One of the hardest things about teaching is the evaluation process. Tests that are easily graded are the least effective in actually evaluating if the student has mastered the content. In other words, if a test has pure multiple choice questions, it is really easy to grade but doesn’t tell me if my student has understood the class content.
Because I’m always teaching for understanding, I have to design tests that are more like a conversation with the student. In other words, I have to make a test that is more difficult to grade. An essay test is more difficult to grade, but it tells me a lot about their understanding. I guess what I’m saying that in order to have a good evaluation of the student, I have to do a lot of work after the class by grading a ton of essay questions.
