Learning activity 3 – Assessments and rubrics
When we do a task at school, it is usually assessed – sometimes this is a formal assessment where the teacher will assign a grade or a level to your performance, and sometimes it is an informal assessment, where you receive feedback on how you are going but there are no grades or levels recorded. Regardless of whether you are assessed formally or informally, students should be given information on how assessment works. Well-designed assessment actually leads us towards a learning goal and will show the steps needed to achieve that goal.
Rubrics
A ‘rubric’ is a useful way of explaining assessment expectations. You may have seen rubrics before. A rubric is a grid or table, where the ‘thing you need to do’ is listed on one side, and ‘how well you did the thing’ is listed at a right angle. For example, in the rubric below, we can see the ‘things you need to do’ in an oral presentation listed vertically, and descriptions of ‘how well you do those things’ listed horizontally on a scale of one to four.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Content | Information is sparse and some of it is clearly not accurate. | The information is mostly accurate, though there are some parts where the accuracy is unclear. Some more information would have been better. | The information is accurate and it is clear that the student knows what they are talking about. | The content is comprehensive – the student provides lots of accurate information. They seem to know more than expected for this task. |
| Coherence | There is some coherence between ideas but the sequence generally seems out of order. | The presentation is mostly coherent, though the audience needs to do some work in connecting ideas. | The presentation is coherent, and it is very clear how one idea follows another. | The presentation is coherent, and it is very clear how one idea follows another. The order of ideas makes it extra interesting. |
| Visuals | There are no graphics, or graphics that don’t match the content. | Graphics and illustrations are sometimes used and usually match the content. | Graphics and illustrations are clear and match the content described. | The graphics and illustrations are clear and really help the audience understand the content. |
| Language use | The student uses colloquial language that is not suited to a presentation. | There are a number of times where the student uses colloquial language. | The student uses language that is mostly appropriate for a presentation. | The student uses language that is appropriate for a presentation, and explains any tricky words to the audience. |
| Speech | The student’s speech is often unclear. | The student’s speech is mostly clear, though there is some mumbling and some ‘um’ sounds. | The student’s speech is clear, though there are one or two words that are muffled. | The student’s speech is clear and they enunciate well. |
Discuss
- What do the numbers in the rubric reflect?
- What do content, coherence, visuals, language use, and speech refer to?
- How can reading a rubric help us do better in our school work?
- What do we do if there is something in a rubric we do not understand?
- Thinking back to the previous activities where work was considered Above/Below/Satisfactory – what do you think would be “Satisfactory” on this rubric?