Students can begin, for instance, by turning in brief summaries of research papers, drafts, and informal freewrites on ideas brought up in class. Because these assignments are not intended to be polished finished projects, they can be given little or no grading weight and marked lightly. A comment or two that suggests whether or not the student is on the right track will often suffice. By the time the students combine these projects into a final paper, much of the early work of generating ideas and evaluating sources will already have been done. Writing needs an audience, but the audience does not always have to be the instructor.
Students can share brief assignments among themselves and learn from each others' ideas.
Assign extremely brief tasks that focus on a single aspect of course content These assignments can be short enough to be typed on a 3x5 card, making them feasible even in large classes. These too can be graded quickly, or not at all. Groups of students can select the best micro-theme from those produced by their group and explain why it's the best. The best examples from the class can be displayed on an overhead. The intellectual exercise of deciding which is best and why can itself lead to valuable concept learning.