What are Rubrics?

A rubric is a set of criteria used to evaluate and grade exams and assignments in a consistent and objective manner. It typically consists of criteria and skill levels, allowing graders to assign scores based on predetermined standards.

In the TomaGrade system, you can create two types of rubrics:

• Simple: No subdivision into criteria
• Advanced: With subdivision into criteria

Rubrics are built specifically for each question in the system.

Benefits of Using Rubrics

• Efficiency and Speed: The assessment criteria allow for fast and clear grading, saving time on deliberation and comparisons, while maintaining high standards of assessment.
• Fairness and Consistency: The rubric provides an objective framework for assessment, providing a uniform, fair, and unbiased score.
• Feedback: Creating criteria allows students to deeply understand their performance level and specifically the areas they need to improve in.
• Efficient Sharing of Grading: The rubric allows lead instructors to create a uniform grading framework for all partners.
• Transparency: Revealing the rubric to students allows for clear coordination of expectations, clarity, and reduces "guesses" and "question marks" about the scores they received.

Creating a Rubric

You can create a rubric in the "Rubrics" tab or directly in the "Rubrics" section within the grading screen.

See how in the following video:

How to Grade with the Rubric

Once you have created the exam, you can grade it using the rubric in the grading screen.

Choosing a Grading Method

Clicking on  one of the "performance levels" boxes in the rubric  in the grading screen will display the "Choosing Grading Method" window. The message alerts that using the rubric for the specific notebook will disable the other grading tools (using the G button and the option to enter scores directly in the questions panel).

• Click "Confirm" to grade with the rubric.
• Check the "Do not display this screen again" box if you want to apply this grading method to all notebooks in the exam.

Read here more about choosing a grading method

Grading Options

1. Activate the G in the selection by clicking on the gear icon and you can add a grade with annotation and the text associated with the rubric.

1. Click on the gear icon and activate G as a selection
2. Click on the relevant rubric
3. Click with the G on the notebook
4. The grade will be added together with the rubric title and description

2. By clicking with the mouse on the rubric (when "Annotate on select" is off)

How to Change an Existing Rubric

You can change the rubric in the Rubrics tab in the main screen or in the grading screen.

If you have already graded using the rubric, the changes will be applied to all scores given, including its removal.

Editing a Rubric in the Grading Screen

1. Click to edit (click on "approve" to confirm the change) 
2. Delete a performance level 
3. Add a new performance level
4. Add a new criteria to the question

Editing a Rubric in the Rubrics Tab

First, you must be in the "Rubrics" tab and then click on the "Edit Rubric" button next to the relevant question:

After that, the following rubric editing panel will be opened:

1. Add a performance level 
2. Delete performance level 
3. Update title/score/description by clicking and typing in the box

Finally, click the "Close" button and the changes will be saved automatically.

* It should be noted that the rubric editing screen can also be reached from the grading screen by clicking on the pencil icon:

Selection type

You can set (for each criteria) a selection type for the performance levels:

1. Single select - allowing you to grade by only one of the performance levels under the criteria.

2. Multi select - allowing you to grade by all of the performance levels under the criteria

Setting selection type in the rubric on the grading screen 

Click on the pencil icon of the relevant criterion:

A screen for editing the criterion will be opened where you can define the selection type:

Setting selection type in the rubrics tab on the main screen

First, you must be in the "Rubrics" tab and then click on the "Edit Rubric" button next to the relevant question.

After that, the following rubric editing panel will be opened:

To activate multi select the switch needs to be active.

Once inactive, only a single select will be possible.

Note that in multi-select grading you will be prevented exceeding the maximum points of the question.

Working with Criteria

What is Criterion?

A criterion is an assessment category to which different performance levels can be assigned.

You can create multiple criteria for each question.

Using Criteria

Example Case

The following table shows a rubric for a question from an "Introduction to Programming" exam. The maximum score for the question is 50 points:

VIDEO