A rubric is commonly defined as a tool that articulates the expectations for an assignment by listing criteria, and for each criteria, describing levels of quality (Andrade, 2000; Arter & Chappuis, 2007; Stiggins, 2001). Criteria are used in determining the level at which student work meets expectations. Markers of quality give students a clear idea about what must be done to demonstrate a certain level of mastery, understanding, or proficiency (i.e., "Exceeds Expectations" does xyz, "Meets Expectations" does only xy or yz, "Developing" does only x or y or z). Rubrics can be used for any assignment in a course, or for any way in which students are asked to demonstrate what they've learned. They can also be used to facilitate self and peer-reviews of student work.
Rubrics aren't just for summative evaluation. They can be used as a teaching tool as well. When used as part of a formative assessment, they can help students understand both the holistic nature and/or specific analytics of learning expected, the level of learning expected, and then make decisions about their current level of learning to inform revision and improvement (Reddy & Andrade, 2010).
Why use rubrics?
Rubrics help instructors:
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Provide students with feedback that is clear, directed and focused on ways to improve learning.
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Demystify assignment expectations so students can focus on the work instead of guessing "what the instructor wants."
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Reduce time spent on grading and develop consistency in how you evaluate student learning across students and throughout a class.
Rubrics help students:
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Focus their efforts on completing assignments in line with clearly set expectations.
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Self and Peer-reflect on their learning, making informed changes to achieve the desired learning level.
Developing a Rubric
During the process of developing a rubric, instructors might:
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Select an assignment for your course - ideally one you identify as time intensive to grade, or students report as having unclear expectations.
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Decide what you want students to demonstrate about their learning through that assignment. These are your criteria.
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Identify the markers of quality on which you feel comfortable evaluating students’ level of learning - often along with a numerical scale (i.e., "Accomplished," "Emerging," "Beginning" for a developmental approach).
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Give students the rubric ahead of time. Advise them to use it in guiding their completion of the assignment.
It can be overwhelming to create a rubric for every assignment in a class at once, so start by creating one rubric for one assignment. See how it goes and develop more from there! Also, do not reinvent the wheel. Rubric templates and examples exist all over the Internet, or consider asking colleagues if they have developed rubrics for similar assignments.
Sample Rubrics
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Examples of holistic and analytic rubrics: see Tables 2 & 3 in “Rubrics: Tools for Making Learning Goals and Evaluation Criteria Explicit for Both Teachers and Learners” (Allen & Tanner, 2006)
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Examples across assessment types: see “Creating and Using Rubrics,” Carnegie Mellon Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence and & Educational Innovation
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“VALUE Rubrics”: see the Association of American Colleges and Universities set of free, downloadable rubrics, with foci including creative thinking, problem solving, and information literacy.