Linking Rubric Criteria to Outcomes – How the Proficiency Scale Settings Translate Scores into Outcomes Achievement

Updated: September 2021

Description:  Faculty often use rubrics to score student work either in the learning management system or directly in AEFIS.  Those rubric criterion can be individually linked to outcomes in AEFIS* to provide granular outcomes assessment.  The user can then determine what percentage of points a student earned on that criterion translates to the level of outcome achievement on the AEFIS proficiency scale. This guide will explain how the AEFIS system uses the proficiency scale settings set by the Institution, College, Department, Program, Course or Faculty to calculate student scores and match them to the Proficiency Scale level to determine student outcome achievement.

*AEFIS Assignments, Canvas Assignments and D2L Brightspace Assignments

Applicable To:  Institution Admin, College Admin, Department Admin, Program Coordinator, Course Coordinator, Course Section Director, Instructor

If you are new to linking AEFIS Assignments to Outcomes, please start with the following guides:

• Outcomes Assessment + Evidence Collection Training Videos
• Link Assignments to Outcomes in a Course/Co-curricular Section (New User Interface)
• Link Assignments to Outcomes in a Course/Co-curricular Section (Legacy Interface)

If you are new to the Proficiency Scale, please see the following guide:

• Setting the Proficiency Scale when Linking Assignments

How to link Rubric Criterion when the Criterion has a different number of levels of student achievement than the Proficiency Scale set in AEFIS?

For these examples, we will use the rubric criterion seen below to link to an AEFIS outcome.  This is one of many criteria in the assignment, but in this case, it is the criterion that evaluates a specific student learning outcome.  (Note this is the view from the AEFIS Scorebook)

Below is the Outcome and Proficiency Scale that this criterion will link to.  (Note this view is from the Student Outcomes page of the Program.)

The assignment rubric criterion that will be linked to the Comprehend and Interpret Texts outcome contains three levels, but there are four levels of achievement on that Program’s Proficiency Scale.

In this case, the user needs to adjust the Proficiency Scale Settings on that outcome, to determine how AEFIS will interpret the score/level the student achieves on that criterion, which is a range of 0-3.  Some examples of that interpretation are below:

Example 1: 0 points/Benchmark level on the rubric criterion will be interpreted as on the Proficiency Scale and the rest of the available points will be distributed evenly across the other three Proficiency Scale levels:

The maximum point value of that criterion is 3, so scale settings slider was moved to split at 32.9% of available points (.01-1 point) to meet the level of Apprentice, 33-65.9% (1.01-2 points) and 66-100% (2.01-3 points).  So student scores in each of those point ranges will be interpreted on the corresponding AEFIS proficiency scale level in reporting.  This determination is based on the faculty or administrator’s understanding of the assignment/rubric criterion and its relationship to that outcome.

Option 2:  0 points/Benchmark on the rubric criterion will be interpreted as on the Proficiency Scale and 3 points/Capstone will be interpreted as on the Proficiency Scale, and the rest of the available rubric criterion points/levels will be distributed by their relationship to the other two levels across the Proficiency Scale. 

In this case when a student earns a Benchmark level on the rubric criterion, they will achieve on the Proficiency Scale since 1 point is equal to 0-66.9% of 3 possible points on the criterion.  If the student earns the Proficient level on the rubric criterion, they will achieve the level on Proficiency scale.  However, the student must receive the Capstone level (3 points) to meet the level on the Proficiency Scale.

How do we determine the relationship between Assignment Rubric Criteria and Outcome Proficiency Scales?

That is up to you and your institution!  It may be standard, or it may vary down to the individual assignment rubric criterion level and expected student achievement.

Can we standardize our Assignment Rubric Criteria levels to match our Proficiency Scale in AEFIS?

Yes! But this is not required.  As seen in the examples below, it is all based upon expectations of student learning and achievement on a particular assignment or outcome.