Assessment Evaluation

Use of Rubrics

  1. Rubric Criteria. Use rubrics to outline clear grading, assessment standards, and expectations of student performance on all assessments. Rubrics can be applied to Canvas Assignments and Discussion Forums.
  2. Rubric-Aligned Examples. Provide examples of work that meet your expectations along with specific evaluation criteria. Students need to understand how they are being graded and be able to judge the quality of their own work. A student feeling in the dark about what is expected from them may be more likely to turn to outside help.

Minimize Plagiarism

  1. Assessment Design. The following strategies can be used to minimize plagiarism in research papers:
    • Provide information on proper citation.
    • Ask students to choose a topic of relevance to them personally.
    • Submit papers in stages.
    • Require an annotated bibliography.
    • Don’t allow last-minute changes in topic.
    • Provide a list of topics for students to choose from, using unique or unusual topics.
    • Make paper requirements very specific.
    • Provide a bibliography for students to use.
    • Take advantage of the ‘Turnitin’ Simcheck tool.
  2. Use the Turnitin SimCheck Tool. Any time students submit a written product, you can enable SimCheck in Canvas. SimCheck will report content that matches an article, website, or another student’s work. The Center for Teaching and Learning has created a tutorial to assist you in using Turnitin SimCheck. Remember, be proactive and discuss plagiarism prior to students submitting work.
    • How to require students to use the Turnitin SimCheck detection tool: After reviewing the academic integrity reminder video, have students electronically sign a contract that lists what the university considers cheating and the plagiarism tool to be used. Include a link to the university website that houses the academic integrity policy and require a signed contract prior to beginning the exam. Use the Canvas survey tool feature, to execute the Simcheck Consent Form agreement as an assignment prior to the beginning of the course. If students do not agree to the tool, provide them with alternate assessments that require more details than the original assessment.