Many states release constructed-response items from the statewide assessment programs Measured Progress helps to develop. By viewing these items, teachers can gain valuable insight into their requirements, and students can see the kinds of responses that achieve high scores.

This mathematics test question (item), called “Country Inn,” is a four-point, constructed-response (CR) item that provides a good introduction to scoring a common type of CR. It was written to assess the Maine Learning Results, or standard D-4.

A rubric, or scoring guide, is created for each item based on the standard that item is assessing. Without the rubric, scoring could be unsystematic and subject to personal bias. In the mathematics content area, we often see both a general (holistic) rubric and a more specific, item-based rubric. Each rubric outlines the four-point scale, as well as “zero” and “blank” scores, and provides descriptions of the requirements necessary to meet each score on that scale.

The general rubric describes what the student must do to meet each score criterion. For example:

• a four-score paper “demonstrates a thorough understanding of counting procedures by determining . . . combinations and communicating correct strategies”;
• the three-score criterion uses words such as, “with a minor error or omission”;
• the two score speaks of a “basic understanding”; and
• the one-score uses the word “minimal.”

However, mathematics responses sometimes can be difficult to assess using the terms in this guide; students use many different strategies and the language of mathematics is often difficult to categorize in words such as “thorough,” “general,” “basic,” and “minimal.”

A more specific rubric, item-based (also called “Training Notes”) is created to make scoring of each mathematics item accurate, dependable, and specific to that item’s needs. Most math rubrics are called “points-for-parts” rubrics.

The scoring guide for “Country Inn” is straightforward. The student can accumulate up to four points by completing the tasks required in the item. It is easy to become familiar yourself with a rubric based on a one-to-one ratio; points to parts of the response. (Note that for a “zero” score, the response must have some student-generated information that is irrelevant to the item and does not show knowledge about the item in the way it is being assessed.)

Below the scoring guide, we see a breakdown of how the score points are allotted in each response. In “Country Inn,” for example, a student can receive up to two total points in part a, and there are multiple ways to receive those two points.

Looking at the student responses will clarify how the rubric works. A student response has been supplied for each score point for “Country Inn,” and each response is annotated regarding the score it was given.

Sometimes student responses are difficult to score via the specific rubric, since not all of the contingencies of student response patterns can be included there. In these instances, additional training notes and verbal training can help clarify a score, or the general rubric becomes a helpful tool as well.

Released items and rubrics can serve as an excellent teaching aid and tool in the classroom. We hope you find these and the other resources in our newsletters and on our Web site useful.