Grading is the process of evaluating student work and assigning a score. It sounds mechanical. It is not. A teacher grading essays makes dozens of judgments per paper: Is the thesis clear? Is the evidence relevant? Is the grammar acceptable? Rubrics help standardize these judgments, but subjectivity never disappears.

Grading takes time. A high school English teacher with 150 students and a stack of essays may spend ten to fifteen minutes per paper. That is 25 hours of grading for one assignment. Many teachers grade on weekends and evenings. The workload contributes to burnout.

Approaches vary. Some teachers grade everything. Others grade selectively, focusing on key assignments. Some use peer grading and self-assessment to share the load and build student skills. The trend in some schools is toward fewer grades that carry more weight, tied directly to learning goals.

Grading methods

• Rubrics with defined criteria
• Point systems and weighted categories
• Letter grades and percentages
• Peer and self-assessment
• Standards-based grading