I had a great conversation with an instructor today about rubrics. I got an email from the instructor asking about how to deal with a student’s repeated failure to meet the requirements of a project and if a rubric could progressively down-grade the student’s points in response. We are a Canvas college so fortunately the rubrics in our LMS will not take negative points. Fortunately, this instructor had NOT yet created a rubric for the class, so we got to have a conversation about Single Point Rubrics.
In my own teaching, I used to use a generic, traditional rubric but I would have the students review and rewrite the rubric based on their goals for the course. I would then have the students use the rubric to review one another’s work and then they would complete the rubric and turn it in with their projects. The Single Point Rubric makes this process a lot easier.
A Single Point Rubric relies on your discussion of the paper with the student. In three columns, a teacher can express what works, what the goals of the assignment are, and what the student needs to do to grow. Assessment needs to be collaborative, and Single Point Rubrics are a way for students to take ownership of their learning. It removes vague or subjective concepts from rubrics (e.g. “compelling argument”) and helps the students understand where they are as writers.
I sent him some interesting links to more on the single point rubric:
- Does your rubric punish students?
- Single Point Rubrics: What Are They And Why You Should Be Using Them
- Validity evidence for the use of a single-point rubric to support interprofessional teaching and learning
I think that the single point rubric is a way to make assessment more transparent and inclusive. If you have used them, I would appreciate your take in the comments below or join me for a discussion in Mastodon: @geoffcain@mastodon.social
