Relationship between Students’ Perception of a Rubric for Oral Presentations and Their Academic Characteristics

Abstract

The use of rubrics in the evaluation of oral presentations has been associated with several benefits for students. However, it is unknown whether students with better academic marks and greater self-regulation find the use of rubrics more useful or not. This paper aims to assess the relationship between how students perceive the use of a rubric and their academic characteristics, and to analyze the congruence between the professor’s and students’ evaluations when using the rubric. Eighty-five students studying for a Degree in Sport Sciences participated in this study. A rubric for oral presentations was used to assess the students’ performance. The students then filled out a questionnaire about their perception of the validity of the rubric, an assessment of academic performance, and a self-regulation questionnaire. Inverse correlations were observed between the academic record and two items of the rubric validity perception (r < −0.24). Direct correlations were also found between learning oriented self-regulation and four items of the rubric validity perception (r > 0.22). There was very good congruence between the professor’s and students’ marks when using the rubric (ICC = 0.78). The results suggest that the rubric used is a good instrument to ensure fair and consistent evaluations, despite possible differences between evaluators.