Day 123: A Day Indoors.

[Wordsworth2]

Today I spent most of the day indoors starting the process of estimating GCSE grades. It was hard, laborious work but I was rewarded at the end of the day with a lovely walk. It was depressing staying in all day, so next time I will make times for a break and get out to help myself. That's my focus for the day.

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Stay strong, stay safe.

[bikegrrrl 1lb]

Hello Wordsworth2 - I don't envy you the pressure of awarding grades! It must feel oddly solitary, compared to your normal working life.

Well done for not munching through the day, and for appreciating the value of a walk.

[Wordsworth2 in reply to bikegrrrl]

Hi bikegrrrl, love the name! Thank you for your support, it means a lot and I did munch, but on grades and numbers rather than food! Lol.

[Sheperdess Maintainer]

That’s a tough few days you have ahead. My only marking is MSc dissertations and I find I have to put aside a huge amount of time making sure I grade them carefully against the set criteria. It’s still stressful knowing this grade can make a difference to their future. I know it’s hard to take sufficient break time for physical exercise but you could try deep breathing exercise for a minute. Mine is timed on my watch and breathing in deeply for 6 seconds and out for 6 seconds for one minute but you can do it without any fancy watch. It can help relax you a little and may help your energy for the rest of the task ☺️Good luck with the marking 🍀

[Wordsworth2 in reply to Sheperdess]

Hi Sheperdess, the grading process normally is hard, especially as the criteria is so vague and ambiguous. however, as the government has cancelled the GCSEs we are having to go through and look at lots of evidence and basically guess at what grades we think they would get based on lots of evidence over the last two years and the different interventions they were having. Then we have to rank them etc. It's hard and complicated and it is horrible. I would much rather they had taken their GCSE exams and I simply marked them as an examiner instead. But hey ho. Definitely doesn't compare to marking MSc dissertations though! Phew! I will definitely try the breathing techniques tomorrow when I start and have also downloaded a mindfulness app to help also. Good luck with your marking too!

[Sheperdess Maintainer in reply to Wordsworth2]

You have my admiration along with all the teachers in your position 👏Thanks. They’ve changed the academic semester so my next batch of dissertations is in August but I like the 1:1 tutoring, especially with foreign students. I hope some kind of mindfulness adds another string to your bow of techniques to support you 😀