Tired of All the Grading.... part 1, Zip Grade

Tired of carrying home stacks of papers to grade, or using all your planning period to grade, instead of plan? Over the next few weeks I'll cover some easy grading solutions. This week, we'll take a look at ZipGrade. (Oh! And remember to sign up on the right over there so you get an email for new posts!)

Quickly grade tests and quizzes with your phone or device.

• grade using a phone or tablet
• print free multiple choice answer sheets
• analyze and store assessment results
• tag assessment questions with standards (if your school requires this)

Tech level: Low, only the teacher needs a device

Commitment level: Low, you can date, and even go steady before you commit -- 100 free scans, then $1.99/2 months, $6.99/year. I would totally spend $6.99 (that’s a scone and latte trip at Panera) to get my tests/quizzes graded and analyzed so quickly.

Devices: iOS (iPhone, iPad) and Android (phone, tablet)

Time to set up: I started at the ZipGrade Cloud website. It took me less than ten minutes to create an account, upload my students as a .csv file, and assign classes. I already had my students in a spreadsheet (Google Sheets).You can enter students manually, but it may bump set up time to about 15 minutes. Then I downloaded the app to my handheld device.

What I did: Once my class was set up, I filled out some answer sheets using a pencil on some, a pen on others. I did a 20 question assessment using the 20 question answer sheet and a 25 question assessment using the 50 question answer sheet. I graded one set with my iPad and one set with my Android phone. Both worked fine. It took literally less than 30 seconds to grade 8 quizzes!! I’m not exaggerating. In fact. it took me MUCH longer to fill out ONE fake student sheet than it took for me to grade all EIGHT!!

Why it’s a game changer: Obviously this saves loads of time….time that is better used on instruction and planning. Saving time lessens stress….a less stressed teacher is one than can focus on what’s important and enjoy teaching (as well as a life outside of school--I’m talking about having time for a walk or a hobby).

But let’s talk about the item analysis. When grading papers by hand, item analysis meant going back through my assessments and making a list of tick marks by each question number, which was time consuming. ZipGrade is set up for quick and thorough item analysis, which means a teacher can know almost instantly if there is a standard than needs to be revisited, a student (or group) that needs more instruction, or simply a badly formed question. What all this means is that with this instant feedback on assessments, and easy item analysis that ZipGrade offers, assessment can be used for its intended purpose -- "to improve students’ learning and teachers’ teaching as both respond to the information it provides" (definition from Purposes of assessment).

What are the cons (and possible solutions)?

• It can only be used for multiple choice assessments, but let’s face it, multiple choice assessments are part of education. All the “big” assessments (ACT Aspire, ACT, SAT, etc.) use multiple choice so students might as well learn to tackle these types of questions. Plus, a well-written multiple choice question can challenge students to use problem solving and deductive reasoning skills.
• “The grading won’t actually be on the paper and I have to send those home to parents.” Well, you could write the grades on the answer sheets, and for those parents who really MUST see the marked paper (Is that a “helicopter” I hear, or just a “squeaky wheel”...), ZipGrade allows you to email a PDF. However, I’m a busy parent and I get those “take home folders” every Thursday. I flip through them, congratulate my kids on what they did well, sign the folder, chunk the papers I don’t have to return, and then get on with making dinner….somehow I think most parents are like me and don’t have time to analyze every paper that comes home….they just want to know the grade. Plus you scan it with the student standing there and immediately the student knows the results, too.
• On my iPad I can see both assessments I graded, but on my Android phone I can only see the assessment I graded with the phone. Not sure why, but I can see everything on the ZipGrade Cloud website, so it’s no big deal. I suggest using just one device to grade with.

What I learned that you should know BEFORE using:

• I could not scan from my lap in my living room recliner….I needed more light and a flat surface. Not a big deal. I just moved to the desk. I guess I can’t be too lazy!
• Once you set up your classes, you can print answer sheets with student names and ID numbers already filled out. I recommend using these. I have even heard of teachers laminating these and reusing, but I have not tried this myself.
• Use the answer sheets with student ID. It helps with data recording, but the ones without ID still work.
• Questions can have different values, so a challenging, fat question can be worth more than an easy, skinny question.
• I missed marked an answer on one of the answer keys. I realized it after scanning the student papers. NO PROBLEM! I edited the key, and BAM! ZipGrade quickly regraded every quiz I had already scanned. That’s awesome because when I was hand grading and realized I made a mistake (which I did, more than once), it meant I had to go back and fix every paper--writing an OK by all the mismarked problems then refiguring the grades. Talk about a headache….and messy papers. Not with ZipGrade!!

If you are a visual learner, watch a this Sophia tutorial -- it’s less than nine minutes.

Notes if you are really interested:

• There is a way to use it as a rubric, but only with iOS right now. This is the most complicated item I’ve come across with ZipGrade, but the FAQ provides a great explanation.
• I was not sure what DF meant in the item analysis, but quickly found that it means Discriminant Factor on the FAQ page. If you are a real guru of assessment analysis you can find out more about Discriminant Factor.

If you are a researcher: I discovered a few other options, but ruled them out for these reasons: Quick Key - seems costly and a bit more complicated at first look; MasteryConnect - Only gives accounts to teachers working in K-12 schools and since I am not, I could not see what they offer. There is a free plan, so it may be worth looking into.

Bottom Line: Without a doubt, I would pay $6.99 for this service if I still had a classroom.