Assess and give feedback to learners
Appropriate methods for teaching, learning and assessing in the subject area in the subject area and at the level of the academic programme
Rubrics are tools used to grade or guide student work. They list what counts (criteria) and describe what good and not-so-good work looks like. In higher education, rubrics are used for essays, projects, presentations — pretty much any task. They’re popular because they help students understand what’s expected and help teachers mark more fairly. Some rubrics are designed for feedback (formative), others for grading (summative), and many are used for both.
There are no meta-analyses on rubrics in higher education, so effects are drawn from narrative and systematic reviews. Overall, these reviews suggest that rubrics can improve student learning, performance, self-regulation, and feedback — but the strength of this evidence is modest due to limited rigorous designs.
Several reviews (e.g., Reddy & Andrade, 2010; Brookhart & Chen, 2015) report that rubrics can improve academic performance, especially when students use them during the learning process. Panadero & Jonsson (2013) reviewed 21 studies and found that rubrics improve performance most consistently when used formatively — that is, when shared before or during the task rather than just for grading. However, not all studies reported positive results, and some used weaker designs like self-report or observational data.
Rubrics help make assessment criteria visible. This “transparency” is one of the strongest, most consistent findings across reviews. Students report less anxiety and greater clarity about what’s expected (Panadero & Jonsson, 2013; Brookhart, 2018). Rubrics also help students plan, monitor, and adjust their learning, which supports self-regulated learning — especially when paired with activities like self-assessment or peer review.
Rubrics make it easier for instructors to give targeted, actionable feedback. When rubrics use descriptive language (e.g., “explains reasoning clearly”), students are more likely to understand what they did well and how to improve (Brookhart & Chen, 2015). Reviews suggest that rubrics are most effective when they are shared before a task and discussed with students, not just given after marking.
The benefits of rubrics depend on how they’re designed and used:
This summary draws on several narrative and systematic reviews. Reddy & Andrade (2010) provided an early overview of rubric use in higher education. Panadero & Jonsson (2013) and Jonsson & Svingby (2007) reviewed the formative use of rubrics and their effects on learning and self-regulation. Brookhart & Chen (2015) analysed the design and educational impact of descriptive rubrics. Cockett & Jackson (2018) and Brookhart (2018) focused on implementation and design features. While these reviews are consistent in their findings, the lack of meta-analytic data means we must treat conclusions with caution.
Brookhart, S. M. (2018). Appropriate criteria: Key to effective rubrics. Frontiers in Education, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2018.00022
Brookhart, S. M., & Chen, F. (2015). The quality and effectiveness of descriptive rubrics. Educational Review, 67(3), 343–368. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2014.929565
Cockett, A., & Jackson, C. (2018). The use of assessment rubrics to enhance feedback in higher education: An integrative literature review. Nurse Education Today, 69, 8–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2018.06.022
Jonsson, A., & Svingby, G. (2007). The use of scoring rubrics: Reliability, validity and educational consequences. Educational Research Review, 2(2), 130–144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2007.05.002
Panadero, E., & Jonsson, A. (2020). A critical review of the arguments against the use of rubrics. Educational Research Review, 30, 100329. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2020.100329
Panadero, E., & Jonsson, A. (2013). The use of scoring rubrics for formative assessment purposes revisited: A review. Educational Research Review, 9(1), 129–144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2013.01.002
Reddy, Y. M., & Andrade, H. (2010). A review of rubric use in higher education. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(4), 435–448. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930902862859
