What are your experiences with using rubrics (being graded by them and/or using them to grade students)?
-What do you see as strengths and limitations with using rubrics?
Almost every class I've had in high school and college has included a rubric to assess work. With social studies, much of the work includes presentations and papers, and these assignments are often graded using a rubric. I have recently used a self-made rubric for instruction for the first time in my class with the 21st Century Individual Lesson plan.
I generally like rubrics for assessment in high school and university classes. With rubrics, teachers are held accountable for the grades they give and must explain why they scored a certain way. I also believe it gives teachers a more structured way to assess the students with the learning goals being more concrete. Without rubrics, I think some teachers grade with their present emotion or judging by how they feel about the student. Rubrics also help students know what is expected of them before they do the assignment and which areas are worth more points or need more focus on completion.
Though I still feel that rubrics provide the teacher's expectations and allow for explanation of grades, I left out some of the weaknesses I have discovered with rubrics. With rubrics teachers must grade all students exactly the same, which may sometimes be helpful, but hinders success in some students. More advanced students may need to be graded on a more difficult scale based on what they are capable of doing. However, I believe many IEPs may lead teachers to use different rubrics for certain students. Also, I think rubrics may sometimes prevent students from being rewarded for work that is not a criteria on the rubric. Although there are limitations, I think that the strengths of rubrics greatly outweigh the weaknesses.
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Sara,
ReplyDeleteYou had some very good insights concerning the use rubrics in the classroom. I agree—rubrics do help teachers to maintain a constant standard of grading. It is important for a teacher to practice fairness and impartiality. I liked the way that you highlighted both the pros and cons of using rubrics in the classroom. It is true that sometimes rubrics can stifle creativity. If a rubric is too specific, a student may be afraid to "think outside the box.” I think that a teacher should strive to create flexible rubrics that are clear, detailed, and direct, but that also allow room for fresh ideas. Do you plan to use rubrics in your future classroom? If so, in what situations?
You could write a commercial for the use of rubrics.:-) The first time I ever used rubrics, several years ago, was to evaluate WVU interns and participants (and later, tutors). I must admit, I was a bit overwhelmed with their length and detail. But I soon came to realize their value and effectiveness. In my classroom, I used them on extended projects, such as senior research projects, student speeches on their projects, etc. I found them very effective in that they took away the guesswork for me, and they let the students know from the beginning what was expected of them. But I do agree that rubics allow little room for awarding points for extra effort or creativity. For those students who struggle, a teacher sometimes would like to award extra points for those things. I think a balance between the use of rubrics and other methods of assessment is probably the best approach.
ReplyDeleteSara, I've enjoyed reading your fresh insights into the teaching field. Keep up the good work!