HOLD UP. We swapped papers in my elementary school from 1st to 5th grade in at least one class. And NO ONE I knew ever cheated. I disagree that swapping papers “inevitably” leads to cheating…I think it depends on the group of kids.
I’m not sure that there is that much cheating at the age where peer grading of things like spelling quizes is most common (and college level peer grading is unrelated to this thread)…but if there is systemic cheating with any classroom practice, then that practice should be changed.
However, that was not the complaint of the parent in this case…and that was not my original point… She was complaining about “severe embarrassment”. So again, since there is potential for “embarrassment” in any of the seven situations I mentioned above (and I guess there might be similar situations as well), is anyone for banning all of those kinds of situations, where “embarrassment” might occur?
I just want to weigh in that cheating in a system like that IS rampant. Even in spelling tests it is easy for the grader to insert a missing letter, or erase offending letters.
And the pressure is pretty high to cheat. Imagine the class geek who gets the paper of the coolest kid in school. Who woulnd’t want to boost their social standing by simply writing down a letter or two?
The same goes with having student TAs grade work in middle and high school. My friend, whoes best friend TA’d her French class, would get papers back where problems she did wrong would somehow turn out right.
But the complaint was on embarrasment. As long as the student had the option to opt out, I dont see what her problem is.
Oh Christ on a sidecar…
When I was a tot, we “passed to the left” or whatever, and graded each others’ papers. In junion high & HS, I was a TA.
I never cheated, and I am not a special case. If the class is supposed to make a check mark if an answer is wrong, and do nothing if an answer is correct, it would be pretty damn obvious if someone is scribbling or erasing.
If you’re that worried about it, let the graders use those cool red pencils or pens- any corrections in red might be suspect.
I really hope that when my son is of school age, I don’t turn into a friggin’ moron. Personally, I loved the peer grading practice because I was smart 
.
Another tempest in a teapot brought to you by oversensitive whiny people. Next one should be coming up in just a few minutes…
Coming soon to a school near you: A lawsuit brought by the parent of a kid, whose gym teacher made him do pullups…in FRONT OF the rest of the class…the shame…the horror…the abuse :rolleyes:
If that’s the case, you probably should have gotten them to lower the temperature of the water.
…yeah…but then…“shrinkage”