Text by ALLISON CHANG and NAOMI BONEH
Art by SAMANTHA HO
READING THE RUBRIC
PIVOTAL PARTS OF THE AP GRADING PROCESS
“Y
OU CAN TELL if someone is an experienced AP reader by what they are wearing,” Palo Alto High School math teacher and AP Calculus grader Steve Marsheck says. “The temperature is always kept really cold to keep the people awake.” Each June, thousands of teachers from across America gather together to score Advanced Placement examinations in huge convention centers rented out by the College Board. Described by Marsheck as reminiscent of a Costco, these convention centers run like factories. Every couple of hours, someone comes by to signal break time, and AP readers shuffle out like frenzied ants to make the most of their short break before returning to grade. The College Board sets up four convention centers at the beginning of each summer, with two one-week grading sessions at each center. Within each center, the College Board separates AP readers into sections based on subjects, which are then broken down into individual rooms of approximately 20 graders. “There were around 800 people — and that’s just the people grading calculus.” Marsheck says. “Where I was, calculus was probably the biggest group. Down the hall, there was bio, which was smaller. They had maybe 300 to 400 people.” According to College Board,
26 JUNE 2021
as AP readers grade free-response questions, derie with other teachers from across the table leaders check and verify their scores to country helps him enjoy the monotonous, ensure fairness and accuracy. Each question labor-intensive process. is read by two readers, and if there is a dis“Each room has a number and you crepancy between the scores, the table lead- start identifying with your number and ers can override the scores. This method of the people you’re grading with,” Marsheck backreading, where says. “For a week tests are scored mulstraight, you’re tiple times, helps When you see so many eating meals with maintain consistenthem and you samples of student recy and ensure that are taking breaks the score a student sponses... it helps you, as a with them, so receives does not you develop teacher, to know what to depend on who friendships with help students aim for.” grades their test. people from all “At the scoring over the country. — KEVIN DUFFY, AP Spanish teacher and grader It’s so interesting table, you grade in pairs,” Paly AP to talk to people Spanish teacher during lunch and and grader Kevin Duffy says. “You get to learn what it’s like teaching in the middle of have really great conversations about the rural Tennessee.” responses and how they fit in with the ruMost of the AP test grading remains bric.” the same year after year, but accumulatWith more than four million AP tests ing the experience of being an AP reader taken every year and over 25 subjects grad- significantly helps AP teachers adjust their ed by hand, several thousand teachers work own curricula, Duffy says. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., only stopping for “When you see so many samples of lunch and short breaks, for seven consecu- student responses, evaluate them and meative days, according to the College Board. sure them to the rubric, it helps you, as a “You have this big giant box of tests teacher, to know what to help students aim and inside this box you will have 50 fold- for,” Duffy says. “You can point students ers,” Marsheck says. “Each folder has 25 in the direction and be like ‘Focus on this, tests in it. So you go up and you grab ignore this.’” a folder, you sit back down. You grade Although the AP test grading system that folder. You put that folder back, and can be harsh and grading these tests is very then you grade another folder. You are time-consuming, ultimately the core of bejust cranking through a big ing an AP grader is to better understand the pile of papers, hours after course and help their students reach success. hours.” “There is no other way of having the While grading chance to sample that many responses, and can be exhausting, you get a really good idea of what qualiMarsheck says the ty responses are versus responses that are camara- below the standard,” Duffy says. “It helps you develop a backward plan and think, ‘I know what the endpoint is. Now I have a much better idea of how to help my students meet that standard or exceed it.’” v
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