MARKING

Task: To mark the following -
80 compositons about 300 words in length each.
40 compositions about 400 words in length each.
80 formal letters of suggestion, about 300 words in length each.
40 informal letters of persuasion, about 350 words in length each.
80 sec 2 comprehension papers, complete with summary and cloze passage.
40 sec 3 comprehension papers, complete with summary.

Obstacles Faced:
Bad English
Sleep deprivation
Chocolate bars
Runny nose
Forgot to bring red pen home!

Support system:
Music
Camomile Tea
Chocolate Bars/Chocolate Ice-cream/Chocolate Chip Cookies/Chocolate Muffin... (You get the idea)
Starbucks
Changi Airport
United Square
Popular Bookshop
Other teachers marking (and are way behind schedule ... ahem..)

Side effects:
Eye Bags
Lack of sleep
Nightmares
Stress
Runny Nose!!
Chocolate addiction
Lack of a life outside the red pen and paper
Obsession with marking - clearly evident when being seen without fail with a pile of papers and a red pen.

How you know when you've had it
When you give all your students As
When you give all your students Fs
When you only carry a red pen and a pile of papers wherever you go
When you refuse to name your son Mark - or hate anyone who's named that

Ah yes - and who said marking was fun?

I remember when I was a child, I admired how teachers could just sit at their desks while they tasked us with work in the classroom. It seemed so easy that all they had to do was tick, tick, tick. The child in me thought it was all so easy and perhaps, it was then that I started to nurture the thought of teaching. Some twenty plus years on, I don't envy my teachers anynore. Now that I am in their shoes, I finally understood why they never liked marking.

And like a burden lifted from my shoulders, I heaved a sigh of relief as I penned the last grade on the last script. Tabulating marks was never half as enjoyable as when you know this will be the last of the marking for the rest of the year.

Tomorrow, I will release the marks and papers to my anxious students, who are probably enjoying themselves right now. I hope they did well for the rest of the subjects too.

As for me, the sleepless nights has gotten into me, and I am down with a cold. Surrounded by tissue paper, I seek solace in blogging - a luxury I have not been able to afford for a while. I shall savour this moment for a while before new challenges face me tomorrow. For now, peace.

:)