Blog 11 - Group question about comments

For our question our group decided to look at what teacher comments can show us about the teacher’s grading style. We think that by looking at the teacher comments, we can get an idea of what that teacher’s personal style is, specifically what their most important considerations are in a student’s paper.

In order to begin answering this question, we would first need to classify the different kinds of comments. After this, we can look at how frequently and with what intensity the different kinds of comments appear. Finally, we can consider what the frequency, intensity, and typology might indicate about the professor’s style and preferences.

An example of different Categories of teacher comments include:

comments referring to Grammar & Mechanics

comments referring to Organization

comments referring to Development                                                        

comments referring to Clarity

We could then analyze the comments to see how frequently these different types appear. If a large percentage of comments refer to the paper’s Development, for example, we could draw the conclusion that Development is of primary importance to the teacher.

As far as intensity, I think it is possible to compare different teacher comments for differing levels of passion. Certain comments may be simple suggestions, while others may indicate a higher level of interest from the teacher. For example, a comment like “This is vague” contrasted with a comment like “This section seems incomplete. What else might your reader need to know? Try giving a specific example”. Since the latter is more detailed, we might conclude that the professor who wrote it has a greater level of interest in the student’s ability to be clear and detailed.