Make Color Coding Optional in Rubrics

[kstack]

Rubrics have changed recently, adding color coding to the scores, with green for the highest scores and then orange and red for lower marks. I emphasize to my students that C or B is a good score, but now those who have earned a C or B have red marks on their rubrics. The color coding does not reflect my judgment of my students' achievements. Teachers should have the ability to disable color coding in rubrics, or it should be removed altogether. For more information, please see the discussion: New color coding in rubrics 

[Stef_retired]

 @kstack ‌, thank you for sharing this idea. You might also be interested in https://community.canvaslms.com/ideas/11928-more-color-options-for-non-scoring-rubrics , which is currently open for voting.

[kstack]

Thank you!

[frankel]

Why is this idea archived already and not open for voting?

[Stef_retired]

Fixed! Thank you, frankel‌.

[Tasha_Biesinger]

We have faculty at our institution that have the same sentiments! They do not agree with the Green/Yellow/Red highlighting. Giving them the ability to turn off the color coding, or pick their own accessible colors, would be great!

[thayerm]

This is a really frustrating change. The rubric needs to indicate that its marked (before it did with green, regardless of score), but in the Learning Mastery it would still show all of the colors. I would like it to function like this again, even if its is an institutional or individual instructor choice. The different colors are helpful when looking at Learning Mastery as a whole, but confusing and I think to discouraging for students when seen in the rubric. 

[nancy_lachance]

I just want to register my strong agreement and add a few notes.  It is critical that the rubric scoring be clearly visible when you are working in a rubric.  I agree that the colors are not important, but the ability to have the completed items (whether the student was given full or partial credit) should be maintained.  Why not just shade the option selected?  Get rid of the color-coding and just shade the selection.  Currently, when one is working in a long, complex rubric, being able to ensure that every criterion is rated is highly important.  I would also add (once again) that the comments provided in the rubric should be much more visible to students and easy to find.  

[ronmarx]

Another rubric idea for your consideration: https://community.canvaslms.com/ideas/12350-simplify-rubrics-look-and-operation .

[lewisale]

This is an important vote!  It took me more time to use the rubric with the color coding update to include time checking the rubric to ensure I did not miss any of the criteria.  I think giving the different rubric levels certain colors is assigning meaning behind the color that may differ from the Instructor's meaning.  I could see where students could become discouraged seeing red marks in their rubrics.  It is essential for this to be optional. I also wondered about accessibility with the use of colors.

[Steven_S]

Although outcomes can take some time and effort to set up and build into rubrics, they do allow you to set your own standard for "mastery" which I believe will control the color coding displayed. 

The last time I tried working with outcomes, any updates had to be made on the outcomes screen, and then transferring the update to the rubric required editing the rubric by deleting the original outcome based criterion and then creating a new association to the updated outcome.  There's room for improvement in that workflow, but you will decide what standard creates the green color.

[Jess_M]

I would like to add that, by playing around with the outcomes (if using them for the rubric) I can get green to appear for all grades from pass and above... however it drops out and doesn't seem to have any logic behind it. It also seems that once someone has started grading, the updates in outcomes do not flow through. 

A simply ability for us to choose if we have colours and how they present and the rubric creation level would be highly beneficial. Especially now, students are doing what they can during these difficult times. Being met with a wall of red is demoralising. 

[lehman_d]

Color coding modules would be beneficial in P-12 education.  

[slfairburn]

Another vote for the ability to change this! I use Meets Target at a 4 and keep 5 for Exceeding the Target. My kids need to know that it's PERFECTLY OKAY to get 4s, and it doesn't feel good to get orange/red for just meeting the target. It feels like they failed, when they didn't!

[kelbrooks]

Now that we are using Canvas even more to communicate with our students, it's that much more important to be clear. The color coded rubric sends my students a mixed message and it contradicts my grading standard (like many who have already commented, a red "warning" color is only needed for the lowest and maybe second to lowest rating). This, in turn, causes undue confusion and stress on students.

Please address this and, at the very least give instructors an option to opt in or out of color coded rubrics.

[manderson8]

Amen! I use standards based scoring with three-point rubrics where the central item would be considered an "A" on a conventional scale. I reserve the highest level to call out rare exceptions that I think are unusually extraordinary. It's demoralizing on both ends that Canvas makes my students feel deficient when they're doing great work. 😞

[SH_Khatun]

(I didn't find this thread when I posted this originally - it obviously reiterates a lot of what has already been said)

When I use a rubric (which I do for pretty much all graded assignments), the color coding associated with the grade seems to imply that anything less than a perfect score is concerning.

For example, a perfect score is green - which has the cultural association of "go". Anything less than a perfect score has progressively deeper shades from orange to red associated with it, implying not only "stop", but that something is wrong.

The issue with this is that it reinforces the same impulses that lead to grade inflation and unrealistic expectations among students. There is nothing "wrong" with getting an 85/100 on an exam, it just means that there is room for improvement. Unfortunately, the color coding that Canvas uses implies the former rather than allowing for the latter.

[tmckamey]

These questions have been raised since 2018, it seems. Why is there no solution yet!?

At least, is there some documentation that explains what point value Canvas uses to determine which color to apply so I can work around this?

[KimG]

I agree with the comment above! Why hasn't Canvas changed this yet!?! 

Seeing red and orange lines across the screen is NOT motivating for students. I don't even grade in red pen on paper copies. Why is there any need for color at all??

Step it up Canvas! This is totally out of line with current teaching philosophy. 

[AlisonD]

This is so frustrating!  I have a 5 point rubric that is intentionally designed to offer nuanced responses in the top categories (100%, 90%, 85% and 80%) and then require students to revise if they earn a C or below.  However, as I grade, anything other than 100% is coded red (!) which defeats the academic purposes of the scale.  Canvas - color codes like these should be set/refined by individual instructors, not the system!!