Teaching Practice Rubrics: Out of the Wild and On with the Project THE LESSON
Abstract
From multimedia to math, from puppet shows to science fairs, RubiStar spans all subjects. Teachers easily find a subject and template, and quickly customize it to fit their needs. With the current No Child Left Behind legislative act, one of the important factors is reading. Here are three examples of teachers using RubiStar rubrics to facilitate content learning in the subject of Language Arts.
Small Town Students Tackle Big City Rap
In her Language Arts class consisting of five high school seniors, Mrs. Gaines put a unique and inspired twist on an old favorite, Beowulf. After reading the British classic and discussing all of the story elements, including setting, characterization, and plot, students analyzed the way in which the story was written. The class discussed the author's use of rhyme and rhythm, as well as the use of alliteration. Students studied current rap lyrics and created a compare and contrast graphic organizer. Then Mrs. Gaines revealed the project – they would be creating a rap song based on Beowulf. She handed out a RubiStar rubric, went over it with her class, and turned them loose. And the students knew exactly what to do! A few of the students found sample lyrics on the Internet of current rap songs. A few others starting writing the lyrics, and one other student volunteered her video camera to capture the whole hurrah. They typed the lyrics and used the instrumental of "Welcome to Atlanta", a rap song by Jermaine Dupri, to give them the beat they needed to retell the old tale. They practiced a few times and for the final pinnacle of this imaginative undertaking the students performed their version in front of an audience of students.
Snapping at the Java House
Mrs. Brooks brings class participation to a whole new level with her fifth grade Language Arts class. Not only did the students help create the RubiStar rubric for their Java House Poetry Recital (complete with donuts and hot chocolate), but they also graded their fellow students. Once the snapping died down after each performance, the students silently filled out the rubrics. The amazing thing is that Mrs. Brooks says the students usually grade very close to her own actual scores. They are serious and want to give credit to those that did their project well and point out the ones who did not do their fair share of the work.
Oh, Brother – Not Another Written Report
In Ms. Newman’s sixth grade Language Arts class, book reports are morphing into a more encompassing project. This imaginative teacher strives to show the students that they can include multiple scenes in one diorama to portray the main idea or summary of a book. After reading Oh, Brother by Johnniece Marshall Wilson, Ms. Newman combined three RubiStar rubrics to include all the tasks she wanted. Once the RubiStar rubric was handed out, students were busy working in pairs, incorporating elements such as characters and setting into their dioramas. Anyone could see that the students enjoyed the diorama assignment instead of the regular written book report.
Rubric Objectives
Make It Black and White: Be sure that there are no gray areas in the rubric. State category criteria clearly, and make sure there is a defined line between the possible scores awarded. This is also a good reason to discuss the rubric in depth with the students before any work is assigned.
Set Realistic Expectations:
Be sure that your rubric contains the most realistic goals that students should achieve. Remember to not include so much criteria that it overwhelms the students or so little criteria that the students are still not sure what is expected of them.
Create an Easy Grading System:
With clear criteria, the job of grading becomes stress free. Let the students know how their points will be processed as grades, especially if your rating scale is numerical (4, 3, 2, or 1) or descriptive (Excellent, Good, Needs Improvement, or Poor).
Objectives for Giving Students Rubrics
Students will gain clarification of project criteria.
Students will understand where their strengths and weaknesses were in this project.
Teachers will be able to clearly assess student content learning.
Teachers will have an equitable grading process.
Suggested Sequence for Setting Up a Lesson
Inception and Assignment of Project:
Try to think of a fun twist on an old topic like these teachers have done. Students will respond to a challenge in their creative thinking process. Decide on basic criteria that you would like them to include in their project.
Remember, RubiStar has preset templates that contain pertinent categories already completed in the areas relevant to the project.
Creation of Rubric:
Include your students in this process. Let them either help create the rubric or edit the rubric by putting in their own categories that the class decides on as a whole. This will give them a view into the world of a teacher. Several teachers even stated that when students are allowed to participate in the making of a rubric, they often add more strict categories than what a teacher created rubric would include.
Allow Time for Self- and Peer- Evaluation:
Before the project is turned in for a final grade, allow class time for peer- or self- evaluation. By scrutinizing their projects against the rubric's guidelines, students can assess their own work. Students can also provide creative criticism for their fellow classmates.
Allow Time for Revisions:
Once the students are finished with the evaluation process be sure to give them adequate time to revise their projects.
Final Grading of Project:
Grade the students’ work against the criteria on the rubric. Students could even be included in the grading process, and an average of all scores given could be tallied for the final grade.
