The project focuses on collaboratively constructing and using assessment resources designed in partnership between teachers and students in higher education contexts. Traditionally, the early stages of assessment design were the domain of teachers. In recent years, many educators and researchers have called for increased levels of involvement by students during the development of assessment criteria, instructions and rubrics. By engaging students to work collaboratively with their university teachers to prepare and create assessment guidelines and rubrics, there is a greater potential for students to take ownership of and be accountable for their own learning outcomes. The aim of the project was to investigate the innovative and collaborative use of assessment rubrics, in partnership between students and academic staff, in order to develop a model of collaborative rubric practice that is applicable in higher education contexts. The context of the project was important as it was conducted across six cohorts of undergraduate students and their university teacher s from five different disciplines in three higher education institutions. The varied contexts provided a range of settings, each of which represented multiple cases to explore across multiple sites. A mixture of different degree year levels was also represented. The project approach adopted a four-phase design across a two-year period. Employment of the project's methodology began in Phase 1 with team organisation, establishing project boundaries, scope and aims, and the construction of da ta gathering instruments required for Phase 2. Phase 2 employed the Delphi technique to establish the characteristics of effective rubric design, informed by a comprehensive literature review and advice provided by members of an expert panel. The outcome of Phase 2 was an instrument, the Effective Rubric Characteristics Inventory (ERCI) that guided the subsequent rubric co- construction processes followed by six cohorts. Also during Phase 2, a multiple case-study approach was adopted in which six cohorts of students at three institutions worked with their lecturers to co-construct a rubric that they would use in the following or same semester. The lecturers and students in each cohort were guided by a protocol including the ERCI and a set of recommendations for practice to enact when co-constructing assessment rubrics. In Phase 3, the six cohorts of students and their lecturers at three institutions used their co-constructed projects, guided by another set of protocols of practice. Data about the lecturers' and students' perceptions of these processes were gathered during Phases 2 and 3. Finally, in Phase 4, a model for rubric co-construction and use was designed. The Model for Collaborative Rubric Construction and Use is housed in the project's website which will be disseminated through workshops for members of the Australian higher education sector. [Executive summary, ed]

This book takes a developmental perspective at the use of scoring rubrics to assess student work. Citing developmental characteristics of each age, the author presents examples and adaptations of assessment rubrics on a variety of subjects for teachers from kindergarten through adult/college. After a presentation of foundation information on rubrics, separate chapters are devoted to each grade level from primary through adult. Written so that each chapter can be addressed independently, the book provides additional chapters devoted to assessing technological topics and using rubrics with students with special needs. The final chapters provide practical information to help teachers to create their own rubrics and to covert rubric scores to letter grades. An updated annotated listing of recommended rubric websites is included.

What is a rubric? A rubric is a coherent set of criteria for student work that describes levels of performance quality. Sounds simple enough, right? Unfortunately, rubrics are commonly misunderstood and misused. The good news is that when rubrics are created and used correctly, they are strong tools that support and enhance classroom instruction and student learning. In this comprehensive guide, author Susan M. Brookhart identifies two essential components of effective rubrics: (1) criteria that relate to the learning (not the “tasks”) that students are being asked to demonstrate and (2) clear descriptions of performance across a continuum of quality. She outlines the difference between various kinds of rubrics (for example, general versus task-specific, and analytic versus holistic), explains when using each type of rubric is appropriate, and highlights examples from all grade levels and assorted content areas. In addition, Brookhart addresses* Common misconceptions about rubrics;* Important differences between rubrics and other assessment tools such as checklists and rating scales, and when such alternatives can be useful; and* How to use rubrics for formative assessment and grading, including standards-based grading and report card grades.Intended for educators who are already familiar with rubrics as well as those who are not, this book is a complete resource for writing effective rubrics and for choosing wisely from among the many rubrics that are available on the Internet and from other sources. And it makes the case that rubrics, when used appropriately, can improve outcomes by helping teachers teach and helping students learn.

Practical tools for translating standards to rubrics and ensuring high student achievement! Burke’s six-step process helps educators create tasks that promote learning for all students and write rubrics linked straight to the requirements of state standards. Featuring templates and sample tasks, rubrics, and units, this updated bestseller shows educators how to create more complex performance tasks, work in grade-level or vertical teams, and: Apply the six-step process to link teaching and assessment to standards Build their own tasks, checklists, and rubrics Differentiate for special needs within standards-linked tasks Share checklists and rubrics with students for ongoing formative assessment and self-assessment

The conventional wisdom in English education is that rubrics are the best and easiest tools for assessment. But sometimes it's better to be unconventional. In Rethinking Rubrics in Writing Assessment, Maja Wilson offers a new perspective on rubrics and argues for a better, more responsive way to think about assessing writers' progress. Though you may sense a disconnect between student-centered teaching and rubric-based assessment, you may still use rubrics for convenience or for want of better alternatives. Rethinking Rubrics in Writing Assessment gives you the impetus to make a change, demonstrating how rubrics can hurt kids and replace professional decision making with an inauthentic pigeonholing that stamps standardization onto a notably nonstandard process. With an emphasis on thoughtful planning and teaching, Wilson shows you how to reconsider writing assessment so that it aligns more closely with high-quality instruction and avoids the potentially damaging effects of rubrics. Stop listening to the conventional wisdom, and turn instead to a compelling new voice to find out why rubrics are often replaceable. Open Rethinking Rubrics in Writing Assessment and let Maja Wilson start you down the path to more sensitive, authentic style of writing assessment.

This new edition retains the appeal, clarity and practicality that made the first so successful, and continues to provide a fundamental introduction to the principles and purposes of rubrics, with guidance on how to construct them, use them to align course content to learning outcomes, and apply them in a wide variety of courses, and to all forms of assignment. Reflecting developments since publication of the first edition, the authors have extended coverage to include:* Expanded discussion on use of rubrics for grading* Grading on-line with rubrics* Wider coverage of rubric types (e.g., holistic, rating scales)* Rubric construction in student affairs* Pros and cons of working with "ready-made" rubrics* Using rubrics to improve your teaching, and for SoTL* Use of rubrics in program assessment (case study)* Application of rubrics in the arts, for study abroad, service learning and students’ independent learning * Up-dated literature review

On campuses across the United States and beyond, schools of business, education, law, liberal arts, management, medical professions, pharmacy, and physical or social sciences are beginning to use assessment rubrics for purposes of formative and summative evaluation. A concise yet comprehensive guide to rubric usage, this book is an essential tool for university, professional school, college, community college, and upper level secondary school faculty members. It contains one-stop rubric shopping for key considerations, common problems, specific design steps, implementation samples, standards alignment, and grade-focused applications. Effective college-level rubrics that are the right tools for objective, comprehensive assessment can be constructed almost as easily as an ice cream sundae! Welcome aboard as Rubric Assessment Goes to College!