This guide explains how to create a rubric item in Atomic Assessments that can be reused across assessments as a rubric reference during grading.
What is a Rubric Reference?
A rubric reference is a rubric stored as a standalone item in your item bank. It can be attached to other items or used during manual scoring to ensure consistent grading based on shared criteria.
A rubric reference can contain multiple questions to provide tailored rubric feedback
Step 1: Create a Rubric Item
-
Navigate to the Atomic Assessments authoring interface from your LMS (e.g., Canvas or D2L).
-
Create a New Item in the Content Manager
- Click on the More Options menu and select the Content Manager. Navigate to the Items tab.
-
Click + New Item.
-
Give the item a clear title (e.g.,
Argumentative Essay Rubric Reference).
-
Add a Rubric Elements
-
In the item editor, click + Add and select questions types you want to use. For essays, we recommend Choice Matrix.
-
Configure your rubric question. Below is an example for an essay question:
-
Add full rubric criteria in the Compose Question field (e.g., “Thesis,” “Evidence,” “Organization”).
-
Define the criteria and performance levels (e.g., “Excellent,” “Good,” “Needs Improvement”). In the Stems and Options sections. Click the +Add button to add more options.
-
Leave the correct answer blank and set the scoring type to Partial match per response.
-
- Add any additional questions as necessary.
-
-
Save and Publish the Item
-
Save the item to your item bank.
-
Step 2: Use the Rubric Item as a Reference
-
Copy the reference ID for your rubric item.
-
Go to the item you want to attach the rubric to and click edit
-
Scroll down in the More Options section for the question and find Rubric Reference.
-
Paste the ID of your rubric item in the field and Save the question.
Step 3: Grading
- Navigate to a student attempt in the Reports section of an assessment using your rubric.
- In the attempt reviewer, the teacher feedback field will be replaced with the rubric item.