This is a great reminder that rubrics aren't just used to assess student work, but also to encourage student learning. Often times, I think, rubrics are viewed as a way of assigning a student a grade. When in fact, they should be encouraging students to do well.
the criteria must be made clear to them and the jargon used must not only be understandable to the student but also be linked specifically to classroom instruction
Student friendly language and needs to match what is being done in the classroom. Rubrics become impossible when students don't understand what is being measured or what is expected.
Makes self-assessment more difficult as well as creates students that are unsure of the expectations, and inevitably the question, "Is this good enough?".
A step I have never done before. My pilot test was always with the first group of students I was using the rubric with. They were my guinea pigs. Keeping samples of student work to pilot test a new rubric on is a great idea.
I think this is important even in a face-to-face classroom. We need to make sure that the technology we are choosing to use enhances the learning; and we are not just using it to be using it.
online collaboration group work that is goal-oriented
How much more real world can one get?! Talk about preparing students for the 21st Century. I think if an online environment is used correctly, students have an awesome opportunity to collaborate and learn to work together to achieve a common goal.