Climbing the Mountain
Marking students' work. If there’s one thing about my job as a teacher that feels sub-par, it’s this. After finishing a module and receiving all the students' work, the "fun" part begins. Suddenly, a mountain of work appears, built from students' sweat, tears, and weeks of love and devotion.
I've tried (and occasionally succeeded) to spread this workload throughout the module, adding in a mid-term assessment that contributes to the final grade. This approach splits the giant mountain into two smaller ones, spread out over time. It helps, but it’s not always possible. Sometimes, there’s no option to avoid the big mountain of grading that awaits at the end of the term.
And we all know what mountains like these feel. You hesitate to begin the climb because you know how long it will take and how much energy it costs you. It becomes a barrier, making it hard to even start. You hang around at basecamp, distracted by other, more enjoyable tasks. On clear days, you can imagine reaching the top. You might even be able to see it. But then, it fades behind the clouds again.
This is where age-old wisdom comes in: every journey begins with a single step. Focus on the process, not the result. And while I know this works... it’s hard to believe it sometimes.
Yet, I was beginning to believe. Instead of setting aside whole days just for grading, I took the longer but gentler path. I decided to grade just a few students' work each day. No more, no less. Small, focused bursts of effort. And it worked. I found myself actually enjoying the grading process from time to time because I knew I’d have free time in between sessions. I avoided the burnout of trying to rush through everything at once, keeping the quality of my feedback high.
Now, I’m nearly done. A few days of grading behind me, just a handful of projects left. The best part? I’m still feeling pretty upbeat and much happier than I would have been if I’d tried to do it all in one go. I enjoyed stopping at different camps along the climb, taking in the view at each one.
Trust the process, and the results will come.