Understanding and Developing Rubrics for Music Performance Assessment

Abstract

A primary difficulty with music performance assessment is managing its subjective nature. To help improve objectivity, rubrics can be used to develop a set of guidelines for clearly assessing student performance. Moreover, rubrics serve as documentation for student achievement that provides music teachers with a written form of accountability. This article examines the complexities of music performance assessment and provides an argument for the benefit of rubrics in the assessment process. In addition, discussion includes an overview of the various types of rubrics as well as suggestions for choosing and writing rubrics to assess musical performances.

Validation of a String Performance Rubric Using the Multifaceted Rasch Measurement Model

“…The information and criteria presented in a rubric helps to ensure that both the student and teacher are informed as to the direction and expectations that will materialize in the classroom, thereby providing a better-established communication link between the teacher and student (Whitcomb, 1999). Rubrics also provide a method for documentation of student achievement levels wherein specific written feedback can be shared with teachers, parents, and students in order to provide evidence of student performance achievement in the music classroom (Wesolowski, 2012). The effective use of rubrics in music performance settings can help students to develop ownership and to take control of their learning efforts (DeLuca & Bolden, 2014).…”

Tracking Student Achievement in Music Performance

“…Constructed-response assessment measures require students to construct a response to a prompt, which may be written or, often in the case of music performance, demonstrated on an instrument. In music performance, students are evaluated based upon predetermined constructs (e.g., criteria, task expectations, and degrees of proficiency outlined in a rubric or rating scale 28 ). Constructed-response measures have also been referred to as authentic assessments, 29 direct assessments, 30 and performance assessments.…”

Assessment in Music Education: from Policy to Practice

“…The performance of music is a very personal act, with interpretation and individuality increasingly distinguishing musicians from their peers as they develop their own style and approach (Wesolowski, 2012). Two performers are unlikely to play a work the same way, indeed assessors who review and critique performers also rarely have exactly the same view or assessment of the performance.…”

“…Two performers are unlikely to play a work the same way, indeed assessors who review and critique performers also rarely have exactly the same view or assessment of the performance. While in some disciplines there are clear expectations in terms of solutions or outcomes, such as in mathematics or accounting, in music there is significant potential for interpretation of performance and hence subjectivity in how it is assessed (Monkhouse, 2010;Wesolowski, 2012). Indeed, assessment of performance has previously been described as hazardous (Stowasser, 1996), while Wesolowski (2012) recently argued that many music teachers even "rely heavily on nonmusic criteria, such as behavior, attitude, attendance, and participation to determine their grades" (p. 37).…”