We recently had midterm grades due for some of our students. For me, it’s not a big deal to get these grades in, but for some people it is.
There are two very efficient ways of keeping track of grades. One is to use a spreadsheet like Excel. The other is to use the online grade book provided by on-line software, like Blackboard or Desire2Learn (which is what we use at my institution). Of course, for these to be efficient, you have to know how to use them. Tools are only as effective as the person using them.
The learning curve to use these tools is not steep. In maybe 3-4 hours total, you can have good mastery of most things that you need. Some of my colleagues spend that much time each semester for each class figuring final grades! (I’m in the humanities; math is not our strong point.) When I point out that it’s so much easier and quicker to use a speadsheet or the online system, my colleagues respond that “it takes too long to learn.” Even when I tell them that it only takes the equivalent of figuring grades for ONE class to learn the system, they resist. I don’t get it.
Because there are advantages and disadvantages to both, I switch back and forth from Excel to the on line grade book; it just depends on the semester. I like posting grades on line because not only does the program keep an updated final grade based on items already entered, but students can see the grades they’ve got on each test and homework assignment. On the downside, sometimes you’re locked in to a grading scheme when using the online version; you can’t tailor it to exactly how you want the grades to be calculated (you either have to have everything weighted, or be a percentage, or everything is based on points–but not a combination of those schemes). Excel does give you a lot more flexibility on that front, but it is not available to students 24/7 (as they say). You have to decide what’s best given your circumstances and needs.
