What is a Rubric?
A rubric is a guide that articulates the expectations for an assignment and communicates the level of quality of performance or learning. As an assessment tool, a rubric sets the criteria for evaluating performance or work completed in a course or program. A rubric can communicate the expectations for learning and provide a framework for instructors to make decisions about instruction.
Rubrics are used for both formative assessment (in-process feedback to be used for improvement) and summative assessment (evaluation of student learning at the conclusion of an assignment or project). Essentially, a rubric is a tool for communication between instructor and student.Rubrics promote good practice in:
Communication: A rubric creates a common framework and clear expectations
Consistency and Fairness: Same criteria and standards across students and reviewers/graders
Transparency: Progress and grades are clear, reduces mystery
Faster Assessment: Assessment and evaluation can be done more efficiently
Identifying Strengths and Weaknesses: Shows where students are doing well and where they need more support (Is it a ‘B’ paper all the way through?)
Objective Criteria: Rubrics are criterion-referenced, rather than norm-referenced. Raters ask, “Did the student meet the criteria for level 5 of the rubric?” rather than “How well did this student do compared to other students?”
Two Main Types of Rubrics Used in Course Assessment
Analytic Rubric
Holistic Rubric
Good Practices for Creating Rubrics
In its simplest form, a rubric includes these things:
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- A task description: The activity, assignment, performance, or presentation being assessed.
- The outcomes or dimensions to be rated (rows): The skills, knowledge, and/or behavior to be demonstrated. Specify the skills, knowledge, and/or behaviors that you will be looking for that are most important to the assignment.
- Levels of performance/scale (columns): Labels used to describe the levels of performance should be clear and meaningful. Commonly used labels include:
- Not meeting, approaching, meeting, exceeding
- Exemplary, proficient, marginal, unacceptable
- Advanced, intermediate high, intermediate, novice
- Complete, partial, minimal, none
- Letter grades (A, B, C, D, F)
- A description of each characteristic at each level of performance/scale (cells)
- Top category: The best work you expect using these characteristics
- Lowest category: An unacceptable product
- Descriptions of intermediate-level products
- Make sure that the language from column to column is similar, that syntax and wording are aligned
- Use specific descriptions, avoiding words like “good” and “excellent”
- Start your list of outcomes with the content, ideas, and arguments, then organization, grammar, and citation (if being evaluated)
Assigning Points or Grades to the Performance Levels
- Use the assignment instructions as a guide
- Determine the total possible points for the assignment
- Decide on the distribution/percentage of criteria and divide the points accordingly. It’s helpful to put the points/percentages directly in the box with the performance descriptions.
- Incorporate some flexibility by using a range of points for each performance level
- A couple options regarding points:
- You can choose to break down the points OR
- Assign an overall letter grade and use the rubric to identify strengths and points for improvement
Approaching Student Work
- Do a quick read of a few papers to get a sense of the range
- When grading a paper, start by comparing the work to the highest-level performance description. If the work meets that description, assign the work to that level. If not, move on to the next-highest performance description and so on.
- Mark the performance level for each criterion. Circle, check, or note specific concepts in the rubric (where technology allows)
- If you are not sure which performance level to choose between two levels, look for consistent or overall performance across the sample and rate accordingly
- Add the scores for an overall grade (determine how points convert to grades)
- Provide brief notes to the student on specific areas of accomplishment or need for improvement, using the rubric to illustrate your points
Checking the Rubric
- After you have graded a few pieces of work, review the overall grades. Look at the high, middle, and low grades. Does it seem like the overall grades are working out appropriately?
- If there is a mis-match, make adjustments to the rubric and re-grade the first few pieces of work as necessary
Good Practices for Using Rubrics*
Use Student-Friendly Language
Use language that is appropriate to the level of the course and your students. If you are using academic or disciplinary language, make sure you spend time teaching and practicing the concepts.
Share the Rubric with Students
Share the rubric with the assignment prompt so that students are familiar with your expectations. This should help students master your learning outcomes by guiding their work in appropriate directions.
Develop the Rubric with Students
Students can monitor themselves and their peers using agreed-upon criteria that they help develop. Have students apply your rubric to sample products before they create their own. The ability to evaluate, edit, and improve draft documents is an important skill.
Use the Rubric to Grade Student Work
Use the rubric to grade student work and return the rubric with the grading on it. Faculty save time writing extensive comments by marking relevant segments of the rubric. Some instructors include space for additional comments on the rubric, either within each section or at the end.
Use the Rubric for Peer Review
Have students exchange paper drafts and give peer feedback using the rubric. Then, give students time to revise before submitting the final draft to you. You might also require that they turn in the draft and peer-scored rubric with their final paper.
Use the Rubric for Student Self-Assessment
Students assess their own work using the rubric and submit the rubric with their assignment. This is a great basis for deep discussion about which aspects they can improve.
*This content was adapted with gratitude from work done by the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Office of Assessment, 2018
Selected Resources
Selke, M. J. G. (2013). Rubric assessment goes to college: Objective, comprehensive evaluation of student work. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Stevens, D. D., & Levi, A. J. (2013). Introduction to rubrics: An assessment tool to save grading time, convey effective feedback, and promote student learning (second edition). Sterling, VA: Stylus.
Know Your Terms: Holistic, Analytic, and Single-Point Rubrics (Cult of Pedagogy post)