With the rapid advancement of AI, automated grading has expanded beyond being able to grade simple multiple-choice questions. Most teachers would agree that grading is the worst part of their job, so the idea of letting AI do grading instead is incredibly attractive. In this blog, we’ll explore some of the pros and cons of automated grading and take a look at what it may mean for the future of grading.
The Pros: Time Saved, Workplace Satisfaction, and Accuracy
The biggest value instructors see in AI grading is the amount of time it could potentially save them. A 2022 Forbes article in partnership with Hanover Research found that 49% of teachers spend about 3-10 hours per week working outside of their regular school day. Being able to lower the amount of work that needs to be done outside of working hours not only increases the overall efficiency of time but also contributes to happier, more fulfilled teachers. We know the benefits of workplace satisfaction are abundant: better quality of work produced, better collaboration among team members, and higher efficiency are just a few commonly referenced factors of improvement.
In addition to time efficiency and increased workplace satisfaction, AI grading can also consistently provide accurate grading. Many people understand that computer systems can easily grade multiple-choice, true or false, ranking, and fill-in-the-blank questions, due to their binary answers. However, significant improvements have been made to automated grading systems as online assessments and examinations become increasingly popular. AI is capable of parsing short answers and even long-form answers for grading. When provided with a rubric to grade against, AI can help instructors grade large volumes of work relatively quickly and accurately. Now, the accuracy of AI grading will depend on the training data the AI uses, so instructors should still review long assessments for the final say in grading.
The Cons: Generic Feedback, Hidden Bias, and Privacy Concerns
One of the biggest concerns with manual grading is providing quality feedback, and this concern persists with automated grading too. The feedback provided by AI can often feel generic and doesn’t provide students with action points to improve upon. Much like how manual teacher feedback needs to be specific to the student and their work in order to be truly effective, the feedback provided by AI must follow the same standard of quality.
Other concerns with AI usage are not specific to AI grading, but rather the use of AI in general. People hold real concerns about AI systems being discriminatory, which is why it is essential to use AI models that are trained on datasets designed to minimize bias and prevent discrimination. For instance, YuJa’s AI models undergo rigorous testing and monitoring to ensure fairness and avoid disadvantaging any specific groups.
Another common concern with AI usage is fear over where work is stored and how it is used, especially things like student work, which may occasionally contain personal information. These concerns can be mitigated by ensuring you only choose tools with explicit FERPA compliance and that are SOC 2 certified. In addition, instructors and administrators can inquire and confirm if AI models use student-submitted data for training to help protect the privacy of students.
The Future of Grading
While nothing can be guaranteed, current practices indicate that the use of AI continues to increase within the workplace, including within the education sector. The current state of AI cannot promise perfectly accurate and safe grading 100% of the time, but it can be an incredibly useful preliminary tool that saves time. By taking proactive steps, such as removing any personal student information and using AI tools from FERPA-compliant and SOC 2-certified institutions, instructors may find an incredibly useful tool in AI that reduces workload strain.
Citations
McShane, M. (2022, July 8). New report: How do teachers spend their time?. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemcshane/2022/07/06/new-report-how-do-teachers-spend-their-time/
