I was quickly reminded of the value of my grading system when I violated it at the time my ninth-graders turned in their Macbeth projects. I gave no deadline for returning their test papers. They were, after all, quite long and it would take an extensive amount of time to grade them. There was absolutely no way I was going to give everyone an A, so I graded and returned their projects in three days. By returning their tests within one to two days, they could learn from their mistakes while the test was still fresh in their minds.
Students are usually eager to know how they did on a test.
If necessary, unlearned material can be retaught or reviewed. Not only did I need to grade papers quickly, but I also needed to cut down on the actual grading time. So, I simplified my tasks as much as possible without sacrificing quality. Previously, for example, I would write the correct answers on the students' papers for incorrectly answered questions, a procedure that cost precious time. The students were the ones responsible for answering questions correctly, not me.