Assessing Student Performance

Step 1

The first step in implementing a rubric is to be very clear about the goals of the rubric. Study the rubric yourself to learn the factors being assessed and what will be expected of the students. Determine also what preparation you'll need to do to encourage the most learning possible.

Step 2

Identify the task/scenario that you will use. For the rubrics in this package, there are three tasks/scenarios provided for each performance indicator. The scenarios are designed for different locations: classroom, job, and career-technical student organization. Determine the best setting for evaluation of each skill.

Step 3

Give each student a copy of the rubric. Review it with the students. Be sure they understand all the terminology.

In addition to the terminology of the rubric, be sure that students understand all words used in the descriptors across all levels of performance.

Explain to the students that the rubric will be used to assess their performance on the activity, or scenario, provided with the rubric. Because their performance can fall across so many levels, the assessment will provide them with a picture of which skills they have mastered and where they may need to improve. They'll be able to see exactly how their work stacks up against a professional level of performance.

Step 4

Plan your instruction based on the criteria and descriptors. Focus your instruction on the significant aspects that you have identified in the descriptors of the rubric.

Step 5

Deliver your instruction, teaching the skills needed for the performance. Implement teaching methods appropriate for the specific performance indicator being addressed. Reinforce your instruction, giving students opportunities to practice the skill.

Step 6

Have the students perform the selected task/scenario, and use the rubric to evaluate their performance, developing a profile of the quality of the student's performance for each criterion.

Step 7

Give the completed assessment to the students, so that they can compare the assessment results to see how their performance compares with a professional standard. Ask students to discuss their reactions to the rubric and to the assessment process, e.g., Did they like knowing the standards against which they were being assessed? Did they understand the terminology in the rubrics? Of the descriptors? What changes would they make to the rubrics? To the activities?

Step 8

Review and evaluate rubric implementation. You may want to change some of the vocabulary or spend more time teaching a particular skill. Once you've actually used your rubric, it will be much easier to identify any problems that may still exist.

Rubric Scores and Grading

The relationship between rubric scoring and grading varies from teacher to teacher, and in fact, from rubric to rubric. Many teachers use rubrics as capstone activities to provide an assessment of what students have learned. For complex activities, such as developing a marketing plan, the rubric might provide the structure of a semester's work. Here are some factors to consider when choosing the best method for grading rubrics.

Analytical rubrics can be graded in several ways. The first is simply to assign a grade to each level of performance. Professional level equals A, experienced level equals B, etc. The student receives the grade of the level with the most checkmarks.

You may also assign a weight to each criterion, depending on how much of the total score you feel it is worth. For example, when scoring an oral presentation rubric, you may decide that of 100 points, content is worth 40, delivery is worth 20, organization is worth 20, and mechanics is worth 20. From there, you might further assign points for each level of performance.

Still another grading method might be to give each level a numerical value. Then, multiply the number of checkmarks in each level by the number assigned to the level. For example, if you have four levels of performance, each checkmark in the professional level would be worth four points, each check in the experienced level would be worth three points, and so on.