A Rubric to Enrich Student Writing and Understanding

Abstract

Abstract-The importance of effective communication, both written and oral, has been widely documented within the STEM community. In fact, the ability to communicate effectively is a skillset that is often required by employers. Oftentimes it is challenging to make the transition from academia to the work place. The ability to communicate well is a critical element of this transition. This paper will describe a more authentic experience using a professional conference format that provides students an opportunity to sharpen both their written and oral communication skills. The professional conference paper activity has been utilized in a second-level physics course at American University for 15 years. The conference paper activity allows students to experience all aspects of a professional conference, which is something that they do not get in other courses. This paper will describe the conference paper activity and focus on the use of a rubric that has recently been implemented in order to assist students during multiple phases of the writing process. Through the conference paper, students must communicate about a technical topic in physics while simultaneously connecting that topic to their major field of study. Numerous steps are involved in the paper writing process and each one is designed to emulate an actual conference. The conference paper activity and the associated rubric discussed in this paper offer a unique opportunity for multiple points of feedback, both from the instructor and from their classmates, while the writing process is taking place. Too often in academia a writing activity is designed in such a way that students merely submit their final written papers for a grade. Once a final paper is submitted, there is no opportunity for feedback that will aid in the actual development and writing of the paper. A more traditional paper writing experience does not provide opportunities for formative feedback prior to submission of the final paper. Hence, students do not have the necessary opportunities to really think about and reflect on what they are writing. This paper will address the importance of providing this more formative feedback using a unique rubric designed to assist students while the writing is actually taking place. A summary of students' perceptions of this process will also be provided.Index Terms-Authentic assessment, formative assessment, learning outcomes, rubric development, student writing, written and oral communication.

Using Online Discussions to Develop the Entrepreneurial Mindset in Environmental Engineering Undergraduates: A Case Study

“…In the case of online discussions being deployed in large classes, instructors might find it helpful to assign student discussion leaders to help encourage timely and appropriate discussions. With respect to providing clarity for student expectations, a rubric is key [29,30]. A rubric not only attests to the quality expected within the discussion, but also provides requirements for minimum quantity of initial posts and response posts.…”

An Examination of Student Development Theory in the Context of Writing Instruction

“…For example, Lengelle and Meijers (2014) found students who participated in reflective writing were more engaged and self-directed because self-assessment increased one's ability to learn from mistakes (Levett-Jones, 2006). Furthermore, Larkin (2015) found students who self-assessed could identify what was wrong with their thinking and why their thinking was flawed.…”

“…Improving writing competence and skill is a visible part of university-level assessment. In the sciences, Klein and Carney (2014), Larkin (2015), and Otfinowski and Silva-Opps (2015) identified writing as a major program outcome and noted improving skills through curriculum writing exercises. In the social/service professions, social workers (Grise-Owens & Crum, 2012), nurses (Levette-Jones, 2006), counselors (Blimling, 2013), and educators (Hutchinson & Tracey, 2015) developed similar skill development, especially through the reflective writing process.…”

“…Students in counseling (Murdock, Stipanovick, & Lucas, 2013) nursing (Levett-Jones, 2006), social work (Grise-Owens & Crum, 2012), business (Boyd, 2013), biology (Otfinkowski & Silva-Opps, 2015), chemistry (Klein & Carney, 2014), and physics (Larkin, 2015) demonstrated increased awareness of their role as communicators and increased connection to professional community after the incorporation of such exercises. Reflective writing helps students develop a sense of voice (progressing in their writing skill from compliance-type writing to non-formulaic, creative well-thought-out prose; Ryan, 2014), become aware of their emotions, and put themselves in their readers' shoes.…”

“…Teachers and peers can cultivate students' development of interpersonal relationships through the writing and feedback process (Larkin, 2015). Interpersonal relationships mediated by writing can assist with professional identity development (Murdock et al, 2013) because they promote a connection among students, their cohort, and their profession (Boyd, 2013).…”