The Hidden Time Wasters in Your Grading Process

Grading can be one of the heaviest responsibilities for a teacher. You grade in the mornings and during your planning period. You grade in the evenings and on weekends. But somehow, the job is never done.

Your students might grumble when you hand out a new homework assignment, but maybe you feel like grumbling, too! Because while it’s one assignment for them to complete, for you it’s 25, 50, or even 100 or more to grade. The grading. Never. Stops.

You might feel like this is just part of the job, that this is what you signed up for when you became a teacher, but there are ways to lighten your grading workload. Below are hidden time wasters you may find in your grading process — along with what to do instead to streamline your workload and reclaim some of your precious free time.

Time Waster: Doing Everything Yourself

Teachers are known for being self-sufficient and for being hard workers. But that doesn’t mean you can’t give yourself a break, and it doesn’t mean you have to do everything by yourself, every single time.

Instead, try:

• Completion checks. These can be especially helpful when students are learning a new skill or working their way through new material. A completion check confirms they’re getting the practice they need, and it allows them to grow and master the material without getting dinged for every mistake. You could go over the correct answers as a class if you like. Or you could always pass out a key with answers and explanations. Self-grading can help students reflect on their own progress and spot their own recurring errors, leading to better long-term comprehension.
• Peer review. This approach is a win-win: You get a break, and your students gain a deeper understanding of the material as they work through it and explain it to each other. Peer review encourages active learning and helps students see different perspectives and thought processes on the same topic.

Time Waster: Doing Everything Manually

Grading every single spelling test, math worksheet, or multiple-choice quiz by hand can take hours of your week. Manual grading is an old habit many new teachers fall into simply because it’s how they were taught.

Instead, try:

• Leveraging artificial intelligence. New AI tools can help you quickly evaluate material, especially activities with objective right or wrong answers. Even if you’re new to AI and it takes some time to learn how to use a new program, you can invest time on the front end to save much more down the line. (The caveat here, of course, is to always check the AI’s work. It’s a tool to support you, not to replace you and your expertise.)
• Doing more digital assignments. If your school has laptops or tablets for students, try to take advantage of those tools. You don’t necessarily have to print out a worksheet; your students can complete it on their device. Then, there are plenty of platforms that will automatically grade multiple-choice and short-answer questions the moment a student hits submit. Your students get instant feedback, and you have one less assignment to grade.
• Using shorthand or code. For digital assignments, you could set up keyboard shortcuts or create a bank of commonly used feedback. For paper assignments, use simple symbols your students will understand (if you need to create a key for your class, go ahead!).

Time Waster: Providing Excessive Detail

You’re a dedicated educator, and you want your students to improve, but this can sometimes translate to paragraphs of customized feedback on every single assignment. It’s well-intentioned, but this level of feedback is unsustainable for you and often overwhelming for your students.

Instead, try:

• Limiting feedback to core learning objectives. If the assignment is about understanding historical causes and effects, you probably shouldn’t spend 10 minutes correcting minor grammar mistakes. If you see a consistent issue, it might make sense to flag it once, but other than that, it’s typically best to stick to the focus of the assignment.
• Highlighting patterns. If a student repeatedly misspells a specific word or uses the wrong formula, point it out once at the top of the page rather than writing it out 15 times.
• Delivering group feedback. If you notice half the class struggled with the same concept, you don’t have to write the same explanation on every paper. Instead, address the issue verbally with the entire class the next day, going over an example together.

Time Waster: Ineffective Time Management

Grading a few papers here and there between classes or while watching television can stretch out the task indefinitely. Without boundaries, grading can expand to fill every available minute of your day.

Instead, try:

• Time limits or a grading schedule. Set a timer for 45 minutes and see how much you can get done. When you know you have a set amount of time, you are better able to focus and tune out distractions.
• A stricter late policy. If your school or district allows it, enforce a firm cutoff for late work. Chasing down missing assignments and grading them weeks after the fact disrupts your workflow and forces you to re-familiarize yourself with old material.

Time Waster: Overcomplicating the Process

Have you ever designed an elaborate, multi-step project for your students? It might have seemed like a great idea at the time, like it all came together so perfectly, but complex assignments require complex grading.

Instead, try:

• Simpler assignments. Shorter, simpler assignments are faster to grade and less stressful for students to complete. Now, this doesn’t mean you should eliminate all projects and creativity from your classroom. It just means that sometimes, a simple worksheet will do the trick.
• Rubrics with clear criteria. When you have a checklist of requirements and you know exactly what you’re looking for, you can move through a stack of papers at a much faster pace. Just make sure your students know ahead of time what is expected.

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