Sample Rubric to Guide Assessment

This rubric identifies different dimensions of writing and the qualities that can make writing and portfolios effective. They are grouped in categories, but keep in mind that the categories overlap. The list of dimensions and qualities here is not necessarily comprehensive but does include many of the rhetorical concepts and practices emphasized in English 100. This rubric should not be used as a checklist of tasks or features to be completed. You should adapt and shape this rubric to fit what you do in your own class and the particular assignments you assign. You may want to consider adding specific elements to your rubric to fit and support your particular writing assignments. A set of “Underdeveloped” qualities will be found in a separate table, which follows the main rubric.

You can find this rubric as a Google Doc here.

Design Your Own Rubrics

In addition to using the preceding rubric as a resource for calibrating your expectations, and expressing them to students, you might consider designing your own rubrics for individual assignments that: a) clearly express learning goals for that sequence, and b) offer space to customize your comments based on what students have achieved and/or need to work on.

Regardless of what kind of rubric you decide to use, we believe it is important that you make your grading process and expectations as transparent as possible. If you use a rubric, it is a good idea to present students with copies of it prior to the portfolio due date.

A well-designed, modular rubric can help you streamline the rubric customization process while also providing a sense of consistency for students. Using the following rubric as a template or model, you can create grids for the top three or four learning outcomes that you want your students’ portfolios to demonstrate for each of the three sequences. These outcomes should be based on criteria you include in your writing assignments. You might also customize the language in the top boxes to reflect your class vocabulary and personality.

The blank spaces to the right can be used to evaluate your students’ progress. You can also make notes on your expectations and where the student has met them, fallen short, or exceeded them. It works well to use the bottom two rows of the grid to comment on students’ overall engagement with the writing and revision process. The “Additional Comments” section can be a great place to highlight their biggest achievements from the sequence and to give them two or three skills or habits to work on as they move forward.

You can find this rubric as a Google Doc here.

Some instructors choose to develop rubrics in collaboration with their students. This can be a productive exercise in identifying what students value, developing shared vocabulary, negotiating areas of difference, and providing students with a sense of agency over the grading process.

Rubrics Are Not Required

Some instructors choose not to distribute a formal rubric and instead use longer endnotes to communicate their assessment as well as thoughts for further work. Remember, rubrics are not required, but you should be deliberate and thoughtful in designing alternative ways to communicate expectations and responses. We welcome conversations about your approach to grading and assessment.