Rubric Marking "Out of the Box": Saving Time & Adding Value to Teaching & Learning

Abstract

Abstract: This paper describes how Google Docs can be used to create a rubric marking system with ‘out-of-the-box’ features using a simple form with radio buttons or a Likert scale to record the student’s marks for each assessment item, and compute the assessment’s total marks. Comments are optional! All assessment data can be exported as a spreadsheet suitable for uploading to an LMS or sending out via email to each student. In this study our hypothesis that “marking with rubrics will save a significant amount of time compared to marking conventionally” was supported. The data recorded within the Google Docs application was a ‘bonus’ and produced many surprises when analysed. The paper also discusses visualisation of the rubrics using Google Analytics ‘off-the-shelf’ and the possibility of further analysis such as inter-rater reliability and item response theory (IRT) graphing.