Introduction to Rubrics: An Assessment Tool to Save Grading Time, Convey Effective Feedback, and Promote Student Learning Book

List of Figures xi

Foreword Barbara E. Walvoord xv

Preface to the Second Edition xvii

Preface to the First Edition xxi

Part I An Introduction to Rubrics

I What is a Rubric? 3

Do You Need a Rubric? 4

What are the Parts of a Rubric? 5

Part-by-Part Development of a Rubric 6

Part 1 Task Description 6

Part 2 Scale 7

Part 3 Dimensions 10

Part 4 Description of the Dimensions 10

Creating Your First Rubric: Is it Worth the Time and Effort? 14

2 Why Use Rubrics? 17

Rubrics Provide Timely Feedback 17

Rubrics Prepare Students to Use Detailed Feedback 18

Rubrics Encourage Critical Thinking 21

Rubrics Facilitate Communication With Others 22

Rubrics Help us to Refine Our Teaching Skills 24

Rubrics Level the Playing Field 26

Conclusion 28

3 How to Construct a Rubric 29

Four Key Stages in Constructing a Rubric 29

Stage 1 Reflecting 30

Stage 2 Listing 32

Stage 3 Grouping and Labeling 35

Stage 4 Application 37

Construction of a Scoring Guide Rubric 38

Construction of a Three- to Five-Level Rubric 39

Conclusion 45

Part II Rubric Construction and Use in Different Contexts

4 Rubric Construction and the Classroom 49

Involving Students in Rubric Construction 49

Five Models of Collaborative Rubric Construction 53

1 The Presentation Model 54

2 The Feedback Model 56

3 The Pass-the-Hat Model 58

4 The Post-it Model 60

5 The 4×4 Model 62

Conclusion 64

5 Rubric Construction with Others: Teaching Assistants, Tutors, or Colleagues 65

Involving Teaching Assistants in Rubric Construction 65

Involving Tutorial Staff in Rubric Construction 67

Involving Colleagues in Rubric Construction 68

Conclusion 72

6 Grading with Rubrics 73

Performance Anchors: Being Consistent and Focused 74

Detailed, Formative Feedback: Gaining Speed 74

Individualized, Flexible Feedback: A Trade-Off 78

Summative Feedback: Assigning Grades 84

Grading Our Own Teaching Methods 89

Evaluating Our Own Rubrics: Metarubrics 93

Conclusion 93

7 Making it Yours 95

Should You Use Ready-Made Rubrics at All? 95

Using Online Rubrics 97

The Four Stages of Rubric Modification 98

Case Study 101

Conclusion 106

8 Rubrics for Learning from Experience 109

Learning From Experience for Traditional Assignments 110

Rubrics for Classroom/Lab/Studio Behaviors 114

Rubrics for Service Learning 118

Rubrics with Community-Based Partners 122

Conclusion 123

9 Rubrics and Online Learning 127

Rubric for Participating in an Online Discussion Forum 129

Rubric for Creating a Wiki Page for Online Group Work 133

Rubric for Peer Review of a Draft Version of a Final Project 135

"Nuts and Bolts" of Using Rubrics Online 137

Contribution of Rubrics to a "Sense of Presence" in Online Teaching 140

Conclusion 143

10 Rubrics and Teaching Improvement 145

Horton Uses a Rubric: A Case Study 145

Using Rubric Dimensions to Organize Notes Taken While Grading 146

Creating an "Expanded Grade Book" 149

A Teaching Model: Four Phases of Teaching 151

Conclusion 156

11 Rubrics for Self-Assessment and Career Advancement 159

Rubric for Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement 160

Rubric for the Scholar-Educator 163

Rubric for a Narrative for Promotion and Tenure 169

Conclusion 175

12 Rubrics and Program Assessment 177

The Walvoord Basic, "No-Frills" Department Assessment Method 178

Portland State's University Studies "Frills-Included" Annual Assessment 180

The Value Rubrics "All-Frills-Inclusive" Assessment Package 182

Rules for Good Program Assessment Using Rubrics 184

Epilogue: The Rubrics Manifesto 187

References 191

Appendices 193

A Mini-Lesson 1: Writing a Task Description 195

B Mini-Lesson 2: Writing Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) 196

C Blank Rubric Format for a Four-Level Rubric, Landscape Format 197

D Blank Rubric Format for a Scoring Guide Rubric 199

E Portland State University Studies Program Rubric: Ethical Issues 200

F Portland State University Studies Program Rubric: Holistic Critical Thinking 201

G Portland State University Studies Program Rubric: Quantitative Literacy 203

H Portland State University Studies Program Rubric: Writing 204

I Portland State University Studies Program Rubric: Diversity 206

J Website Information for Introduction to Rubrics 207

Index 209