5 Types of Rubrics to Use in Your Art Classes

Home / 5 Types of Rubrics to Use in Your Art Classes

3 years ago Anne-Marie Slinkman 0 Comments

Most art teachers use rubrics to assess students’ work. Rubrics are a great way to make sure students
understand the expectations of the assignment. Because all the criteria are clearly defined, they make
grading 100 still life artworks much easier. I use the term “easier” loosely here; we all know grading 100
artworks is never easy!

Choosing what type of rubric to use in your classes is an important choice. There are several different
types of rubrics, and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. Spoiler alert, if you want to see my
favorite type of rubric, jump right down to number 5!

First, let’s talk about how rubrics can describe the criteria. There are two main ways rubrics can do this,
either in general terms or in more specific terms.

paper folding projects

1. The General Rubric

This type of rubric defines characteristics of a successful artwork. It is “general,” meaning it does not
define specific criteria for each project. Instead, it might define characteristics such as “technique” or
“craftsmanship” you are looking for in each completed project.

The strengths of this type of rubric are you can share it with students to communicate a broad
understanding of what makes “quality” work. It can be used over and over for different tasks such as
sketchbook assignments and projects. It can also be used to help students assess their own work.
Because it is generic, students will attain an understanding of your broad expectations through its
continued use.

The weakness of this type of rubric is that it is very broad. It does not clearly define the criteria for each
project.
2. The Task-Specific Rubric

A task-specific rubric is, as the name suggests, much more specific. It clearly defines the criteria for each
assignment.

What is great about this rubric is that it makes expectations for each assignment very clear. Students can
use this rubric to assess their success very easily. It also makes grading easier for teachers, because of its
specificity.

The weakness of this type of rubric is that you need to make a new one for each assignment. This can be
time-consuming.

Luckily, no matter what type of rubric you choose, there are always ways you can expedite your grading
process. If you’re interested in learning more, Tim Bogatz shares some super helpful tips in the PRO
Learning Pack, Expediting Your Grading Process. You’ll learn how to develop a more streamlined plan for
all types of assessment.

Next, let’s talk about the structure of the rubric. Here, too, you have a few different choices.

landscape print

3. The Analytic Rubric

An analytic rubric breaks down each aspect of the task being assessed. It assesses each criterion
separately. For example, say you are teaching a lesson on landscapes to your students. You may want
each student’s work to show:

Foreground, Middleground, and Background

Atmospheric Perspective

Overlapping and Size Variation

In an analytic rubric, you would assess each of these criteria separately.

The great thing about these rubrics is they connect your instruction to the assessment very clearly.
Students can use them to assess their own work easily. They can also be used for formative assessment.
They can show growth when used to assess students again at the end of a unit. You can download an
example below.

analytic rubric sample

DOWNLOAD NOW

4. The Holistic Rubric

A holistic rubric is much simpler than an analytic rubric. Instead of breaking apart all the separate
criteria, a holistic rubric assesses them all together.

So, if we use the above example of a still life, a holistic rubric would lump all of the criteria together
(foreground, middleground, background, atmospheric perspective, overlapping, etc).

The advantage of a holistic rubric is that grading is much faster for the teacher. You only have to come
up with a single score for each artwork you grade.

The limitation of this style of rubric is that it is not very useful to share with students. Because it does
not break down the task into separate criteria, students would have a hard time using it to assess their
work. In addition, it is difficult for students to see where they might improve if all the criteria are all
clumped together in a single score. You can download a sample Holistic rubric below.

sample holistic rubric

DOWNLOAD NOW

5. The Single-Point Rubric

In a single-point rubric, the expectations for the assignment are defined separately for a successful work,
much like an analytic rubric. The difference is that criteria are only described for proficiency. Blank
spaces are left for the teacher to write in feedback if the work falls above or below this point.

This is my favorite type of rubric. What I love about single-point rubrics is that they leave the teacher
room to assess work individually. Instead of defining exactly what might make an artwork weaker or
stronger, it leaves space for the teacher to give individual feedback for each student.

Yes, these take more work to fill out. I would not use a single-point rubric for every task. But for large
projects, this is a great option. It gives the teacher the opportunity to give personalized feedback for
each student. Once again, download an example below!

single point rubric example

DOWNLOAD NOW

Rubrics are great tools to help communicate the expectations and assess students. If you choose the
right rubric for the task, you will find it will help both you and your students be successful. For a
comprehensive look at assessment in the art room, be sure to take a peek at the AOE course
Assessment in Art Education. You’ll leave class with a comprehensive toolkit of lesson plans and
organization strategies.

What type of rubric do you use in your classes?

How do you give student feedback on your rubrics?

Anne-Marie Slinkman

Contributor
Anne-Marie teaches elementary art in Virginia. She is a life-long learner who is passionate about
providing relevant and meaningful art experiences for all students.

Related

image of rubrics

ASSESSMENT AS ADVOCACY

How to Give Authentic Assessment for Online Learning

Article

Hands making bowl out of clay

PLANNING/REVISING CURRICULUM

How to Build Your Curriculum Without Risking It All

Article

Teaching motioning with hands

DURING INSTRUCTION (FORMATIVE)

3 Quick Ways to Assess Student Learning in the Art Room

Article