Lessons from the First Review

My first reaction while grading the literature review was, "This is taking way too long." I could feel myself getting so tired that the quality of my grading was slipping.  I found myself writing "akw" next to sentences simply because I was too tired to explain what was actually wrong with them.  

For next time, I will start with a more concrete rubric. Hopefully if the students know exactly what I want and I know exactly what I am looking for, I will spend less time digging for it. I will also be able to give feedback simply by checking a box that already explains the problem.  

The peer editing will also help me in my grading.  The students have already checked each others' papers for technical items and formatting, so I should be able to get through that part more quickly. 

I also need to preplan my grading schedule.  I graded the summaries in three hour blocks on Sunday and Monday nights. This worked well for me when I was grading shorter papers because I could switch papers every few minutes, but when I was reading larger papers, it was too hard to go for three hours.  Next time I will divide my time based on the number of papers I am grading instead of the time I am spending.