For the past 4 years, I have been using video rubrics as a means of supporting student success in my Special Education Techniques (SET) courses at Vanier College. These interactive videos allow me to thoroughly explain assignment instructions and marking rubrics in detail while prompting students with questions to enhance their understanding of the assessments, increasing their ability to effectively edit them before handing them in.
The problem with traditional written rubrics
Two of our 1st-year Clinical Observation courses in the SET program prepare students for the observation reports that they will need to submit during their internships (stages). Writing these reports, students often need to switch between writing styles within a single report.
For example, during stages students have to complete reports on significant client behaviour that require shifts in tone and language as they:
- report background information
- objectively describe behaviour
- analyze possible reasons the behaviour happened
- design an action plan
Another report example is writing a thorough profile of a client’s history and current functioning, which requires similar stylistic juggling. There are over 20 sections to this, each with unique requirements. It’s a lot to manage, and understandably, students often struggle to meet the expectations.
While grading these assignments, I found myself repeatedly bumping into the same issues despite having provided a detailed and thorough written rubric. There were common, avoidable errors that made me increasingly frustrated. Students often excelled in 1 section while struggling significantly in others, leading to inconsistent performance across their reports. I knew these recurring mistakes could be easily fixed with better guidance.
At one point, I realized I needed to change my approach. If I wanted to see improvement, I had to find a better way to help students understand what was expected of them. I needed something more interactive and engaging than the traditional written rubric.
I started wondering: What if I could explain the instructions and the marking criteria directly to my students in a way that felt personal and clear while also anticipating their questions?
Four questions to guide pedagogical change
A few years ago, I was inspired by the book How to Be Perfect by Michael Schur, in which he posed 4 key questions for personal growth. I adopted these questions to guide the pedagogical change I wanted to make:
- What are we doing?
- Why are we doing it?
- Is there something better we could do?
- Why is it better?
1. What are we doing?
In my program, teachers assign comprehensive reports, and we rely on detailed rubrics to clarify expectations. Comprehensive and well-designed rubrics are a fundamental pedagogical tool for students. They help:
- clarify and communicate teacher expectations
- clearly indicate what is required for full marks in each section
- minimize surprises across the different areas of the assessment
2. Why are we doing it?
The goal of using rubrics is to support student success by setting clear standards. However, the rubrics we used were “static.” While thorough, these paper-based rubrics often fell short for several reasons.
First, rubrics were typically shared weeks before students completed assignments. While I always provided detailed explanations of the rubric during class, the gap between this discussion and submission often led to nuances being missed. Instructions given verbally or visually often resonate differently than those that are read by the students when they are alone.
Second, students juggle multiple assignments, often working outside class hours or with limited time to review the rubric thoroughly. This sometimes resulted in rushed work and overlooked details—less proofreading, editing, or double-checking.
Finally, traditional rubrics were rarely used proactively. They became tools for explaining grades after the fact rather than guiding students to improve their performance beforehand. Instead of empowering students to aim for better outcomes, they often functioned as a post-mortem on what went wrong.
3. Is there something better we could do?
After recognizing the limitations of static rubrics, I explored alternative strategies for students to engage with rubrics more dynamically. I gave students time in class, sometimes individually and other times in pairs, to do a “pencil edit” on their printed assignments after reviewing the rubric.
When the pandemic hit and we shifted to online teaching, these methods became impractical. A Performa course I was taking at that time challenged me to find a tool that would work well in an online environment. It led me to think about how technology could enhance my teaching, and that’s when the idea of video rubrics emerged.
Great idea! And it fits perfectly with the PED602 Performa course I’m presently completing. Thanks for the suggestion!
Thank you for taking the time to comment; I’m glad the concept connected with you!