The Check-list Chick!

As many of you are aware, I have experience in the field of health care that spans greater than 20 years. My experience pre-dates my high school graduation. As a health care employee, I have always been given a series of steps to complete tasks in a proficient manner. This began with a schedule of what time the ice and trays were passed out to the nursing home residents. The daily assignment also included the time that all residents should be tucked in bed. As a nursing student and early in my career as a Registered Nurse, every procedure learned was based on a technique that had been scientifically studied and proven to be the best method to the designated outcome. My final career exploration prior to the classroom was as a clinical research professional. This career was centered on a list of Inclusion/Exclusion criteria. Subjects enrolled in all clinical trials are to meet the Inclusion/Exclusion criteria 100%, prior to the enrollment in a clinical trial. The Inclusion/Exclusion criteria was presented as an elaborate check list consisting of color coded boxes indicating that a subject did not qualify for study enrollment if this box was checked. My career has been dominated by a check list of some sort to evaluate how well a job was executed.

I walked into NTI the summer of 2009 without a clue in the world what a the letters—R U B R I C meant. I quickly realized that it was a tool that I had used over and over again to complete tasks in an efficient and effective manner, the familiar check-list. The use of the rubric for the evaluation of student work gives the student a plan for success. It is the student’s responsibility to use the tool to develop the product based on the guidelines listed on their personal check-list. As a professional, I have found the rubric to be a friendly support in the success of my educational endeavors. As a parent, my first questions to my children center around the criteria listed on the assigned rubric. As an instructor, I develop a step-by step check-list that walks the student down the pathway of success. I value a complete product. I value knowing what is expected of me prior to executing a plan. I value the success of completing a task the way it designed to be completed. I feel that a rubric gives each student the opportunity to seize the success that I hold in high esteem.