Grading Efficiently…How Can Rubrics Help? Presenter: Tine Reimers Director, CETaL

Reflections  What takes the most time when you’re grading?  What are your greatest frustrations with grading essays?  What are grades?

Grades are… …ways to show how students have achieved your course goals. Since you grade assignments, this begs the question: How are assignments related to course goals? Note: For any grading scheme to make sense, we need to start with course goals. Note: For any grading scheme to make sense, we need to start with course goals.

Analytic Rubrics  Used to make individual judgments about unique and independent dimensions or components of a work. Example: When you want to grade separately content and writing mechanics Example: When you want to grade separately content and writing mechanics

Building an Analytic Rubric: “ Primary Trait Analysis” What is the most important goal of your assignment—what should the students learn and be able to do and show? What is the most important goal of your assignment—what should the students learn and be able to do and show? Does this goal have components or dimensions that can be shown independently? What are they? Does this goal have components or dimensions that can be shown independently? What are they? Are the secondary goals? What are they? What are their components? Are the secondary goals? What are they? What are their components?

Critical Thinking in a Writing Environment: Grading and Assessing Traits: Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) 1. Identifying __ ____ 1. Identifying __ ____ 2. Exploring __ ____ 2. Exploring __ ____ 3. Prioritizing __ ____ 3. Prioritizing __ ____ 4. Revisioning__ ____ 4. Revisioning__ ____ Writing Writing 5. Consistent focus on topic or issue__ ____ 5. Consistent focus on topic or issue__ ____ 6. Claims founded upon evidence __ ____ 6. Claims founded upon evidence __ ____ 7. Language appropriate for audience__ ____ 7. Language appropriate for audience__ ____ 8. Appropriate writing mechanics__ ____ 8. Appropriate writing mechanics__ ____ 9. Scholarly bibliographic support__ ____ 9. Scholarly bibliographic support__ ____Scoring: 27-23Exceeds expectations 27-23Exceeds expectations 22-16Meets expectations 22-16Meets expectations 15- 9Does not meet expectations 15- 9Does not meet expectations

Exploring [primary trait 2] 3 Probes alternatives and presents primary and secondary evidence in support. 2 Recognizes alternatives and acknowledges existence of evidence in support. 1 Does not recognize that alternatives may exist; ignores conflicting evidence. Critical Thinking in a Writing Environment: Levels of Performance

Critical Thinking in a Writing Environment: Grading and Assessing Traits: Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) 1. Identifying _x_ ______ 1. Identifying _x_ ______ 2. Exploring ___ _x____ 2. Exploring ___ _x____ 3. Prioritizing ___ _x____ 3. Prioritizing ___ _x____ 4. Revisioning___ ____x_ 4. Revisioning___ ____x_ Writing 5. Consistent focus on topic or issue _x_ ______ 5. Consistent focus on topic or issue _x_ ______ 6. Claims founded upon evidence ___ ____x_ 6. Claims founded upon evidence ___ ____x_ 7. Language appropriate for audience ___ _x____ 7. Language appropriate for audience ___ _x____ 8. Appropriate writing mechanics ___ _x____ 8. Appropriate writing mechanics ___ _x____ 9. Scholarly bibliographic support _x_ ______ 9. Scholarly bibliographic support _x_ ______ Score = 19 Scoring: 27-23Exceeds expectations 27-23Exceeds expectations 22-16Meets expectations 22-16Meets expectations 15- 9Does not meet expectations 15- 9Does not meet expectations

Critical Thinking in a Writing Environment: Assessing the whole class performance: 30 students Traits: Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) Critical Thinking (after Wolcott & Lynch) 1. Identifying Identifying Exploring Exploring Prioritizing Prioritizing Revisioning Revisioning Writing 5. Consistent focus on topic or issue Consistent focus on topic or issue Claims founded upon evidence Claims founded upon evidence Language appropriate for audience Language appropriate for audience Appropriate writing mechanics Appropriate writing mechanics Scholarly bibliographic support Scholarly bibliographic support [Mean score = 19.2 or 2.1 / 3  2.8 / 4] QUESTION: What part(s) of the curriculum deserves special attention?

Construct an effective 3- or 4-point rubric for some aspect of writing or thinking. Pay special attention to the level identified as “acceptable.”

Holistic Rubrics  Used when broader judgments of work quality are desired, or when independent dimensions/components are difficult to identify.

GRE Standards for evaluating analytical writing (holistic approach) SCORE (scale 0-6) Sustains insightful, in-depth analysis of complex ideas; develops and supports main points with logically compelling reasons and/or highly persuasive examples; is well focused and well organized; skillfully uses sentence variety and precise vocabulary to convey meaning effectively…

GRE Standards for evaluating analytical writing (holistic approach) SCORE Displays some competence in analytical writing skills, although the writing is flawed in at least one of the following ways: limited analysis or development, weak organization; weak control of sentence structure or language usage, with errors that often result in vagueness or lack of clarity.

Think of an assignment from your class  How does it relate to your course goals?  Create a rubric to describe an excellent,a satisfactory and an unsatisfactory performance. (Holistic or analytic is ok) Be prepared to share your assignment and rubric.

Staged Writing & Thinking......takes students from one cognitive level to the next through incremental, not additive assignments. e.g., Description/Narration Analysis Analysis Comparison/Contrast Comparison/Contrast Integration Integration

3 popular beliefs ( that frustrate teachers and students alike!) 1. Instructors should write a lot in the margins and between lines. 2. Instructors ought to know and use a lot of grammatical rules and terms to comment effectively. 3. Most effective responses to student writing are instructor-written comments on the final copy of a paper.

Banish those beliefs! 1. Respond to the paper as a whole 2. Use comment codes or minimal marking 3. If you MUST work on grammar, pick one troublesome spot per draft. 4. Have multiple drafts—students don’t read final comments. 5. Tell your students what you’re doing!

Questions? Tine Reimers