Need a peer response highlighting strengths and limitations

A rubric is a set of criteria used to assess a student's performance on assignments, such as projects, portfolios, and presentations. It serves as a scoring tool to evaluate the quality of work and provide feedback on specific aspects of the assignment (Chowdhury, 2019). It provides a clear and structured way to assess complex tasks or assignments by breaking them into specific components. They add reliability, validity, and transparency to assessments. According to Silvestri and Oescher (2006 ), they are used to increase transparency and decrease assessment subjectivity.

Additionally, rubrics help teachers convey their expectations to the students by providing the evaluative criteria for grading their tasks. According to McTighe, a best practice is to provide students with clear product and performance goals (Walden University, 2010e). A good rubric should clearly explain what makes work high-quality and describe different levels of performance (Arter & McTighe, 2001). Rubrics assist students and empower them to engage in self-assessment, helping them refine their performances and improve their work (Reeves, 2007).

Before meeting with my colleague for this assignment, I wanted to ensure that I understood what I was doing and was prepared to contribute meaningfully to the group discussion. The most challenging part for me was identifying the appropriate type of rubric for the task. However, I understood better after meeting and working with my colleague. Creating rubrics requires careful thinking and works best when done by ateam, as different viewpoints are essential (Walden University, 2010d).

Through this process, I learned how important it is to make assessment tools clear and precise. Each criterion and performance level must be clearly defined to avoid confusion (Chowdhury, 2019). I will ensure that I revise the rubric for my students' performance task to ensure clear alignment with the task objectives and criteria when completing my Visual Presentation of Units Course Project.

After completing this activity, I realized that I need to improve how I create and use rubrics in my classroom. I am inspired to continue collaborating with colleagues when designing rubrics for units of study. Additionally, going forward, I will always have examples of the required performance tasks for my students to use as a guide. According to McTighe, showing students different examples helps them judge what an excellent product looks like compared to a poor one (Walden University, 2010e). By examining these examples, students can learn the qualities of excellence and identify areas needing improvement, thus enhancing their understanding and skill development.

My colleague and I utilized Google Docs and Hangouts as our online collaboration tools for this task. Two significant benefits noted are instant access for designing and modifying the rubric through real-time editing and the ability to comment and suggest changes effortlessly. However, one challenge we encountered was coordinating our efforts simultaneously due to our differing schedules. Nonetheless, we were able to accomplish the task at hand.

References

Arter, A. & McTighe, J. (2001). Scoring rubrics in the classroom: Using performance criteria for assessing and improving student performance. Chapter 1. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Chowdhury, F. (2019). Application of rubrics in the classroom: A vital tool for improvement in assessment, feedback and learning. International education studies, 12(1), 61-68.

Reeves, S. T. A. C. Y., & Stanford, B. (2009). Rubrics for the classroom: Assessments for students and teachers. Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin, 76(1), 24-27.

Silvestri, L., & Oescher, J. (2006). Using rubrics to increase the Reliability of Assessment in health classes. International Electronic Journal of Health Education, 9, 25-30

Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2010e). Assessment for student learning: Designing rubrics. [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2010d). Assessment for student learning: Designing rubrics. [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.