Peer Grading

[tinery]

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So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

 

[Spates Catalog]

I gave yours a 1/5

I didn't know we could leave feedback though.

 

[DrYoda]

So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

I haven't had to peer grade anything in med school, I did in ugrad though. And I always abided by the unwritten "you grade me lightly and I'll grade you lightly" rule.

 

[BigRedder]

So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

You are taking that class way too seriously. No one should ever give less than a 3/5, and even then it should be only if the student clearly had no clue what what was going on. Stop being such a gunner!

 

[tinery]

You are taking that class way too seriously. No one should ever give less than a 3/5, and even then it should be only if the student clearly had no clue what what was going on. Stop being such a gunner!

ok maybe i am taking it too seriously. i spent way more time on the summary than i probably should have, but sorry that i don't like to produce crappy work.

it's not about being a gunner, it's about being as objective as possible for a subjective assignment. the person CLEARLY did not understand the article, and paid no attention to what he/she was saying. how can you say "shear stress on the heart led to small tears in the intimal part of the vessels" when talking about aortic dissection? or "antiplatelets and anticoagulants...result in excessive vasodilation"? or even with respect to cardiac tamponade "restrictive filling of the vessels led to acute heart failure" um..did you mean ventricles?

that article would not deserve to pass. but i ended up changing it to a 3 to be NICE.

yeah i dont want to screw over my classmates. but then again, we're going to be DOCTORS. i would want my doctor to know the difference between a blood vessel and a ventricle.

 

[thepoopologist]

I get your point. But remember that your colleagues will hang your ass out to dry should you ever slip up, and therefore keep self preservation in mind when you grade like that. I'd give the passing grade and leave constructive feedback.

If the person really doesn't know his stuff, he'll have his ass handed to him on a real test or on the boards.

 

[BigRedder]

By all means, do your best. Just be kind to your fellow students, especially in the first few weeks when everyone is still getting their bearings. So what, he didn't really get it. You are barely medical students, let alone doctors. You will all get the point eventually. This peer grading is really total BS, just a way to hold us accountable to our work without taking the time to grade.

My scoring was broad and based on whether they got the point, for example:
5=you would be be impressed if they told you in person;
4=you would get the point if they told you in person;
3=you would look at them a little funny;
2=they only know the diagnosis;
1=they made a cmap that has no content and is shaped like a penis.

Beyond that, you need to have some class solidarity. Don't let him turn you against each other.

 

[Meerkatology]

I'd give the passing grade and leave constructive feedback.

this ^

 

[seelee]

How did they know that you graded it? Shouldn't it be anonymous?

 

[Basookashlon]

Everyone else that did a poor job probably got a 5/5. Not really fair to single out this one individual.

 

[plauto]

your group isn't that bright is it? You guys should have communicated ahead of time and established some agreement about grading each other rather than letting people who don't want to grade you screw you all.

 

[da8s0859q]

So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

I haven't had to peer grade anything in med school, I did in ugrad though. And I always abided by the unwritten "you grade me lightly and I'll grade you lightly" rule.

👍

Not sure just how much this "grade" counts for anything, but Tinery, you're in the same boat as your medical compatriots. Did you actually give it a 2/5 and fail one of your classmates, or did you just want to like you said?

 

[tinery]

👍

Not sure just how much this "grade" counts for anything, but Tinery, you're in the same boat as your medical compatriots. Did you actually give it a 2/5 and fail one of your classmates, or did you just want to like you said?

As I mentioned in my little rant before I ended up changing it to a 3/5. I get we're in the same boat, which means that I had to do the assignment too. Except I actually worked on it.

I'm all for class solidarity, and not to sound cheesy but I also believe in working hard. Aren't med students supposed to be the cream of the crop or something?

Anyway I want to grade similarly as everyone else to be fair so I'll just have to adjust my preferences I guess.

 

[da8s0859q]

As I mentioned in my little rant before I ended up changing it to a 3/5. Yeah we're in the same boat, which means that I had to do the assignment too. Except I actually worked on it.

<snip>

I was just about to click "submit reply" and noticed you edited your original post I already had quoted, so I'll play nice.

You're an M1, right? I'm not saying this out of some stupid sense of superiority -- I'm barely ahead of you myself -- but you're going to see, hear, and be personally guilty of some tremendously stupid things in due time. Golden rule, sir.

 

[C5toC9]

i'm glad we don't have peer grading

 

[Ok2Panic]

So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

Also dude, it's the first one! If there's any point at which to cut someone some slack, it's definitely this one.

 

[tinery]

Also dude, it's the first one! If there's any point at which to cut someone some slack, it's definitely this one.

i was thinking that it's probably better to give constructive criticism now when it doesn't really count so that when it does count they could do better.

 

[peripherin]

Was there a rubric? There is no way to grade a subjective assignment fairly without a rubric. If not, grade lightly because no one (not even your professors) expects you to give them anything less than a 5/5 on the assignment.

 

[AlexMorph]

So for one of my classes we have to peer grade summaries of medical case studies. The summary I graded did not deserve to pass so I wanted to give it a 2/5. I left a lot of feedback describing why it sucked. Some of my fellow classmates were shocked at this...

Does anyone else who has to peer grade (or has had to peer grade) normally grade fairly, meaning giving a grade that was actually deserved? Or do you typically grade kindly?

There are enough things in med. school that try to screw you over as a med. student. Don't add to it by being a dick. As a med. student, I believe that we should look out for others who are in the same situation as us, especially if it's something as insignificant as this case study.

 

[TobiasFish]

The competitive nature of med school precludes the possibility of students being fair to one another in the peer review process--especially if this process is anonymous.

I always try to buffer my grading as much as possible, I think its nearly impossible to be objective.

 

[Spates Catalog]

To those from other schools who are unawares and just don't understand...

- We take this class throughout 3 of 4 years here: MS1,2,4
- Obviously, MS1s are taking it before physio, pharm, path
- Nothing is taught in this class. No notes. No taped lectures. Just wiki and recommended books (next years pharm, path books basically)
- There is huge discrepancy of baseline medical knowledge among incoming MS1s- we have 22 y/o premeds who don't know what diastole means and former allied health professionals discussing the finer points of QRS variation and inotropic choices
- There is no grading rubric, just a 5 pt scale from "Superb" to "fail"
- 75% is passing, mostly quizzes, but you fail and you repeat the entire year-long course. A bunch of people fail.

 

[Quinone]

Golden rule definitely applies here, OP. Don't give anything less than 3/5 unless the individual basically turned in a blank assignment. When I peer grade, I always give a 4/5 or 5/5 if the person got the gist of the case and their writeup makes some sort of sense. There are enough d-bags in med school and I don't need to make someone's day worse by being a jerk about something stupid like peer grading.

 

[AlexMorph]

To those from other schools who are unawares and just don't understand...

- We take this class throughout 3 of 4 years here: MS1,2,4
- Obviously, MS1s are taking it before physio, pharm, path
- Nothing is taught in this class. No notes. No taped lectures. Just wiki and recommended books (next years pharm, path books basically)
- There is huge discrepancy of baseline medical knowledge among incoming MS1s- we have 22 y/o premeds who don't know what diastole means and former allied health professionals discussing the finer points of QRS variation and inotropic choices
- There is no grading rubric, just a 5 pt scale from "Superb" to "fail"
- 75% is passing, you fail and you repeat the entire year. A bunch of people fail.

Do you attend Hell University School of Medicine?

 

[JokerMD]

asdf

 

[Bacchus]

Constructive criticism is not failing your peer and then writing a scathing review of "why it sucked." If this is the first one and you haven't covered the intricacies of the cardiovascular system yet then you should be more forgiving. As you're taking the knife out his back you might want to patch him up.

Don't be a jerk.

 

[Antibodies]

Wait, if you fail this BS class then you need to repeat the year? WTF? That is extremely dumb.

 

[Ok2Panic]

Wait, if you fail this BS class then you need to repeat the year? WTF? That is extremely dumb.

I don't think you have to repeat the entire year, you just have to repeat the class.

 

[Meerkatology]

you don't need to 5/5 everyone but if the class actually counts you should at least pass everyone....

 

[dude1344]

I don't think you have to repeat the entire year, you just have to repeat the class.

His quote says you have to repeat the year.

wtf? What frickin school is this.

 

[Spates Catalog]

wow 😱

i hate people that actually give a failing grade to their peers. like WTF>>>???

are you out of your ****ing mind? Pass everyone and leave feedback on how to improve.

I PRAY i misunderstood the OP, and if I did, then disregard this post. If not, you are a *****.

Wait, if you fail this BS class then you need to repeat the year? WTF? That is extremely dumb.

Woah, misconceptions. Repeat the year?? 😱

I should have been more clear. Repeat the class (which is a year long), and most of the grade is from quizzes not these summaries, so, if someone fails, it's because they failed the quizzes...

 

[BigRedder]

People do fail the class, and then have to repeat the year, but generally they are borderline in other courses. It is ridiculous that this class can hold you back, but if you read and understand the cases, you should be able to pass.

 

[Deferoxamine]

To those from other schools who are unawares and just don't understand...

- We take this class throughout 3 of 4 years here: MS1,2,4
- Obviously, MS1s are taking it before physio, pharm, path
- Nothing is taught in this class. No notes. No taped lectures. Just wiki and recommended books (next years pharm, path books basically)
- There is huge discrepancy of baseline medical knowledge among incoming MS1s- we have 22 y/o premeds who don't know what diastole means and former allied health professionals discussing the finer points of QRS variation and inotropic choices
- There is no grading rubric, just a 5 pt scale from "Superb" to "fail"
- 75% is passing, mostly quizzes, but you fail and you repeat the entire year-long course. A bunch of people fail.

I wanted to send my sincere condolences to all of you dealing with this.

This really honestly has to be the biggest load of ******ed crap class they could have ever come up with, particularly in a medical school environment. How could this format possibly be devoid of subjectivity, let alone substantial time-wasting? If my school did this to us, I think I'd switch careers, STAT.

 

[BigRedder]

I wanted to send my sincere condolences to all of you dealing with this.

This really honestly has to be the biggest load of ******ed crap class they could have ever come up with, particularly in a medical school environment. How could this format possibly be devoid of subjectivity, let alone substantial time-wasting? If my school did this to us, I think I'd switch careers, STAT.

A majority of students end up feeling that this was the most valuable course they took in the preclinical years. There is a method to the madness, and if you can get through it you learn a ton. The bulk of the grade is from objective (and difficult) quizzes based on the reading, and you can bring as many hand written notes on the case as you'd like. That's right, most of your grade is based on information you can have in front of you while being quizzed on it.

Oh, and if you think nothing is taught in the class, you clearly haven't taken it long enough. I learned most of physiology and a good chunk of pathology in it, not to mention how to actually think like a doctor.

 

[MilkmanAl]

You could easily do all that without having to receive your grades from your classmates.

 

[BigRedder]

You could easily do all that without having to receive your grades from your classmates.

Agreed, though in reality there are only a few times he makes the class peer grade, and the grade does not count for much. It would matter even less if people stopped playing his game and just gave everyone decent grades.