Marking the markers: evaluating the potential of professional development through collaborative marking circles

This case study details a three-day 'marking circle' activity where six academics, who co-author this case study, with varied lengths of experience collaboratively marked 25 undergraduate bioscience essays. Observations from this activity, discussed in a focus group, highlighted a significant tension: while the process was too time-consuming to be a sustainable method for routine marking, it was an extremely valuable and enjoyable professional development exercise. The activity revealed substantial inconsistencies between markers, with mark variations often exceeding 20%. In a focus group discussion between the markers, these discrepancies were attributed to several elements: procedural, structural, personal and experiential factors that led to different decisions between the markers when assigning numerical grades. This case study proposes a streamlined, two-stage model to harness the activity's developmental benefits in a more time-efficient manner: first, using a small group to pilot and refine a rubric, and second, using the refined rubric in a wider-scale professional development context.