography 20

Incorporates concepts from lecture/textbook 20

Includes in-text citations 10Includes a bibliography 10E-Copy Submitted

On time?

Total Points Earned 150

Steps for Creating Traditional Rubrics

• List key elements/features to assess, based on course and assignment objectives

• Refine and simplify key elements, then consider their relative importance or weight

• Place most important dimension at the top • Do a common sense check to see if weighting of criteria is

meaningful and rational. If possible, avoid points. Percentages are better but keep them broad. Too much refinement of points can lead to “grade-grubbing.”

• Decide where you will comment--on the rubric or on the paper itself? Commenting itself is not optional.

• Decide if you’ll give feedback/comment on all criteria or only on certain ones

• Make clear where the overall grade appears

Points Approach—Advantages/Disadvantages?Dimension & Weight—100 point paper

Excellent Competent Developing Score & DimensionOverall: 122/150(80%)

Question Answered –80 points possible

X Comment about strength of the argument here

68/80 (85%)

Text Evidence Well Selected and Organized—40 points possible

X Comment on how to better choose evidence

30/40 (67%)

Citation & Biblio—10 points possible

X Comment on key PATTERNS of error here

14/20 (70%)

3 pages, logistics check

X 10/10 (100%)

Approach #3: The Continuum Approach

Once you have determined the most important aspects or criteria for grading, consider using a continuum to describe where the student is in their application of this criteria. This avoids the oft-times awkward approach of assigning points or percentages with criteria-based evaluation.

Example (criteria 3) from the Washington State U “Critical

Thinking Guide”: Identifies and considers salient perspectives and positions

important to the issue’s analysis Scant Substantial ----------------------------------------------------------------

Likely Grading Criteria1) Clarity of points and coherence of organization

– clearly state the purpose of your essay– answer all questions related to the ethnography– accurately define causes of malnutrition or cultural differences – explain methods of inquiry/discovery and explain whether differences

are embraced or resisted2) Quality/depth of analysis. You need to make your position on

each development point clear. Provide arguments that are supported by information (i.e., evidence from text, lecture & ethnography). Meet or exceed the page requirements. MOU seeks synthesis!

3) Quality of writing. Your ideas need to be clearly expressed. This includes proper spelling, grammar, expression of ideas, and citation of sources

Discussion

• What strengths and weaknesses of scoring approaches do you see here?

• Would you combine strategies from the three approaches?

PART 3—Commenting & Responding

• We rehearse “commenting” with HINT (How to Improve Next Time) in mind

• We consider our role as coach, as teacher, as mentor, and role model, as writer. We are part of the INSTRUCTIONAL TEAM.

• We try out various kinds of comments—end comments & opening comments; marginal substantiation of the end comment; marginal questions; marginal reader-response comments, marginal queries about substance; positive reinforcement of good insights or writerly choices; error pattern comments

Write to Engage

• What was the most helpful feedback you’ve ever gotten on a piece of writing?– What made it helpful?

• What was the least helpful feedback you’ve ever gotten on a piece of writing?– What made it less than helpful?

• As you hear others’ experiences, what generalization(s) can you draw?

Managing Your Time Through a 3-Part End Comment

1. Sum up the strengths of the paper2. Identify the main problems to be worked on3. Provide a specific suggestion for how to improve the paper,

based on the main problem(s) already identified

And Remember:• You can’t respond to everything in a paper.• There are real people on the receiving end.• Comments are not principally for “justifying” a grade. Your

are providing formative feedback students can use with the next paper, even if it’s not in this class. Remember: HINT

• Consider using questions and other response approaches besides “correction” in your marginal comments.

Comment on the sample paper

• Now try the 3-part end comment with your sample paper

• Find locations in the paper that substantiate your observations in the end comments and add marginal comments here

• Ask an important question in the margin at a location where the writer is on to something but not quite there

• Find a location where you can observe something positive the writing is doing or trying to do

Reviewing Marginal Comment Options

• Substantiate the end comment by providing an exact location where the paper problem occurs

• Identify KEY points that are missing and focus on these learning needs• Ask a question that will get the student to think further• Provide advice on locations to add evidence or choose different

evidence• Offer a “reader-response” comment that shows you are engaged and

interested as a reader• Point out any location where the reader is making a good decision in

his or her writing• Identify one of the Top 5 mechanical errors that the student

demonstrates

Opening Comment vs. End Comment

End comments are often not read because the student is focused on the grade. Try writing the “end” comment at the top of the paper to direct the student’s reading of your marginal comments and to briefly put off the inevitable turn to the back of the paper for the grade.

Basic Principles of Commenting-Also Covered in Grade Reviews

• Your goal is formative, as in “Next time…”• Focus on the most important advice a writer needs at this time. • Precede your commenting with holistic sorting and keep your

comments consistently focused• Vary your comment types in the margins rather than only observing

deficiencies• Play the believing game and find a positive feature• Use a 3-part end comment at first but know how predictable it is • Show how weaknesses relate to one another• Make sure the grade and evaluation criteria are connected and

accurately reflected in your comments . . . Do a common sense check

Avoid the Grammar Trap

• Students’ writing usually contains fewer mistakes than instructors and graders perceive. Errors are nearly always “patterned” rather than discreet

• Students often have more linguistic competence than the surface features of their writing suggests

• Errors in student writing increase in direct correspondence to increasing difficulty of the assignment

• Errors often disappear in students’ writing as they progress through multiple drafts

• You can expect to see more serious sentence problems in first drafts and on essay exams

Avoiding the Grammar Trap• Not all errors are equal! • Don’t get into the habit of correcting/marking student errors.

It’s NOT helpful and it’s a poor use of your time. Mark ONE paragraph or identify a pattern and say, “The problem continues” and explain what the problem or error pattern is. Perhaps it’s not grammar at all but “academic voice”?

• Traditional procedures for marking student papers may make matters worse. Save your students!

• Traditional procedures for marking student papers may make you sour and ineffective. Save yourself!

• Remember that once you start responding, you are the WRITER and the student is the READER.

Peer Review of Comments1. Identify the major strength your partner noted in this paper. What locations did the GTA

point out to substantiate this claim of strength?How accurate do you believe this evaluation is?

2. Identify the guidance or advice your partner noted as a central concern in this paper. What

locations did your partner identify to substantiate the claim of “needs improvement” How accurate do you believe this evaluation is?

3. Identify the concrete suggestion for improvement that your partner noted. Would an undergraduate understand this advice and be able to follow it?

How accurate do you believe this advice is?

4. Characterize the tone/attitude of feedback your partner has provided. Could it be improved and if so, how?

5. Are your partner’s comments forward-looking and formative in nature or do the comments seem defensive, as if justifying the grade?

Has the grader used the HINT advice (how to improve next time)?

HOW MIGHT YOU USE PEER REVIEW (IN-CLASS OR ELECTRONIC) TO INTERVENE IN STUDENTS’ WRITING PROCESSES? DISCUSS IDEAS WITH

YOUR FACULTY SUPERVISOR

TEACHING IN THE MARGINSPROFESSOR KATE KIEFER -- UDTS

http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/teaching/commenting/

Commenting Advice• “The writing teacher’s ministry is not just to the

words but to the person who wrote the words.” --William Zinsser

• “The best kind of commentary enhances the writer’s feeling of dignity. The worst kind can be dehumanizing and insulting—often to the bewilderment of the teacher whose intentions were kindly but whose techniques ignored the personal dimension of writing.”

--John Bean

/

Revision Processes and Strategies for GTA Intervention—Works Especially for Staged Assignments

Early, mid, and late interventions• Early

– Topic proposal (subject, topic, issue, question)– Research question + tentative thesis– Seminal source description

• Mid– Annotated bibliography (text partners) or source evaluation– Summary and response to one source– Quote and paraphrase sheet for one source– Introduction review, especially if multiple sources. Use “templates” for

entering conversation– Prospectus in full sentences (one page)

• Late– Full draft workshop on one paper– Full draft peer review on all papers– Conference—writers talk about the draft they bring and revision plan

International Student Writing

Nancy BerryIntensive English Program

International Students at CSU• About 1200 international students and scholars from over

100 countries

• International Undergraduates– Clear admission (TOEFL and IELTS scores)– Conditional admission

• Completion of Intensive English Program required

• Generation 1.5 students

Intensive English Program (IEP)

• Primary mission: Provide quality English language instruction to prepare international undergraduate students for academic work at American universities

• Placement exam

• 6 levels of instruction (Beginning – Advanced)

Writing Curriculum at the IEP

• Beginning levels – sentence to paragraph• Intermediate levels – paragraph to 5-paragraph essay• Advanced levels

– Paraphrasing– Incorporating information from outside sources– Citation formats– Specific rhetorical patterns (cause-effect, compare-

contrast, argumentation, etc…)• All levels – attention to language (grammar, spelling,

vocabulary)

International Student Writing SamplesAdvanced Two Level

• Peoples all over the world are buying and selling organs illegally. The growing markets involve poor local donors and an international contingent of wealthy buyers. In America, more than 95,000 peoples are waiting for organ transplants and in the last year thousands died waiting for surgery. As this result, many people need organs, but there aren’t enough to provide to sick people. However, although there are lots of people who are waiting, some people still buy organs illegally. Because of those who obtain the organs in unlawful ways, the waiting list for organs is growing longer and longer. As the waiting list grows longer more poor people suffer. There is a 10-year-old girl named Jessica. She is suffering from liver disease. She has been waiting for a donation for a year, but her illness is getting worse. Her parents decided to buy an organ in an unrighteous way. It means the other person who was waiting for the organ might have to wait more and die. Should her parents be allowed to buy an organ with sacrificing another life? Jessica’s parents shouldn’t be allowed to pay to obtain a liver because it injures others who are waiting for the organ and isn’t fair to others.

International Student Writing Samples (cont.)

• The Family Doesn’t Have the Right to an Organ• If you had a daughter, and she needed to transplant a liver, what would you do

for her? Were you going to hurt other people for her? Nowadays, there are a few numbers of people who know what bioethics means, but there are some who don’t. Bioethics relates to our beliefs and what is right and wrong in medical science. Transplant organs by buying and selling are very common these days because a lot of people who need transplant go to buy organs from poor people by saying it saves time and helps ailing people. There is a case study that tells there is a little girl who needed a transplant in her liver from a wealthy family, and her name is Jessica. She and her parents had been waiting to transplant a liver for a year, so finally the family decided to buy a liver by saying she will die before she reaches to the top of the waiting list. Jessica’s family shouldn’t buy a liver because it is fair for people who don’t have enough money like Jessica’s family and they harm other people by buying a liver before people who were before her in the waiting list.

IEP Classes as Cultural Bridge

• Rote memorization to critical thinking• Student as passive recipient to student as active

class participant• Understanding the line between ‘helping friends’

and cheating• Expectations of the American academic audience

– Explicit, concise prose– Acknowledging and giving credit to the ideas of

others (avoiding plagiarism)

Challenges Faced by GTAs Related to International Student Writing

• Grammar and incomprehensibility• Students not understanding the assignment• Issues of fairness: finding a balance between

maintaining standards and showing compassion

• Plagiarism• Time

Strategies for Dealing with the Challenges

• Start with a well-designed assignment• Provide explicit expectations and instructions

(oral and written)• When grading, be clear about goals/objectives

of assignment• Read paper out loud• Become familiar with resources available

through the Writing Center and the IEP

IEP Contact Info:

Nancy BerryIntensive English Program

nancy.berry@colostate.edu491-7246