Rubric vs Checklist

I have evolved in the way I grade papers over the last seven years of my career. In my first year of teaching, I took every paper home. I’d look through it, make editing marks, and even record it. I quickly learned this is a way to get burned out so instead I would just glance at every paper and record it as completed.

By the end of that first year, I accepted the reality that taking every paper home was not going to be of any benefit to me or my students, especially because we did not have time in the schedule to go over everything I graded.

Year two came and went as I modified my grading practices a bit. I only took home tests and quizzes in efforts to ensure we had ample time in our schedule to go over each part. Years 3-5 took shape and I realized student performance was not tanking, but it certainly was not soaring. After all of my hours of written comments and feedback nothing was changing. I then decided to give similar assignments after a test or quiz to see if students applied the feedback from their original assessment. This seemed to help me get a baseline for growth. I still was not happy with the results.

During year 6, I began giving what I considered to be a “rubric” with every assignment. For example:

Multiplication Problem Solving Rubric
Component	Point Value
Multiplied Correctly	20
Used mathematical reasoning	20
Provided an explanation	20
Neat and organized	20
Completed all problems	20

 

It turned out that it was more of a checklist and my administration team asked me to instead provide students with a rubric that clearly outlined expectations. My administration was right. Although this was helpful because students knew what components I was looking for, the point value was vague and left to my personal discretion. This allowed for inconsistency.

So I had to expand my knowledge base on rubrics, because a checklist is not a rubric. I then got my hands on: rubistar. Man did my world change! I did not have to fill in each little box outlining each component of how student work stacked up to a consistent measure of proficiency. For example:

Math – Problem Solving : Multiplication Teacher Name: Ms. Schultek Student Name:     ________________________________________

 

CATEGORY	4	3	2	1
Mathematical Concepts	Explanation shows complete understanding of the mathematical concepts used to solve the problem(s).	Explanation shows substantial understanding of the mathematical concepts used to solve the problem(s).	Explanation shows some understanding of the mathematical concepts needed to solve the problem(s).	Explanation shows very limited understanding of the underlying concepts needed to solve the problem(s) OR is not written.
Mathematical Reasoning	Uses complex and refined mathematical reasoning.	Uses effective mathematical reasoning	Some evidence of mathematical reasoning.	Little evidence of mathematical reasoning.
Explanation	Explanation is detailed and clear.	Explanation is clear.	Explanation is a little difficult to understand, but includes critical components.	Explanation is difficult to understand and is missing several components OR was not included.
Neatness and Organization	The work is presented in a neat, clear, organized fashion that is easy to read.	The work is presented in a neat and organized fashion that is usually easy to read.	The work is presented in an organized fashion but may be hard to read at times.	The work appears sloppy and unorganized. It is hard to know what information goes together.
Completion	All problems are completed.	All but one of the problems are completed.	All but two of the problems are completed.	Several of the problems are not completed.

 

But, I still was not out of the woods yet. Students turned in work, I graded with a rubric and passed back. Yes, the feedback was more meaningful and specific, but they had to wait until the next assignment to apply this feedback.

Thus, the “aha” of year seven. Giving students the rubric ahead of time allowed them to know the expectations, and constantly reflect the value of their work in comparison to the standards in the rubric. This self-assessment was more powerful than any feedback I could provide. This challenged them as a learner and aided in their growth as an academic scholar. Student success rate began to soar (finally!!). They were able to plan ahead, include the necessary components, and challenge themselves to work past proficiency now that the “how” to do that was clearly laid out.

As the second chunk of the year begins, I am going to take it a step further and have my students create a rubric with me. I think this is the appropriate time because students have been exposed to quality rubrics thus far, have had ample time to familiarize themselves with how to utilize it effectively, and now their background knowledge on rubrics is sufficient in order to have a meaningful discussion and provide insightful feedback. Had I tried to do this any other year, students would not have been able to truly help me create a quality rubric due to their lack of experience. This, of course, is a reflection on me as the teacher. But, as with all things, you learn as you go. The journey of learning is more powerful than getting it right the first time.

As I roll out our very first class-made rubric for an assignment, I will be sure to post our final product! Hmm, maybe the students can even help me write the corresponding blog post! (Now, there’s an idea!!)

How do you utilize rubrics? How responsive are your students to a rubric?