Rubric Building Blocks: Designing Adaptable Rubrics Based On Learning Objectives

Description  Challenge - Designing effective rubrics Most rubrics are designed around the criteria of specific assignments. As such, the rubrics are aligned exclusively to each individual assignment. This approach to rubric development creates two major issues: 1) rubrics are only valid for a single assignment, and 2) assignment rubrics often over-emphasize specific assignment guidelines (i.e., page length, citation style, components, etc.) rather than the underlying learning objectives. Further, developing a high-quality rubric requires considerable faculty time and energy; when the rubric is only valid for a single assignment, it may not offer a sufficient return on the instructional time investment. The result of these factors is often a rubric that fails to benefit either the faculty or students. The use of rubric building blocks allows for developing a library of rubric criteria that can be adapted as necessary to create high-quality assignment rubrics.  Key Takeaway At