Bulk IELTS essay grading: organise class feedback without losing quality

Start with one class and one Task 2 question

A batch is easier to review when the essays answer the same question. You can compare how students interpret the instructions and identify shared misunderstandings without changing assessment criteria between papers. Set the task and deadline through your usual classroom routine, then organise the responses by class.

English Grader's teacher grading page includes a pending queue, class filters and bulk AI marking for up to 30 pending submissions per action. The number is a batch cap, not a promise that a plan includes 30 daily uses; check current allowances separately.

Prepare submissions individually before batch marking

Teacher uploads select one student per submission. Do not confuse bulk marking with uploading an entire folder and automatically assigning every essay to its author. Confirm the student, question and response for each entry before starting the marking action.

For paper essays, check page order and text extraction. For pasted answers, preserve paragraphs. A batch of incorrectly attributed or incomplete responses only creates a larger correction job later.

• Check the class filter and pending count.
• Confirm the question and task type on each submission.
• Resolve missing pages and extraction errors first.
• Separate teacher review from the AI processing step.

Review every essay, especially unusual results

AI can produce confident comments that do not match an essay. Look more closely when the score seems out of line with the evidence, a student has misunderstood the question, or a correction changes meaning. Comparing a few responses at different levels can help you keep your interpretation of the descriptors stable, but it does not replace reading each paper.

The teacher workflow allows your own band and feedback to be saved. Use that opportunity to explain the judgement, not merely endorse the generated number. AI estimates are practice guidance, not official scores.

Related guide: Review band-score evidence

Use shared lesson themes and individual targets

If several students list ideas without explaining them, teach paragraph development to the class. Still give each student a target anchored in their own essay. One learner may need a clearer topic sentence; another may have a strong claim but no supporting example.

Individual targets for the same class weakness

Student A: rewrite the opening sentence of paragraph two so it answers the question. Student B: explain the link between your example and your claim. Student C: remove the unrelated final sentence and develop your existing point.

Close the loop with a short revision

Ask students to revise the specific section before attempting a fresh question. Requiring a short explanation of the change can reveal whether they understood the feedback or simply copied a rewrite. Print marked work when useful, and use the next lesson to discuss anonymised patterns rather than publicly ranking students.

Trial the process with a small class first and measure preparation plus review time. The goal is less repetitive marking and more useful teaching, not a guaranteed number of minutes saved.