Location
Daytona Beach, Florida
Description
In 2008, a group of English/Humanities faculty created a writing rubric to help instructors across the curriculum assess student writing and provide specific feedback for improvement. Five months after the rubric was released, a survey revealed that nearly 70% of instructors were not using it. Respondents cited two major reasons: They had not received it or they considered it inapplicable to their courses. They frequently suggested that the rubric be simplified. Project participants took a multidisciplinary approach to answering these objections, which resulted in 14 suggestions. The idea that generated the greatest excitement was an electronic rubric with links to hidden layers of additional information. Training and greater ease of access emerged as keys to increasing usage.
Evaluating the Assessment Instrument a Multidisciplinary Approach to Improving a Writing Rubric
Daytona Beach, Florida
In 2008, a group of English/Humanities faculty created a writing rubric to help instructors across the curriculum assess student writing and provide specific feedback for improvement. Five months after the rubric was released, a survey revealed that nearly 70% of instructors were not using it. Respondents cited two major reasons: They had not received it or they considered it inapplicable to their courses. They frequently suggested that the rubric be simplified. Project participants took a multidisciplinary approach to answering these objections, which resulted in 14 suggestions. The idea that generated the greatest excitement was an electronic rubric with links to hidden layers of additional information. Training and greater ease of access emerged as keys to increasing usage.