When used effectively, rubrics facilitate clear and consistent assessment, enhancing the learning experience for both students and instructors. In the online classroom environment, where students do not have the frequent, physical access that a traditional classroom provides, rubrics can provide the added benefit of increasing student engagement with course material and clarifying an instructor's expectations (Keengwe, Adjei-Boateng, & Diteeyont, as cited in Haught, Ahern, & Ruberg, 2017). In fact, according to Martin & Bolliger (2018), online learners have reported that grading rubrics are highly important for learner-to-instructor engagement. For instructors, too, rubrics simplify the grading process, promoting consistency across students and terms. Eliminating the guesswork from grade determination, well-designed rubrics can save professors precious time and energy.
Course Design Considerations
We recommend the following best practices for rubric design:
- To support achievement, use the same rubric for assignments of the same type throughout a course.
- Write performance indicators using repetitive, consistent language and syntax for each column of the rating scale; use parallel language (Miller, 2012).
- Avoid relying on rubric “crutches” like numbers (e.g., word counts, number of resources) and vague, subjective language (e.g., good, excellent, mostly, somewhat) to determine a grade (Miller, 2012).
- Aim to include 3–5 “non-negotiable” criteria, focusing only on skills or content that have already been introduced (University of Texas at Austin, 2017). Then, determine if the criteria will be evenly distributed, or if you will allocate points according to relative importance.
- Ensure alignment of the description, mathematical percentage, and points. We recommend the following distribution as an example:
- Exceeds Expectations: 100% of points possible, e.g., 20/20 points
- Meets Expectations: 85% of points possible, e.g., 17/20 points
- Needs Improvement: 75% of points possible, e.g., 15/20 points
- Needs Significant Improvement: 65% of points possible, e.g., 13/20
- Incomplete: 0% of points possible, e.g., 0/20 points
Student Success
Consistent grading practices allow students to focus on tasks. Moreover, clearly indicating how student work will be evaluated promotes trust. When students can see the concrete terms on which they will be graded, they are more likely to understand the connection between their performance and their grade. The following are some strategies for using rubrics to support students:
- Use language that supports student well-being, avoiding both punitive phrases and unintentional bias. Rubric descriptions should describe the work product rather than the student. For more on this, see the Envision piece, Rubrics as a Tool to Support Equity and Inclusion.
- Consider using rubrics as a feedback mechanism rather than a scoring mechanism. For example, use rubrics to provide feedback on a draft before students resubmit their work for a grade.
- Provide the rubric in advance of assignments and draw students' attention to your expectations. Students can only meet expectations if they know them.
- Raise students’ awareness of rubrics through multiple channels such as the syllabus, class announcements, and Module at a Glance pages.
- Provide a downloadable version of rubrics to students, especially on Canvas discussion pages where rubrics are not readily visible.
Faculty Foundations
- Review rubrics with any other instructors teaching your course. Insofar as possible, and especially for large-scale summative assessments, hold calibration sessions to promote consistency of grading.
- Revisit and revise your rubrics through a process of continuous iteration to ensure that they are maximally beneficial for students and instructors.
- Build rubrics for grading in Canvas so that instructors can utilize SpeedGrader.
- Always build rubrics from the course menu in Canvas, not an assignment page. This will prevent rubrics from being inadvertently deleted if assignments are updated.
- Include one downloadable version of a rubric in a course; ensure it always matches the rubric built into Canvas.
References
Greenberg, K. P. (2015). Rubric use in formative assessment: A detailed behavioral rubric helps students improve their scientific writing skills. Society for the Teaching of Psychology, 42(3), 211–217.
Haught, P. A., Ahern, T. C., & Ruberg, L. F. (2017). Student awareness and use of rubrics in online classes. Higher Education Studies, 7(1), 69-77.
How do rubrics help? (2008). Edutopia.
Karkehabadi, S. (2013). Using rubrics to measure and enhance student performance. Faculty Workshop Series. Office of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment Northern Virginia Community College.
Martin, F., & Bolliger, D. U. (2018). Engagement matters: Student perceptions on the importance of engagement strategies in the online learning environment. Online Learning, 22(1), 205-222.
Miller, A. (2012, January 18). Tame the beast: Tips for designing and using rubrics. Edutopia.
Reddy, Y., & Andrade, H. L. (2010). A review of rubric use in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(4), 435–448
What is a rubric? (2017). Faculty Innovation Center. The University of Texas at Austin.