Keyboard Express™ with 100 Correction Comments
The most efficient way to grade papers and provide specific feedback to students
Quite simply, "magic at the touch of a key" describes this remarkable product. Have you noticed that when you write comments at the end of your students' papers, there are certain phrases or sentences that you continually repeat? What if each of those repetitive, multi-sentence comments could be typed by touching a simple key combination—a "macro" as it is called in the computer world.
In this Windows-based program, this is precisely what we have done: programmed one hundred different correction comments into single keystrokes for the ultimate way to make comments on students' papers.
Correction comments at the touch of a button
- Ctrl-A:
- "You have made excellent improvement in this essay as compared to your last paper. I am impressed with the overall tone and quality here. Keep working; you are becoming a very good writer."
- Ctrl-Z:
- "The areas I want you to concentrate on in the next essay include:"
- Alt-K:
- "Too many of your sentences are very short. This makes your writing sound choppy. Combine some sentences and add more details to each sentence to make them longer and more interesting. A good rule to follow is never write a sentence of fewer than five words, and never write 2 five- or six-word sentences right next to each other."
A completely customizable interface
All of our pre-programmed macros can be modified, mapped to different keystrokes, and even associated with individual software programs (i.e. you can set the macros to only work in Microsoft Word, so it doesn't interrupt common key strokes in other programs). You can create your own macros to match your grading style, organize all of your comments into categories, print your resulting comments to printer labels...the possiblities are endless!
Grade student papers in a fraction of the time
Comments can be easily added, altered, or mapped to different keystrokes. With this program, the following comment, printed on a 2" by 4" label was created in thirteen seconds:
"You have many excellent ideas here. I can tell that all of the areas of writing—mechanics, vocabulary, creativity, and structure—are beginning to make more and more sense to you. It is not perfect yet, but you are definitely getting there. The areas I want you to concentrate on in the next essay include: First, you did not include a thesis statement in the opening paragraph. This is an essential ingredient. Without the thesis, you don't know what you will write about, and the reader doesn't know the topic about which he will reading. Second, you have several places where you repeated a word or phrase within two sentences. Repetition of words in close proximity causes the words to ring in the reader's ear. Notice where I circled this on your paper. Search for this repetition. One of the best ways to find it is to read your paper aloud."
Included with the Keyboard Express CD are 100 pre-programmed macros, as well as installation and operating instructions.
