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Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Spotlight On: Grading Season Grading is one of those things that many academics struggle to find meaningful or enjoyable, but is required by your employer. Grading is often constrained by policies you have little influence over and deadlines you don’t control. My work is focused on helping academics find […]
Read More »Welcome to the Library
The Library is an archive of my writing about academic work since launching this website in 2009. The top section contains the most recent additions. If you are new here, scroll down to see a few suggestions for good posts to start with to get a sense of my general approach. The Spotlight section at the bottom highlights a series of posts on a specific topic, and is updated regularly.
Most of my writing is sent to Studio members or my newsletter before appearing here. Since 2020 I’ve been creating audio versions of most new posts. They are embedded here but you can also follow me on Soundcloud if you prefer to listen.
Recent posts
Do you have to finish your grading before you can write?
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Do you have to finish the grading before you can write? It’s already difficult to keep writing while you are teaching and doing all the other things that need to be done in the main part of the academic year. You probably look forward to the end of teaching […]
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What if you need an extension?
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · What if *you* need an extension? I’ve been seeing a lot of conversation on Twitter about granting extensions to students. Much of it is framed in terms of compassion and kindness. There seems to be a prominent school of thought that you should just do this, almost automatically. That […]
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What an academic career looks like
There are a lot of different ways to have an academic career. Your academic career is affected by both your own values and desires, and by forces beyond your control. Although a lot of academic career advice suggests that there is a clear path to success, there are lots of reasons you may not end […]
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Hope works better than fear
I have cycled through a few tag lines in my attempt to succinctly capture what it is I do: “Love Your Academic Work” made way for “Transforming Academic Lives“. This latest iteration has the benefit of coming directly from something clients have said about working with me. An opinion piece about climate change reporting reminded me […]
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Optimizing Focus: 3 elements to consider
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Optimizing Focus: 3 Elements to Consider Everyone struggles with focus. This is why I prompt participants in A Meeting With Your Writing to think about what they’d like to try that day to optimize their focus. In this rather long post, I set out the fundamental principles that underpin […]
Read More »Spotlight On: Grading Season
This month’s Spotlight focuses on the dreaded Grading Season, covering both emotional and practical issues.
Click here to explore the whole Spotlight, or if you prefer to listen, you can find a playlist of the posts mentioned over on my Soundcloud.
Although you have been grading and giving feedback on student work throughout the semester, there is a period at the end of semester when you’ve finished teaching but still have a lot of end of semester grading to do. Grading is probably your main activity for a few weeks (or feels like it is).
There is a hard deadline for submitting grades, which puts extra pressure on.
- You may find it hard to motivate yourself to start or difficult to stay focused.
- You may find it hard to limit the time you spend on this task, even acknowledging that other work, like writing or teaching preparation for next semester, is important.
- You are tired at the end of semester but may struggle to limit your working hours to get enough rest.
- You may also have increased pressure to limit your working time due to holidays you celebrate at this time of year.
Explore this Spotlight to get practical tips and emotional support through this busy period before the break.
Follow me on Twitter to see more real-time debates & discussion – and much more.
Enjoy your writing!
