Grading

[Marcia Selsor]

I have rejoined the world of academia this semester and have returned a bit more mellow. The students here are much different than those in Montana and the times have changed significantly as well...ex. how do you lecture to a class of students wearing ipods or nanos..

I found this article to be very timely as I head into finals week next week. Many students did extremely well..others still don't understand glaze after bisque ..etc.

I filled in for a retirement and in a studio already set up in ways alien to my way of organizing. I have updated the working conditions with safety mandatory requirements etc. Now it is grading time.

 

 

 

http://chronicle.com/blogs/brainstorm/grading-art/41702

 

Marcia

[bciskepottery]

My only experience in the classroom is as a "visiting artist" to lead a group of sixth grade boys (private school) make and then glaze masks -- part of an effort by their teacher to bring a 3-D lesson to the class. In short, the experience is like herding cats. Every fall I walk away wondering how Art Teachers make it through the year and that there is not enough money paid to middle school teachers.

 

What struck me about the article is the statement about "grading the art" and I'm trying to think through how that is different from grading the artist and which should be the focus of grading in school. Anyhow, thanks for the link.

[Pres]

I have rejoined the world of academia this semester and have returned a bit more mellow. The students here are much different than those in Montana and the times have changed significantly as well...ex. how do you lecture to a class of students wearing ipods or nanos..

I found this article to be very timely as I head into finals week next week. Many students did extremely well..others still don't understand glaze after bisque ..etc.

I filled in for a retirement and in a studio already set up in ways alien to my way of organizing. I have updated the working conditions with safety mandatory requirements etc. Now it is grading time.

 

 

 

http://chronicle.com...ading-art/41702

 

Marcia

 

 

Marcia, I have been retired now (2009)from a HS situation where I went through a great bit of grief over the same subject. In the early years it was looking at the work, the student and trying to come up with a fair grade. Pretty subjective. By the time I retired I had created a series of Rubrics for each project that were introduced with the project. I divided the rubric into two major categories-Design and Craftsmanship. Design usually included intent, and Craftsmanship how the intent was carried out. Each of these major categories had about 4-5 subs under them of about 5 points each. By doing this the Subjective became more Objective, and the student was much more informed of the expectations and requirements of the project. I even had Rubrics for Class participation grades that included Studio Maintenance, discussion participation, safety and other things. It was tough to do the preliminary work and decide what to include, but in the end made the job much easier, and for the kids that cared-really helped them. All too often the district wanted grades posted each week. So many times I had a short rubric on Progress! HS is a different beast from college, but I hope this helps.

[Marcia Selsor]

Hi Pres,

Yes times keep changing. We have critiques at the end of this week. Suddenly it has been a very productive year and now "NO MAS!!!" The students worked well into the night of the last day to work with wet clay and then damp pieces kept coming in from home as if that is ok. Unfortunately they didn't all dry out in time.

I am firing well beyond the last official glaze firing which was yesterday. Students are taking over under supervision. The equipment is old and worrisome.

It has been a physically brutal semester for this old body. Rewiring kilns, lifting shelves, ..all the routine duties that come with the territory.

Got some great work out of the classes and that is satisfying. Will be unloading the big gas kiln today and firing raku wind permitting.

 

Marcia

[Pres]

Hi Pres,

Yes times keep changing. We have critiques at the end of this week. Suddenly it has been a very productive year and now "NO MAS!!!" The students worked well into the night of the last day to work with wet clay and then damp pieces kept coming in from home as if that is ok. Unfortunately they didn't all dry out in time.

I am firing well beyond the last official glaze firing which was yesterday. Students are taking over under supervision. The equipment is old and worrisome.

It has been a physically brutal semester for this old body. Rewiring kilns, lifting shelves, ..all the routine duties that come with the territory.

Got some great work out of the classes and that is satisfying. Will be unloading the big gas kiln today and firing raku wind permitting.

 

Marcia

 

 

Marcia,

I remember those days of college with so many students doing the last minute pottery. Funny, but I did the opposite of most students when in college. I worked really hard for about 14 weeks, throwing, assembling, whatever. Then the last few weeks I took off quite a bit. When in grad school at PS I took two weeks off from the summer course and went to the shore. Production for the summer course was over 150 pieces. I worked hard and steady, and played the same way. I wished that there had been an opportunity for an MFA, but residency requirements kept me from going in that direction.

 

In the HS I taught at the students wanted to rush things through in the end also. i was very strict on my due dates. On the final due date for the semester everything had to be handed in. The next day started studio clean up in the working room. All clay in boxes and bags whether a pot or not was slopped. In that manner I was assured that the projects would be bisqued and glaze fired by the end of the semester and in time for final grading. Keeping things in line was difficult, and heartbreaking at times when you had t shuck an unfinished project with great potential, but another end to learning is responsibility. Illness? Often when a student was sick, I would contact home to see if they could finish it at home, and either pick it up, or I would deliver it. I loved my years of teaching, and even though the profession is not the same as it was when I started, I would not have done anything differently.