Grading Assistance & Rubric Application

Efficiently apply rubrics to student work with consistent, constructive, criterion-level feedback and scoring.

When to Use

• Grade student submissions
• Apply rubrics consistently
• Generate feedback
• Score assessments
• Analyze student work quality

Required Inputs

• Student Work: Submission to grade
• Rubric: Scoring criteria
• Answer Key: For objective items
• Context: Assignment expectations

Workflow

1. Load Rubric and Student Work

Read:

• Rubric criteria and performance levels
• Student submission
• Assignment prompt/expectations
• Learning objectives assessed

2. Analyze Work Against Each Criterion

For each rubric criterion:

Identify Evidence:

• Find relevant content in submission
• Note what student did well
• Note what's missing or weak

Determine Performance Level:

• Compare to rubric descriptors
• Select appropriate level (Exemplary, Proficient, Developing, Beginning)
• Justify selection with specific evidence

Generate Feedback:

• Cite specific strengths
• Identify specific gaps
• Suggest concrete improvements

3. Generate Grading Report

# Grading Report: [ASSIGNMENT]

**Student**: [ID or Anonymous]
**Submission Date**: [Date]
**Graded**: [Date]

## Overall Score

**Total Points**: [X] / [Y] ([Z]%)
**Performance Level**: [Exemplary | Proficient | Developing | Beginning]

## Criterion-Level Scores

### Criterion 1: [Name] (Score: [X]/[Y] - [Level])

**Performance Level**: [Exemplary/Proficient/Developing/Beginning]

**Strengths**:
- [Specific thing student did well with quote/reference]
- [Another strength with evidence]

**Areas for Growth**:
- [Specific gap with reference to submission]
- [What's missing or needs improvement]

**Feedback**:
"[Your analysis shows strong understanding of X, particularly when you explained Y. To strengthen this further, consider Z. For example, you could have..."

**Score Justification**:
This scores at [Level] because [specific reasons citing rubric descriptors].

### Criterion 2: [Name] (Score: [X]/[Y] - [Level])

[Same structure for each criterion]

## Overall Comments

**Summary of Performance**:
[2-3 sentences summarizing overall quality, patterns of strength, areas needing attention]

**Specific Recommendations**:
1. [Actionable step 1]
2. [Actionable step 2]
3. [Actionable step 3]

**Encouragement**:
[Positive, growth-oriented closing that motivates continued learning]

## Learning Objectives Assessment

| Objective | Mastery Level | Evidence |
|-----------|---------------|----------|
| LO-1.1 | ✅ Mastered | [Citation from work] |
| LO-1.2 | ⚠️  Developing | [Citation showing partial understanding] |
| LO-1.3 | ❌ Not Yet | [Missing or incorrect] |

## Next Steps for Student

- Review [concept] using [resource]
- Practice [skill] by [activity]
- Seek help with [specific difficulty]
- Prepare for next assignment: [preview]

---

**Grading Metadata**:
- **Grader**: Curriculum Grading Assistant
- **Rubric**: [Link to rubric used]
- **Time**: [Auto-calculated time on task from submission]

4. Batch Grading Features

For multiple submissions:

Consistency Checks:

• Compare scores across students
• Flag outliers for review
• Ensure rubric applied uniformly

Common Error Identification:

• Track recurring mistakes
• Identify patterns
• Generate group feedback opportunity

Efficiency Tools:

• Templates for common feedback
• Quick codes for frequent comments
• Progress tracking

5. Auto-Grading (Objective Items)

For MC, T/F, fill-in-blank with answer keys:

**Auto-Graded Section**

| Item | Student Answer | Correct Answer | Points |
|------|----------------|----------------|--------|
| MC-1 | B | B | 1/1 ✅ |
| MC-2 | A | C | 0/1 ❌ |
| MC-3 | D | D | 1/1 ✅ |

**Section Score**: 2/3 (67%)

**Item Feedback**:
- Item MC-2: Incorrect. The correct answer is C because [explanation]. Review [concept].

6. Feedback Quality Standards

Ensure feedback is: ✅ Specific: Cites actual work, not generic ✅ Actionable: Clear steps to improve ✅ Balanced: Strengths and growth areas ✅ Growth-Oriented: Encourages learning ✅ Aligned: References rubric and objectives ✅ Timely: Generated quickly for fast return

7. CLI Interface

# Grade single submission
/curriculum.grade-assist --submission "student1-essay.pdf" --rubric "essay-rubric.md" --objective "LO-2.1"

# Batch grade
/curriculum.grade-assist --submissions "submissions/*.pdf" --rubric "rubric.md" --batch

# Auto-grade objective items
/curriculum.grade-assist --quiz "quiz-responses.csv" --answer-key "answers.json" --auto

# Consistency check
/curriculum.grade-assist --review-consistency --graded "graded/*.md"

# Help
/curriculum.grade-assist --help

Educational Level Adaptations

K-5:

• Simple, encouraging feedback
• Focus on effort and progress
• Visual feedback (stickers, stamps)
• Parent-friendly language

6-8:

• Balance praise and critique
• Specific skill development focus
• Encourage self-assessment
• Age-appropriate tone

9-12:

• Detailed, analytical feedback
• College-prep quality expectations
• Emphasize critical thinking
• Professional tone

Higher Ed:

• Scholarly feedback
• Discipline-specific criteria
• Research and argument quality
• Professional development focus

Composition with Other Skills

Input from:

• /curriculum.assess-design - Rubrics
• /curriculum.develop-items - Answer keys
• /curriculum.design - Learning objectives

Output to:

• /curriculum.analyze-outcomes - Grading data for analytics
• Students for learning
• Gradebook systems

Exit Codes

• 0: Grading completed successfully
• 1: Cannot load rubric
• 2: Cannot access student work
• 3: Invalid grading configuration
• 4: Rubric-work mismatch