Abstract

Whilst there is agreement to the pedagogic benefits of utilising rubrics from a teaching perspective, less attention has been given to how students perceive their use (Andrade and Du 2005). The aim of the study was to identify whether a group of Level 5 Sport students find a rubric helpful in providing feed-forward on a draft of a lab report. Action research with a qualitative approach was carried out with 58 students on a module in the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences at the University of Sunderland. Feedback to the students included:
• visual representation of their mark on the rubric.
• three written comments relating to ‘things you did well’, two written comments on ‘things you could improve on’.
• blank area for students to enter reflections on ‘actions you need to take to improve your grade’.
The majority of students reported agreement that the rubric was beneficial, with median scores between 4 and 5 (slightly agree or agree). Perceptions of the rubric were generally positive in clearly defining the criteria needed to succeed (50% agree) and increasing the understanding of what was required in the assessment (60% agree). The role of the rubric in the feed-forward process was also beneficial as it enabled the students to understand what they were doing well on (45% agree) and what was needed to be worked on (42.5% agree). Overall, rubrics are an important tool in improving academic performance and should be considered when implementing a laboratory based practical assessment and report.
The presenter will:
• Present the findings of a small scale pilot into the feedback process including details of the tools and techniques used and their effectiveness.
• Discuss the benefits (from the focus groups) in relation to the learner experience e.g. learning gain and in particular developing self-determined learning (heutagogy).
• Discuss the implications of the pilot from both an educator and learner perspective.
Andrade, H., & Du, Y. (2005). Student perspectives on rubric-referenced assessment. Practical Assessment, Research and Evaluation, 10(3)
Keywords: Feedforward; student perceptions; assessment rubrics
Conference Theme: Transforming Assessment