How To Create A Rubric For A Project

Building Better Rubrics

Does the prospect of building an assessment rubric make you want to run for the hills? Before you throw in the towel, consider the advantages of utilizing rubrics as an assessment tool–both for you as the instructor, and also for your students! Here at CTL, we hear a lot of concerns from faculty about why they may be avoiding rubrics, including:

Some feel that the process of drafting rubrics is time-consuming and tedious
Other think that rubrics can only measure hard skills, but not student growth over time
Some are concerned that rubrics drive students to perform to rubric standards (and not their potential)

It is true, that on the pre-work and design side, rubrics DO take a bit of extra time to develop–but there is the payoff of the ability to quickly and easily assess student work, in a way that really focuses on what the explicit expectations of the assignment really are. As far as measuring student growth of skill over time, our guidance on Developmental Rubrics may be just what you are looking for. Rubrics remain the most accessible way to fine-tune our teach focus and communicate transparently with students what, precisely we expect of them, a key component in UMPI's Academic Commitments

Anchor rubric criteria in your outcomes and objectives

Before even sitting down in front of your carefully formatted table, you need to determine what (precisely) you are assessing. It is helpful to start at the outcome level–what are the essential skills and/or elements that you need to see in the project? What were the teaching objectives or goals that you need to assess students understanding of? Keep these objectives specific and clear in your mind–better yet, write them down.

You may also have some basic requirements for the assignment (presentation, correctness, organization, vocabulary, etc.), so make sure you are using criteria that relate to the assignment. What are you trying to assess with THIS assignment? You may want students' work to be neat, or follow a certain format, but do they need to be graded on it? (Sometimes: yes!)

Criteria vary greatly, depending on the subject matter and scope of the assignment, but here is a shortlist of ideas to help.

Written Assignments	Performance Assignments	Behavior
Thesis statement clarity Organization Relevancy to prompt Voice Citations Use of Figurative Language Formatting Integration/use of sources	Speak clearly / loudly / slowly Use of visuals / media Audience engagement techniques Utilize a studio technique Accuracy of factual information Engage in a meaningful way with peers Recite text Follow steps in experiment Follow a detailed process	Professional behavior & demeanor Interpersonal skills and functional group work Arrive on time/attendance Actively listens Submits work in a timely manner Are receptive & responsive to feedback