what qualifies phd students to correct papers?

slum dog

as far as im concerned i dont see how phd researchers or students are in any way qualified to correct papers. the last two papers i had corrected by a phd student were the lowest marks ive ever gotten. it bewilders me how these A holes get paid to give their opinions when they are only a year or two a head of you. this most recent gimp, gave me a forty when i was bangin 70s last semester. i new the moment i saw him that i wouldnt get on with him and when my papers were returned it confirmed my feelings

any views?

kirving

Was it an English exam by any chance?

slum dog

Kevin Irving wrote: »

Was it an English exam by any chance?

ya hiberno english smart arse

idunnoshur

Kevin Irving wrote: »

Was it an English exam by any chance?

He couldn't have gotten 40 if it was an english exam :pac:

Havermeyer

slum dog wrote: »

...i was bangin 70s last semester...

That's some age gap - providing you're not a mature student.

James Forde

slum dog wrote: »

ya hiberno english smart arse

Let's take a stab in the dark: you failed?

GLaDOS

Never had any problem with them correcting my papers before.

BopNiblets

Knowing the answers gives them the qualification.

50 marks!

Arianna_26

Your personal gripe aside, I didn't know that PhD students were allowed to correct papers - that's crazy, they're still students.

I wonder how many of my papers were corrected by them - not that I got bad marks or anything :cool:

Gee Bag

I''ll dumb this down so you can understand it:

stewdents what has de phd's is brainier than stewdents what don't be havin dem, dats why dey do be correcting de papers

Sonics2k

slum dog wrote: »

as far as im concerned i dont see how phd researchers or students are in any way qualified to correct papers. the last two papers i had corrected by a phd student were the lowest marks ive ever gotten. it bewilders me how these A holes get paid to give their opinions when they are only a year or two a head of you. this most recent gimp, gave me a forty when i was bangin 70s last semester. i new the moment i saw him that i wouldnt get on with him and when my papers were returned it confirmed my feelings

any views?

Reading this scares me.
Is this really how 3rd level students write?

slum dog

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Your personal gripe aside, I didn't know that PhD students were allowed to correct papers - that's crazy, they're still students.

I wonder how many of my papers were corrected by them - not that I got bad marks or anything :cool:

believe me they correct plenty

hidinginthebush

Maybe they're not as concerned with the class average being high as the lecturer would be, and mark according to effort, and your paper was poor.

Also maybe they put them on the back burner and had a ton of them to get in, so were in a foul mood when it came to yours.

baby and crumble

slum dog wrote: »

as far as im concerned i dont see how phd researchers or students are in any way qualified to correct papers. the last two papers i had corrected by a phd student were the lowest marks ive ever gotten. it bewilders me how these A holes get paid to give their opinions when they are only a year or two a head of you. this most recent gimp, gave me a forty when i was bangin 70s last semester. i new the moment i saw him that i wouldnt get on with him and when my papers were returned it confirmed my feelings

any views?

Because they know more than you do.

No 1st year PhD student corrects papers from senior students, in fact most 1st year PhD students aren't let near corrections. SO he's at least 3 years ahead of you.

Fully qualified LC teachers can be teaching 6th years after 4 years (3 years degree + 1 year H.Dip).

Arianna_26

Gee Bag wrote: »

I''ll dumb this down so you can understand it:

stewdents what has de phd's is brainier than stewdents what don't be havin dem

Brainier doesn't make them experts on the subjects/topics that are being examined. So it's still wrong.

baby and crumble

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Brainier doesn't make them experts on the subjects/topics that are being examined. So it's still wrong.

Actually, they probably are experts. After 2-3 years studying something you know it inside out and backwards. So they often know more about it than other fully qualified researchers/ lecturers in the department.

jokettle

Often it's part of their contract; I've had to teach tutorials and mark papers because it's in my contract. I'm definitely not the only PhD student who does this.

Also keep in mind that lecturers are often very overworked, so they use us students to alleviate their workload.

Markx

The general idea in the department I was in was that a PhD student who took the labs/tutorials for a given module was in a reasonable position to correct the exams. I corrected exams, had no particular qualification, but vitally had the correct answers as determined by the lecturer who set the exam.

Leo Dowling

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Brainier doesn't make them experts on the subjects/topics that are being examined. So it's still wrong.

It's not wrong at all. When I was studying the PhD student usually had a four year degree, a masters and was a couple of years into the PhD in which they were doing fairly intensive academic work and presenting papers at conferences. Some of the best lecturers I've come across were PhD students. There's nothing wrong/unusual about it.

Arianna_26

slum dog wrote: »

believe me they correct plenty

I believe you, I just find it a bit crazy. In any other country I would think it couldn't be true but in Ireland I believe you

slum dog

Leo Dowling wrote: »

Some of the best lecturers I've come across were PhD students.

dont all lecturers require phds?

Gee Bag

Arianna_26 wrote: »

I believe you, I just find it a bit crazy. In any other country I would think it couldn't be true but in Ireland I believe you

It's the same in most universities.

Leo Dowling

slum dog wrote: »

dont all lecturers require phds?

Nope.

baby and crumble

slum dog wrote: »

dont all lecturers require phds?

Nope. In fact there are Professors out there that don't have PhDs. It's not neccesary at all.

GLaDOS

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Brainier doesn't make them experts on the subjects/topics that are being examined. So it's still wrong.

They know enough for the purpose of correcting, I believe they get guidelines off the lecturer as well.

Arianna_26

Gee Bag wrote: »

It's the same in most universities.

Then most universities are lazy.

Arianna_26

ScienceNerd wrote: »

They know enough for the purpose of correcting, I believe they get guidelines off the lecturer as well.

Still sounds like the lecturer is trying to lessen his/her workload to me.

baby and crumble

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Then most universities are lazy.

Do you know how many classes the average lecturer teaches? With how many students in each class? If that one lecturer had to correct every single essay they'd never be able to teach.

It also serves the function of giving the PhD students experience in teaching and correcting papers.

It's called delegation and experience.

Giselle

jokettle wrote: »

Often it's part of their contract; I've had to teach tutorials and mark papers because it's in my contract. I'm definitely not the only PhD student who does this.

No, you're not, and I've never had any complaints about my marking.

Gee Bag

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Then most universities are lazy.

What a fantastic point!

Arianna_26

baby and crumble wrote: »

Do you know how many classes the average lecturer teaches? With how many students in each class? If that one lecturer had to correct every single essay they'd never be able to teach.

It also serves the function of giving the PhD students experience in teaching and correcting papers.

It's called delegation and experience.

It's called laziness based on what lecturers are paid.

Arianna_26

Gee Bag wrote: »

What a fantastic point!

It is as good as yours isn't it? :rolleyes:

GLaDOS

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Still sounds like the lecturer is trying to lessen his/her workload to me.

Lecturers have a boatload of work to do, the Ph.D students job is to help them. This includes taking tutorials, supervising labs and correcting work. If students have reason to think they've been correctly badly they can take it up with the lecturer in question.

I'm surprised some people think this is an issue.

Markx

Arianna_26 wrote: »

It's called laziness based on what lecturers are paid.

And can you tell me how much that is please?

Arianna_26

ScienceNerd wrote: »

Lecturers have a boatload of work to do, the Ph.D students job is to help them. This includes taking tutorials, supervising labs and correcting work. If students have reason to think they've been correctly badly they can take it up with the lecturer in question.

I'm surprised some people think this is an issue.

It is the PhD student's job to help them? I thought it was the PhD student's job to gain a doctorate in their chosen field of study. Doing the lecturer's job for them now is helping them gain their doctorate?

Arianna_26

Markx wrote: »

And can you tell me how much that is please?

Laziness is rife these days.

Gee Bag

Arianna_26 wrote: »

It is as good as yours isn't it? :rolleyes:

Not really my dear,

phd's vary a lot, but part of the job is to give tutorials, invigilate exams and mark exam papers, essays, etc.

Saying its beacause universities are lazy is silly.

GLaDOS

Arianna_26 wrote: »

It is the PhD student's job to help them? I thought it was the PhD student's job to gain a doctorate in their chosen field of study. Doing the lecturer's job for them now is helping them gain their doctorate?

In DCU it certainly is the case yes, it's part of their responsibility to the university. I don't know about other fields, but in science, lecturers simply don't have the time to correct every paper as well as giving lectures, setting exams and doing research, the last of which is valuable to the university.

I'm a fourth year student and I've gotten to know a good few Ph.D. students, several of whom will have corrected my work. They are more than capable of correcting it.

cassid

Grade min.max.PointsNotept.1pt.2pt.3pt.4pt.5pt.6pt.7pt.8pt.9pt.10pt.11pt.12pt.13pt.14 President : 193,843 Director : 145,952 Senior Lecturer 3 Scale : 82,014104,770982,01484,80487,59690,38993,18095,97198,973101,787104,770 Senior Lecturer 2 Scale : 76,40797,5201076,40778,73281,05183,37585,70188,02190,34192,66694,98497,520 Senior Lecturer 1 [Teaching] Scale : 74,00691,021874,00676,44178,86681,30783,73486,16088,59891,021 2 x LSILecturer Grade (also Lecturer 2 + LSI) : 53,60783,8111153,60756,12165,88968,11870,35172,59474,84877,08679,32281,57083,811 2 x 2284

I think in fairness some lecturers get really well paid for working much less than the average employee and also bearing in mind if they are wholetime/permanent that paid during months for the summer and all the semester breaks during the year.

cassid

that came out a bit odd- sorry.

SeaFields

I was also a tutor for 3 years. Only corrected first year work in the general degree area and second year work in the area that I was researching. A meeting took place before every essay due date with the lecturers concerned where it was discussed what was necessary to gain the marks. If I was going to fail an essay I had to go to the lecturer first to explain why.

Never had a student ask me to review their marking but made it clear that I was willing to do so on any occasion. Did have a student question me on my ability to correct after I accused them of plagiarism. Just produced the paper they lifted the content from in the presence of the head of the department- simples !

GLaDOS

cassid wrote: »

if they are wholetime/permanent that paid during months for the summer and all the semester breaks during the year.

Once again I only know from what I've experienced, but lecturers work the whole summer and in between semesters.

elefant

I study English Literature too, and I think I have always received the grade I deserved. English essays aren't, to state the obvious, just about the way you write, but about what you write and how you back up what you write. A PhD student would easily be able to tell the difference between a 40 (mediocre) paper and a 70 (excellent) paper. In fact, I'd go as far as to say most honour-level final year undergrads would be able to do this with relative ease.

Something tells me you're pointing the finger of blame in the wrong direction on this one.

Arianna_26

ScienceNerd wrote: »

In DCU it certainly is the case yes, it's part of their responsibility to the university. I don't know about other fields, but in science, lecturers simply don't have the time to correct every paper as well as giving lectures, setting exams and doing research, the last of which is valuable to the university.

I'm a fourth year student and I've gotten to know a good few Ph.D. students, several of whom will have corrected my work. They are more than capable of correcting it.

I'm not really questioning whether they are capable of correcting it. I guess my issue with it is an ethical one - first off the PhD student is there to study not to examine another student's work in my opinion.

Secondly the lecturer's job is to lecture - give out the information as if they are an authority on it - so I think therefore they should be the ones to examine the student's response in terms of what they write on the subject in their exams.

I don't think it's fair on either the student or the PhD student who is probably under pressure themselves to expect them to correct exam papers.

Others have commented here that it would be too much work for a single lecturer to correct all exam papers but I do find it hard to accept that someone who is at the university to study is expected to pick up the slack for lecturers.

Pace2008

cassid wrote: »

Grade min.max.PointsNotept.1pt.2pt.3pt.4pt.5pt.6pt.7pt.8pt.9pt.10pt.11pt.12pt.13pt.14 President : 193,843 Director : 145,952 Senior Lecturer 3 Scale : 82,014104,770982,01484,80487,59690,38993,18095,97198,973101,787104,770 Senior Lecturer 2 Scale : 76,40797,5201076,40778,73281,05183,37585,70188,02190,34192,66694,98497,520 Senior Lecturer 1 [Teaching] Scale : 74,00691,021874,00676,44178,86681,30783,73486,16088,59891,021 2 x LSILecturer Grade (also Lecturer 2 + LSI) : 53,60783,8111153,60756,12165,88968,11870,35172,59474,84877,08679,32281,57083,811 2 x 2284

I disagree completely.

hi_im_fil

Arianna_26 wrote: »

I'm not really questioning whether they are capable of correcting it. I guess my issue with it is an ethical one - first off the PhD student is there to study not to examine another student's work in my opinion.

Secondly the lecturer's job is to lecture - give out the information as if they are an authority on it - so I think therefore they should be the ones to examine the student's response in terms of what they write on the subject in their exams.

I don't think it's fair on either the student or the PhD student who is probably under pressure themselves to expect them to correct exam papers.

Others have commented here that it would be too much work for a single lecturer to correct all exam papers but I do find it hard to accept that someone who is at the university to study is expected to pick up the slack for lecturers.

Many PhD students get paid to do tutorials and correct assignments, its not just as if they are picking up slack for a lazy lecturer.

baby and crumble

cassid wrote: »

I think in fairness some lecturers get really well paid for working much less than the average employee and also bearing in mind if they are wholetime/permanent that paid during months for the summer and all the semester breaks during the year.

Lecturers aren't just lecturers- they are also expected to conduct their own research, write books/ academic papers and present at international conferences. Many are also expected to write funding applications to bring money into their universities. Most lecturers/ researchers at university level get the usual amount of holidays as everyone else- it's not like secondary school teaching.

GLaDOS

Arianna_26 wrote: »

Secondly the lecturer's job is to lecture - give out the information as if they are an authority on it - so I think therefore they should be the ones to examine the student's response in terms of what they write on the subject in their exams.

A lecturers job is a hell of a lot more then just to lecture. They do research as well as writing and reviewing papers. As mentioned in the thread, lecturers keep up to date on how students are progressing through the tutors, so it's hardly like they are ignoring them.

Arianna_26

hi_im_fil wrote: »

Many PhD students get paid to do tutorials and correct assignments, its not just as if they are picking up slack for a lazy lecturer.

I don't have any problem with PhD students doing tutorials or generic assignments but I think lecturers should correct exam papers. I guess I can keep dreaming. Clearly if you aren't in their actual lectures you can forget about any attention being paid to your work.

hi_im_fil

Does it really matter who corrects the exams as long as you have the correct answers/approach/methodology?

Dudess

They are very well versed in the discipline and familiar with what's good quality and what isn't. Seems sufficient qualification to me. Plus it's valuable experience for them. The OP wouldn't be complaining if the same people were giving them marks they were happy with.