Ease the pressure of marking

Case study

School details

School name: Leigh Academy Strood

Location: Strood, Rochester, ME2 2SX

Phase: Secondary, part of a multi-academy trust

Number of pupils: 1314

Contact details:

Matt Piggott, Vice Principal, matthew.piggott@stroodacademy.org
Amy Panayi, Associate Principal, Amy.Panayi@stroodacademy.org

Impact and outcomes

The school’s commitment to reducing the impact of marking on teachers’ wellbeing has resulted in a simple school-wide approach to marking and feedback.

Teachers have reported that their work/life balance has significantly improved since introducing verbal feedback and allocating time in INSET days for marking assessments.

The school’s overall commitment to staff wellbeing has led to reductions in staff absences and staff turnover. Staff are very positive about the school culture in staff surveys.

Background from Matt Piggott, Vice Principal and Amy Panayi, Associate Principal

At Leigh Academy Strood, part of the Leigh Academy Trust, wellbeing is one of our 10 core values. We are committed to continually developing and enhancing our approach to staff wellbeing.

We recognised the significant demands that marking and feedback were having on teaching staff. To help manage the pressures on teachers, we allocate dedicated time within the school calendar specifically for these tasks.

Embedding this time into the school year, helps relieve the pressure that staff feel to work over and above their directed hours. It also demonstrates that these essential aspects of teaching are institutionally recognised and supported.

Our approach to marking and feedback

We want to make sure that marking and feedback are manageable and meaningful. We have implemented a structured approach across the school that provides teachers with dedicated time and flexibility:

Verbal feedback

Teachers are encouraged to give verbal feedback to students instead of providing written comments. This is not formally monitored, showing our trust in the professionalism of our teachers.

Assessment-based marking

To complement the verbal feedback, we conduct a formal assessment for each subject at the end of each half-term. These assessments cover the topics taught during that period, and staff provide feedback on students’ overall learning and progress.

We use Google Classroom to help automate the process and minimise the marking burden, for example using Google Forms. We are exploring how we can use other online platforms and AI to take this further.

INSET day allocation

INSET days are planned as soon after each formal assessment as possible and 3 hours are specifically allocated for marking. This ensures that staff have protected time within the school calendar to complete this task without expecting it to be completed in personal time.

If we can’t coordinate an INSET day with an assessment, departments are encouraged to allocate time from departmental meetings to facilitate staff marking.