Evaluation RubricsAnne E. Belcher

Director, Office for Teaching Excellence

Common sense questionsIf you do not know what is expected from

you, how do you know how to perform?If you do not have criteria to use, on what did

you base your evaluation?“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll

probably end up somewhere else” (Campbell, 1974).

What is a rubric?

A scoring tool that lists the criteria for a piece of work

A list of “what counts”A document in which the evaluator specifies

the level of performance expected—may be words (excellent, good, needs improvement) or numerical scores (1, 2, 3, 4)—the points are added up to form a total score which is then converted to a grade

Elements of a rubricGuidelines for the learner/evaluatee as to

what is expected of him/herEvaluation criteria which will be used to

evaluate the performanceDescription of points to be assigned, which

should reflect the importance of each criterion

Important Rule for using rubricsShould be given to the student prior to

his/their implementation of the assignment—can thus be viewed as an instructional guide and assessment tool

This keeps the influence of extraneous factors such as writing ability, mechanics and rater subjectivity to a minimum

Types of rubrics (see handouts)Holistic – score based on how closely it

matches the scorer’s description of the outcome/product

Analytic – focuses on individual elements of an ideal response to a question; final score is a total of points assigned to each element; provides information about student’s strengths and weaknesses

Uses of rubricsEvaluation of written assignmentsEvaluation of group workEvaluation of classroom participationEvaluation of larger projects

ReferencesMcDonald, M.E. (2007). The nurse educator’s

guide to assessing learning outcomes. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett, Publishers.

Oermann, M.H. & Gaberson, K.B. (2009). Evaluation and testing in nursing education. New York: Springer Publishing Company.

Tips for encouraging student participation in classroom instruction. www.FacultyFocus.com