After reading my article, "The Trouble with Rubrics," I honestly feel a bit rattled. I was in very strong support of rubrics, and I am now left feeling unsure. I read some of the updates defending rubrics and felt conflicted all over again. Yesica pulled out the idea from "In Defense of Rubrics" about rubrics being a wonderful map with directions. "After all you wouldn't ask someone to dinner and not give them directions to your house!" That idea really stuck with me. 

However, Kohn pulls out so many great points I had not thought about. For example, Accroding to Kohn, "Research shows three reliable effects when students are graded: They tend to think less deeply, avoid taking risks, and lose interest in the learning itself.1 The ultimate goal of authentic assessment must be the elimination of grades. But rubrics actually help to legitimate grades by offering a newway to derive them. They do nothing to address the
terrible reality of students who have been led to focus on getting A’s rather than on making sense of ideas. (p. 12)" I did not know the research presented on student intrinisic motivation and how rubrics can be a detriment. 

So many quotes stood out to me in Kohn's article especially when discussing with Mabry, "Students, presumably having grown accustomed to rubrics in other classrooms, now seemed “unable to function unless every required item is spelled out for them in a grid and assigned a point value. Worse than that,” she added, 'they do not have confidence in their thinking or writing skills and seem unwilling to really take risks' (email to author) (p 13)." My students often struggle with this learned helplessnees. I want to think through how to set criteria for my students that they can follow, but potentially not a rubric. I am unsure of my stance. I am left unsure and needing to do more reflection.