How do I turn a rubric score into a percentage grade?
Add up the points and divide by the most points possible, but look at what that does before you put it in the gradebook. On a four-point rubric, a student who is Approaching on every row earns 2 out of 4, which is 50 percent, and on a 90/80/70/60 scale that is an F. Many teachers make a small conversion chart instead, deciding ahead of time which rubric totals match which grades.
Asked by teachers, answered by Peabody's editors. Checked .
The trouble is that a rubric's levels and a percentage scale measure different things. A rubric level describes the work: Approaching means the student is partway there. A percentage scale assumes every point between 0 and 100 is possible, but on a four-point rubric the lowest level is still 1, not 0.
A conversion chart fixes this. List every possible rubric total, then decide what grade each one deserves: all Meets is a B, say, and mostly Approaching is a C. Write the chart once, share it with your grade-level team if your school wants consistency, and use it for every rubric with the same number of rows and levels.
If your school asks for a straight percentage, the grade calculator on Peabody Teach makes a chart of score to percent and letter grade for any total, and its letter scale can be edited to match your school's.
Weights change the total
If a criterion counts twice, its points count twice in the total. The rubric maker shows each row's most possible points in the score column and the total at the bottom, so you know what to divide by.
Tools that help
- Grade calculator and score chart: Score to percent and letter grade for any total, with an editable letter scale.
- Rubric maker: Prints a score column and the total possible, weights included.