Workshop
Resources
Search/Research
| As you know, we've adopted the use of rubrics (an alternative method of assessing student work with a scoring guide) in our School Improvement Plan as a way of implementing "best practice" methodology in utilizing multiple assessments. Whether you participated in the on-line workshop in Spring of 2004 or you'd like to find out more about what rubrics are, how to create them, evaluate student work with them, and most importantly, how they can be used to improve student performance, take a look at the following two slide shows. | |
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Rubrics:
An Essential Tool in |
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Part II: Rubrics: Creating, Scoring & Improving Student Performance |
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Teacher/Student
Survey |
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| Part
I: Performance Assessments
Explain what a performance task is What can be used to evaluate a performance task? How many times have you used a rubric this year? Have you ever received instruction on creating a rubric? Have you ever received instruction on scoring rubrics? How would you rate these learning activities? Extraneous thoughts about the survey Percentage of paper/pencil tests given this year Your opinion on what would be most difficult in creating rubrics Your opinion on what would be most difficult in scoring rubrics Your opinion on benefits of paper/pencil testing Your opinion on drawbacks to paper/pencil testing |
Part
II: Rubrics Was this the first time you participated in an on-line workshop? Do you think you can create a rubric based on the information presented? What did you find difficult about the on-line workshop? What would make your on-line workshop experience easier? What did you like about taking an on-line workshop? What type of additional resources would you find helpful in including on a Rubric Resource webpage? What do you need more help with before you create a rubric to use in your classroom? Has any teacher in any class ever used a rubric to grade your work? If your teachers use rubrics do you like knowing ahead of time what you need to do to get an "A"? When teachers use rubrics do they give them to you before you start your project? Has a teacher ever let you help create a rubric? Have you ever been asked to evaluate or "peer assess" another student's work with a rubric? And the million dollar
question... |
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An excellent, free, on-line tool designed to help teachers quickly create quality rubrics. An on-line tutorial is provided for teachers who need extra help, although the web site is very user-friendly and intuitive. Highlights of this resource are: Performance Tasks that include oral projects, research and writing, work skills, multi-media, science, math, music, reading and art. Appropriate evaluative criteria are offered for each skill within each performance task. Relevant performance descriptors are written for each evaluative criteria. BIG PLUS: Rubistar is similar to a word processor in that you may change any of the suggested evaluative criteria or performance descriptors to make a custom rubric. BIG PLUS: So long as you register (it's free), you may save your rubric on-line so it can be used and edited in the future.
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Kathy Schrock's websites provides more than enough sample rubrics to get you started. Keep in mind that a rubric rarely ever works perfectly the first time. Some of the topics include:
Also included on Kathy's site are articles pertaining to performance assessments and other alternative assessments. |
| Teach-nology
Teach-nology is another website that features a rubric generator. On the website you'll find several rubrics already created such as:
There's also a rubric generator. However unlike Rubistar, you must be a paid member to save the rubrics you generate using Teach-nology. |
Chicago
Public Schools
The Chicago Public School District has posted a library of resources for teachers (even if you don't teach in Chicago!) that include:
Of particular value on this website is the Introduction to Performance Assessments and Rubrics. This is an invaluable primer for anyone who needs basic information on performance assessments. Also, the section on performance tasks provides many different ideas with which to design a powerful, cross-curricular project that students might also benefit incorporating technology. |
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| If
you're interested in learning more about the fascinating topic of rubrics or
performance assessments, try using Google to search on the following terms
and/or experts in the field of educational assessments. (Don't forget to use quotation marks to keep words together
when searching if appropriate.) Also, check Amazon for current books on assessment and
rubrics.
Performance
Assessments There are more educational studies, research, books and articles than you'll ever have time to read (even if you wanted to read them all.) Below is a collection of excellent reads on assessment. You'll find the more you read and study assessment, the more you'll find experts in the field of education and assessment are finally zeroing in on specific targets to help students learn, retain and develop the learning skills that will enable them to be successful, contributing individuals in the 21st century. Now, if only we could somehow narrow our curriculum so that we as educators could focus on quality instruction instead of quantity. We cannot teach it all, much less assess it all. Perhaps the next thrust of growth in education will be to actually "pare down" or prune the curriculum so new growth can take place. Works in gardening, why not education! Note: Some are in .pdf format so Adobe Reader will be needed to view the studies. Click here, for download Adobe Reader. North Central
Regional Educational Laboratory |
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