Lesson 1: Creating Assessment Rubrics
“A rubric is a written guide for assessing student work. At a minimum, it lists the things you are looking for when you assess student work" (Suskie, 2018)
Analytic Rubrics Should be Used For Assessment
For program-level assessments you should use an analytic rubric which combines a rating scale with clear, brief definitions of each level of performance for each trait. An analytic rubric makes the rating scale explicit by using the terms mastery, proficient, developing and needs improvement to overtly explain each rating level. It also uses an explicit description of what each rating level means for each criteria. One of the key benefits of explicitly stating the elements of each criteria and ranking within the criteria is that it significantly reduces confusion about what each ranking means. The reduction helps ensure that all faculty have the same understanding of how the rubric works and therefore the faculty as a whole are more likely to score student work in a similar and consistent manner.
Program-Level Assessment Rubric Example
Below is an example of a program level assessment rubric for one student learning outcome in a Bachelor of Arts in Global Marketing Communications. As you can see, the rubric addresses only one SLO. Each SLO should have its own rubric.
File:Assessment Rubric Example.pdf
Steps for Developing Rubrics
1. Identify how and where the rubric will be used. For example, are you assessing a specific course or is it a program assessment? Are you assessing for learning gaps during the course (formative assessment) or are you assessing if the required learning occurred (summative assessment). For program assessment you should be developing a summative assessment rubric.
2. Select the Student Learning Outcome that you will be developing a rubric for. Remember: Each SLO should have its own rubric for assessment.
3. Determine the criteria you will be using in the rubric to evaluate whether or not students have achieved the required level of proficiency in the SLO. The criteria should address the areas students must master to achieve the SLO. For example, if the rubric is assessing creative thinking, the criteria should be the things one needs to be able to demonstrate creative thinking, like originality of idea and integration of multiple perspectives.
4. Create the rating scale. This is the column headings of your rubric that identify the range of performance levels. The rating scale should be a combination of numbers and a descriptive term for the performance level. For example the levels could be: Needs Improvement (1), Developing (2), Proficient (3) and Mastery (4). Create 3 to 5 performance levels.
5. Create descriptions of each trait for each performance level. Use descriptive, objective terms as opposed to subjective, value-based terms, like poor, limited, satisfactory, etc. The wording should be brief, simple and easy to understand so that any instructor can look at the rubric and understand what each level means for each criteria. This will ensure consistency in scoring and provide for actionable data that can be used to improve the curriculum. When writing criteria descriptions, try to use parallel language. For example,
- Needs Improvement: Not a big idea. Ideas lack originality and lack the potential to be impactful (basic and obvious)
- Developing: Not a big idea. Ideas have some originality but lack the potential to be impactful (basic and obvious)
- Proficient: Has potential to become a big idea: Ideas are original and have the potential to be impactful.
- Mastery: Is a Big Idea. Ideas are highly original and impactful
VALUE Rubrics are a Great Resource for Assessing Key SLOs
The AAC&U has created a series of rubric that assess key student learning outcomes for 21st century skills. They are available online and can be used as is or modified to address the specific learning goals of your program. To access the Value Rubrics click on the following link: