Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Keegan Lannon

@keeganlannon.bsky.social

840 followers 1.5K following 3.4K posts

PhD: Aberystwyth; Work: UI-Chicago. I twee—er, post (skeet?)—about all things that fall under the auspices of an English department, but especially comics, writing, and teaching (mainly about comics and writing).

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 11h

I hope the Cubs spend the off season snatching up some pitching.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 11h

I wish the Brewers well. It was a hard fought series. I hope they smoke the Dodgers.

1 5

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 11h

Thank God it’s not the Cardinals.

1 3

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 12h

Well…damn

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 12h

Fucking hell these Brewers can pitch. I hate to admit it, but they are just mowing down the Cubs.

2 1

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 12h

I’ll say it: the pale yellow of the Brewer’s uniforms makes it look like they got peed on.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 14h

Fucking baller move.

Rich Raho @richraho.bsky.social · 17h

Chicago priest Fr. Larry Dowling describes procession to ICE facility: “No one had the courage to speak directly to us. No one from Homeland Security could stand in the presence of the Monstrance holding the Blessed Sacrament. No wonder. Evil is repelled, recoils in the presence of Christ.”

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 14h

Hurrying my kids to bed so I can watch the Cubs. #GoodParenting

1 1

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 21h

That’s unfair. Those are candid photos and sometimes those capture us in our worst light. Now that he dressed up like the most racist widower at a nursing home’s problematic Pimps and Hos night for his own music video is totally fair game.

A sallow and wraith-like kid rock standing in what I assume he thinks is a menacing stance wearing a cartoonishly big gold chain, knee high athletic socks and and what appear to be Nike-branded orthopedic shoes.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

For context, 18 innings is the longest a playoff game has lasted. And that’s happened four times in MLB history (once with the Mariners).

1 1 4

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

Smart.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

I’ve got the 2026 Grading Conference on my radar.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

Ah! Yes! This is great! Thanks for sharing this, which I somehow missed.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

I would like to see a study done where multiple instructors use the same policies, documents and teaching materials and then measure anxiety to see if it is reduced in roughly the same way across instructor (and even better, institution).

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

From what I found, there is a lot of anecdotal research that shows students feel less anxiety in a class with alternative assessment models, but I worry that the lessened anxiety could be tied more to instructors than to policies.

2 2

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

It is really easy to get swept up by the moral clarity, and then want to get all the warm feelings for being part of such a righteous movement.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

The sort of assessment I am interested in will take a collaborative team of researchers, so if anyone is interested in designing some experiments, let me know.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

Your work was enlightening. I appreciated the skepticism in light of all the optimism.

I want to do right by the students, but as you all note, we need to be honest about what we are doing. Honest with our students and with ourselves.

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

But the research by @emleebeebee.bsky.social, @rcmeg.bsky.social and @nobugsnous.bsky.social fueled some latent skepticism which simmered below my enthusiasm.

Research & Writing

Publications “The Trouble With ‘Ungrading’: Toward Disciplinary Specificity in Alternative Writing Assessment.” Journal of Writing Assessment, vol. 18, issue 1, 2025. Co-authored with Maggie Fernan…

embrier.com

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

Over the summer, I read books grading by @josheyler.bsky.social and @susandblum.bsky.social, and on radical pedagogies by @thetattooedprof.bsky.social. The discourse is intoxicating, and I find I am aligned on moral terms.

1 4

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 1d

I am very much on board for #Ungrading but I retain some concerns about how we *know* that it is reducing harm. It works for me, but there are a number of confounding variables that could explain the harm reduction. How can we know if the grading policy is better? #AcademicSky

1 2

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 2d

It’s up! @biblioracle.bsky.social asked me to contribute a guest column to Inside Higher Education on alternative grading and studying it’s efficacy.

How Will We Know Alternative Grading Reduces Harm?

A guest post from University of Illinois at Chicago lecturer Keegan Lannon on wrestling with alternative grading.

www.insidehighered.com

2 11 11

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 2d

That the students keep showing up to class, knowing that citizen and non-citizen alike can be snatched off the street, is a testament to the enduring will of the student body.

1 2

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 2d

Yeah. The student body is *very* diverse, so part of me feels like this was a threat to the immigrant population. That might be conspiratorial, but this administration seems bent on cruelty.

2 2

Keegan Lannon @keeganlannon.bsky.social · 2d

I’ve got something coming out today. Something big for me. So I’ve been refreshing the browser all morning.

a group of people are sitting on a couch with laptops and the word refresh is on the screen

Alt: The four male characters from Big Bang Theory, Leonard, Sheldon, Raj and Howard, sitting in Leonard and Sheldon’s living room with laptops they are constantly tapping. The word refresh is on the screen

media.tenor.com