Summative Rubrics
Summative rubrics are assessment tools that are utilized to check student learning at the the end of an instructional unit by measuring the learning against a specified criteria. They are valuable as they offer a simple outline for grading and they help to make evaluations more consistent and transparent.
The main aim of summative rubrics is to offer a standard evaluation framework that will help teachers to measure learners' performance against predefined learning objectives. For instance, when a student writes an essay, a summative rubric could cover specific areas such as structure, idea development, language, and format, thus, allowing the teacher to assign a final grade based on the overall assessment.
The one types of rubrics for concluding the student learning at the end of an instructional period is summative rubric, whereas the formative rubrics are the ones that tackle the ongoing assessment of the learner and hence gives learning feedback. E.g. the summative rubric can be utilized in a final project, the formative rubric can be used in drafts of a project that need modifications before the submission of the final draft.
A summative rubric can be, for instance, the one used for a science project with separate assessment criteria for research quality, presentation skills, and understanding of the scientific method. Each of those criteria could be rated on a scale of 1 to 4 where 1 refers to 'needs improvement' and 4 means 'exemplary performance.' Hence, combining the ratings can give a total score that signifies the student's overall achievement on the project.
The advantages of summative rubrics are that they clarify grading, ensure consistent evaluations and they help to deliver constructive feedback; they are also useful in the communication of the criteria to the students involved so that these students will comprehend what should be done to perform at different levels, for instance, meeting or exceeding set targets for learning.