Help Me Find A Red Grading Pen

[lahlahlaw]

How about a Nemosine Singularity eyedropper-filled with red ink? They also make one in non-transparent red. Best of all - they're $15 or so bucks.

 

Here's one of mine with a Hero red in it:

[Koyote]

 

The exam board I marked for required red, but as Koyote alludes to, there's a lot of research and theory that because students associated red with danger, criticism etc they see it as hostile (subconsciously, even if they can't spell the word ). The school I taught in encouraged non-red for marking. I used green mostly.

 

One theorist recommends pencil, which would last about three minutes before being rubbed out and altered!

 

Pens: I have a Kaigelu 356 (Sonnet lookalike); it's between fine and medium, surprisingly good nib and great value - about £5 including converter.

 

There is also evidence that graders mark more harshly when using red ink:

 

http://tuftsjournal.tufts.edu/2010/06_1/features/04/

Edited September 17, 2014 by Koyote

[1maddog1]

 

There is also evidence that graders mark more harshly when using red ink:

 

http://tuftsjournal.tufts.edu/2010/06_1/features/04/

 

 

 

I know that literature pretty well, and am friendly with a psychologist who does that kind of work. I think the data are messy. If you connect a lot of dots, you can come to the conclusion that grading with a red pen can decrease student morale and performance. Those dots contain lots of assumptions, though, many of which I think are unwise to make. For instance, it could be that there is some inherent stress response to red that leads to the stress students feel, but it could also be that students have been conditioned to react to red. If this is conditioning, then using other colors will condition students to respond negatively to those.

 

Furthermore, although I do not intend to increase stress among my students, I absolutely abhor grade inflation. I think grade inflation has significantly devalued the achievement throughout education, although I'm most familiar with higher ed. The most commonly assigned grade in colleges nationwide is 'A.' I think that's atrocious. Interestingly, the authors of the study you link above choose to grade with red, precisely because they fear being to lenient.

 

I suspect this is not the right place for this discussion. I apologize for contributing to the threadjack.

 

Oh, and I think I'm going to buy a Nemosine.

[owend]

I agree that this part of the thread is veering off-track. Sorry, I give myself an E.

[prf5]

 

There is also evidence that graders mark more harshly when using red ink:

 

http://tuftsjournal.tufts.edu/2010/06_1/features/04/

 

Here's another case in which someone on this board cites a digested version of a study and the digest doesn't note the study's limitations. The study in question is by Rutchick, Slepian, and Ferris. The title is "The pen is mightier than the word: Object priming of evaluative standards." It was published in the European Journal of Social Psychology in 2010 (volume 40, pages 704-708). The paper reports three studies. In all three, the subjects were undergraduate students rather than instructors. The authors were clear about this limitation. They said: "participants likely had little experience marking errors and evaluating others’ work. It may well be the case that, while inexperienced evaluators are subject to the influence of red pens, trained teachers who are accustomed to making corrections are unaffected" (p. 708).

 

Two other limitations come to mind: First, the authors were applying a theory which proposes that red evokes aggression, rather than examining color as one feature of an instructor's overall recognition of student performance. Second, it overlooks the interactive aspect of grading procedures between students and instructors. Long ago, when I was teaching undergraduates, I would assign and grade their work early in the term and talk with them individually long before midterms, finals, and papers. As they were getting acquainted with my grading practices, I was learning about their handwriting and how they approached assignments.

 

Red is a convenient color. It makes informational, positive, and negative remarks stand out. Whether red red evokes aggressiveness in an interactive educational setting is another matter.

[1maddog1]

I agree that this part of the thread is veering off-track. Sorry, I give myself an E.

 

Ahh, let's make it a C.

[Orrell Post]

Oh dear, I always marked with a black roller ball, probably because the essays were all on cheap photocopying paper - but I am going to buy a Jinhao and a Nemosine, just can't decide which ones.

 

I do agree about marking high, it is the same here in the UK - it weakens academic standards.

[Diderot]

 

there's a lot of research and theory that because students associated red with danger, criticism etc they see it as hostile (subconsciously, even if they can't spell the word ).

 

 

If that is the case, I shall carry on using red .

I'm currently looking at a chapter from one of my students for an MD/PhD thesis to be submitted by end of year.

Despite my initial comments, she still has produced something which resembles a dogs breakfast.

So yes, RED it is - particularly if it smacks of criticism and at times borders on downright hostility .

[LuckyKate]

I like red green and purple. Right now I'm using a red Pelikan 205 (probably not heavy enough for the OP) with Garuda red. I do think being logical and honest about standards is more important than the color of the ink.

[Sailor Kenshin]

I know that literature pretty well, and am friendly with a psychologist who does that kind of work. I think the data are messy. If you connect a lot of dots, you can come to the conclusion that grading with a red pen can decrease student morale and performance. Those dots contain lots of assumptions, though, many of which I think are unwise to make. For instance, it could be that there is some inherent stress response to red that leads to the stress students feel, but it could also be that students have been conditioned to react to red. If this is conditioning, then using other colors will condition students to respond negatively to those.

 

Furthermore, although I do not intend to increase stress among my students, I absolutely abhor grade inflation. I think grade inflation has significantly devalued the achievement throughout education, although I'm most familiar with higher ed. The most commonly assigned grade in colleges nationwide is 'A.' I think that's atrocious. Interestingly, the authors of the study you link above choose to grade with red, precisely because they fear being to lenient.

 

I suspect this is not the right place for this discussion. I apologize for contributing to the threadjack.

 

Oh, and I think I'm going to buy a Nemosine.

 

Heeheee....I appreciate your way of thinking.

 

Just be aware that the Nemo is VERY light and you did mention wanting a heavier pen....

[prf5]

I'm currently looking at a chapter from one of my students for an MD/PhD thesis to be submitted by end of year. Despite my initial comments, she still has produced something which resembles a dogs breakfast. So yes, RED it is - particularly if it smacks of criticism and at times borders on downright hostility.

 

I doubt that red ink would carry a lot of punch with a medical student.

Edited September 17, 2014 by prf5

[owend]

Diderot wants to use red to emphasise his criticism ; may there be an academic revolution here, where the marker adjusts the colour of his/her marking to suit the quality of the work? So a really good piece of work gets commented in green ink, bad work in red ink, unreadable work in invisible ink, dog's dinners in brown ink (my dog's dinner is brown biscuity coloured)........

 

Think of the market for shades of ink, eg very good work in Kelly Green, not so good in Woodland Green, and so on.

 

Of course, this means grading the work before you start marking: some years ago I had an external moderator visit to confirm A-level students' internally marked work. He picked up one student's folder and weighed it in his hand and pronounced that it was a B. The student didn't get the joke.

[1maddog1]

 

If I doubt that red ink would carry a lot of punch with a medical student.

 

MD/PhD students come to graduate school accustomed to receiving positive feedback. They don't get much between matriculation and graduation.

[prf5]

 

MD/PhD students come to graduate school accustomed to receiving positive feedback. They don't get much between matriculation and graduation.

 

I doubt that red ink would carry a lot of punch with a medical student...because they are accustomed to the sight of blood..

[1maddog1]

Thank you for spelling it out. I understand, now.

 

 

[Ecriveur]

Lamy Studio Royal Red - solid writer and a nice, sleek, modern looking pen.

[stephanos]

I see you're probably getting a Nemosine. Never used one, but they have a decent reputation and you'd probably be fine. But in case you haven't made a final decision yet...

 

The Faber Castell Loom is a heavier (metal) pen that isn't too expensive. It has a wonderfully smooth steel nib - amongst the smoothest I've felt at the 'inexpensive' price-point - and that's why I suggest you consider it. I also do a lot of marking, and I find the smoothness-or-otherwise of the nib can become an issue after a while.

 

Faber Castell is easy to get in Europe - and I see that Goulets are now selling it in the US. I bought mine about 6 months ago (with an orange/red cap) and paid about Eur.25 for it, though I did have to buy a converter separately (but it's standard-size, so you may have something to fit already).

 

Funnily enough, I've just placed an order for Empire Red, with a view to using it for marking (first-marking is often done in green, with moderating and second-marking being in red - but we have no specific rules about it).

[ParkersAndPaper]

I use a Lamy Safari for grading papers. My choice of red inks changes.

[Komitadjie]

I see that this year's Lamy special edition Studio is a bright red...

[prf5]

You gotten some good recommendations here. The Faber-Castell may be too thin for you, but it sure interests me. Here's an unsolicited piece of advice: Whatever fountain pen you choose, you might also want have a look at a Uni Jetstream ballpoint as a back-up.