"Programming-based courses should make use of automatic grading software to increase the quantity and quality of feedback to students. This is especially essential in classes where students are just being exposed to computing for the first time. It is here when they are most likely to feel lost and become frustrated. Unfortunately, automatic grading software is rarely implemented because it is difficult for instructors to use.

This project focuses on expanding access to automatic grading software by providing a “point-and-click” website interface for instructors that automatically generates all required components of an automatic grading bundle for any given assignment, and it piggybacks on UVa’s Gradescope platform (https://www.gradescope.com). Instructors will be able to make use of automatic grading software without having to go through any additional training, and the overall result is that the quality of interactions between instructors and students will improve dramatically, the window of learning will be widened, and grading fairness will increase.

Students will be less likely to dispute the value of each question, and they will be more likely to ask about what they did wrong. For example, after seeing a failed test, students will wonder what variable in their program is incorrect, and why it was incorrect. In my classes, students keep checking their code even after the assignment deadline has passed, and they report that they are extremely satisfied with this tool. I also suspect other instructors will confirm that they would enjoy spending a larger percentage of their time interacting with students, and less time grading."