Best Rubric Makers for Teachers

Today, we’re venturing into the realm of rubric makers, an essential topic for anyone involved in education. As seasoned professionals, we’re all familiar with rubrics – those structured scoring guidelines that help us assess student performance more effectively. But have you ever considered the depth and versatility of these tools? In this post, I’ll take you through the intricacies of rubrics, their types, and their pivotal role in both guiding students and aiding our assessment strategies.

We’ll explore the definitions and functions of rubrics, drawing from the insights of educational experts like Deborah Allen and Kimberly Tanner. Rubrics aren’t just assessment tools; they are roadmaps for students, clarifying what’s expected of them in various assignments and activities. We’ll distinguish between holistic and analytic rubrics, each serving distinct purposes in educational assessment.

Moreover, I’ll introduce you to some practical and user-friendly rubric makers. These tools are not just convenient; they revolutionize how we create, use, and share rubrics. From Quick Rubric’s simplicity to the detailed templates of RubiStar, each tool offers unique features to enhance our teaching methodologies.

So, let’s dive in and discover how these tools can make our educational journey more efficient and effective, both for us as educators and for our students.

What is a Rubric?

A rubric, according to Deborah Allen and Kimberly Tanner, “denotes a type of matrix that provides scaled levels of achievement or understanding for a set of criteria or dimensions of quality for a given type of performance, for example, a paper, an oral presentation, or use of teamwork skills.”

Two major functions of rubrics are: guiding and assessing. They guide students as to what is expected of them in a given activity or assignment and they also assist teachers in evaluating students performance along a pre-defined set of values, standards, and objectives. Rubrics can be used by “a teacher to assess a student, a student to assess a peer, or a student to self-assess their own work” (TeachersFirst).

Rubric Types

Two main rubric types to be distinguished here: Holistic and Analytic rubrics:

1- Holistic rubrics:

A holistic rubric is general in scope and uses a single scale where all assessment criteria are grouped into a single criteria used to assess the overall performance of students work.”Performance descriptions are written in paragraphs and usually in full sentences”. (Queen’s University).

2- Analytic rubrics

An analytic rubric addresses specific areas in students performance. It resembles a grid “with the criteria for a student product listed in the leftmost column and with levels of performance listed across the top row often using numbers and/or descriptive tags.” (Depaul).

Why rubrics are important?

Here are some of the reasons why rubrics are important:

Rubrics make your grading objective by explicitly stating the standards and grading norms to be followed.
They help students make clear expectations of what a higher performance on particular performance tasks requires.
They ‘encourage reflective practice on the part of both students and teachers’ (Allen and Tanner)
Holistic rubrics save you time “by minimizing the number of decisions raters make” (Depaul)
Analytic rubrics help you “provide useful feedback on areas of strength and weakness” (Depaul)

The sources list at the bottom of this post contains some useful links to help you learn more about rubrics, how to use them, sample rubrics and many more.

There are several tools you can use to create rubrics. These include:

Rubric maker

Here are some good rubric makers to try out:

1- Quick Rubric

This is a simple and easy tool to help you make different rubric types. You can build your rubric from scratch and when you are done you can save, print and share with others. Quick Rubric provides you with some handy resources to help you learn more about the pedagogic strength of rubrics.

2- Graphic Organizers

Pre-made graphic organizers makes it super easy for you to create your own rubrics. Simply search for the graphic organizer of your choice and edit it to meet your own teaching goals. I have already reviewed a collection of some of the best platforms where you can access educational graphic organizers. Check them out to learn more.

3- Rubric Maker

Rubric Maker is another simple and easy to use tool to create rubrics. It does not require registration and is totally web based. You can create and customize your rubric the way you want and when you are finished you can print and share it with others. It does not offer any option to save your finished product other than printing.

4- RubiStar

Rubistar provides pre-made rubric templates based on different topics (e.g., math, writing, science, music, reading). The tool is free and can be used without registration, however, only registered members are allowed to save and edit their rubrics.

5- Teachnology Rubric Generator

Teachnology has this handy Rubric generator that lets you create various types of rubrics. The way it works is simple and easy: first enter the name of your school, add a title for your rubric and a teacher name. Scroll to the body section of the rubric and provide your own data. When you are done, click on Generate rubric button. Voila!

5 of The Best Rubric Making Tools for Teachers

Final thoughts

In today’s exploration of rubric makers, we delved into the world of rubrics, invaluable tools in education that serve both as guides for students and assessment tools for educators. With a focus on holistic and analytic rubrics, we understand their unique functions: holistic rubrics for overarching performance assessments and analytic rubrics for detailed feedback in specific areas. The importance of rubrics lies in their ability to demystify expectations and standards, promoting a clear understanding of high-performance criteria for students and offering objective grading frameworks for teachers.

The discussion highlighted several rubric-making tools, each offering unique features to cater to various needs. Quick Rubric simplifies the creation process, allowing for customization and sharing. Graphic Organizers provide pre-made templates for easy editing, aligning with specific teaching goals. Rubric Maker offers straightforward, web-based rubric creation without the need for registration, while RubiStar provides topic-specific templates for a more focused approach. Lastly, Teachnology’s Rubric Generator stands out for its user-friendly interface, enabling educators to create a diverse range of rubrics effortlessly.

Ultimately, this post not only underscores the significance of rubrics in educational settings but also provides practical resources for teachers to efficiently integrate them into their teaching practices. Whether for guiding students or refining assessment strategies, these tools empower educators to enhance learning experiences and achieve pedagogical excellence.

Sources:

1- http://www.teachersfirst.com/lessons/rubrics/what-are-rubrics.cfm
2-http://www.ucdenver.edu/faculty_staff/faculty/center-for-faculty-development/Documents/Tutorials/Rubrics/1_what_is/easy_as_pie.htm
3- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1618692/
4- http://www.schrockguide.net/assessment-and-rubrics.html
5- https://chfasoa.uni.edu/analyticholisticrubrics.pdf
6-https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/teaching-resources/teaching-tips/assessing-student-work/grading-and-feedback/rubrics-useful-assessment-tools
7-https://resources.depaul.edu/teaching-commons/teaching-guides/feedback-grading/rubrics/Pages/types-of-rubrics.aspx
8. http://www.queensu.ca/teachingandlearning/modules/assessments/35_s4_05_types_of_rubrics.html
9- http://www.teachhub.com/technology-classroom-tools-create-rubrics

What is a Rubric?