Rubrics For Creative Writing

The grading process involves matching student performance to certain levels under each criteria — poor, satisfactory, or exceptional, for example — then adding the results to arrive at a final grade.He avoids assessing creative writing altogether by assigning his students to write critical essays about their own short stories.He originally developed this method as a way to engage his students in academic writing about literature.Rubrics are not simply a checklist for grading student writing.Many teachers use them as both a grading tool and a teaching tool.In his words, “both have more explicit formal expectations,” letting him avoid making a judgment call about the art itself.“I tend to grade all the materials that surround the creative part, rather than the actual creative work,” he says.Another critic of rubrics, Maja Wilson, suggests that writing offers its own set of criteria and that each piece should be examined individually.Without rubrics, some instructors grade student essays as a full and complete work that sets its own boundaries through its chosen audience.It also helps break down the barrier between critical and creative thinking.Kevin grades both the explicative essay his students write about their fiction or creative nonfiction as well as the feedback they give their peers (a short response due before each workshop).