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A rubric in MESO is a grid: criteria down the side, performance levels across the top, and a descriptor in every cell. It is generated from the unit’s context — its outcomes, its topic and its assessment method — and then it is yours to edit.

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Choosing a scale

You pick a rubric scale, which sets the performance levels. The available scales are standard educational rubric scales for the Irish curriculum; the default is a four-level scale running from Exemplary through Proficient and Developing to Beginning. Changing the scale changes the number of columns, and the grid re-colours cleanly at any level count.

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Editing it

Everything in the grid is editable:
  • Criterion names — rename any row
  • Descriptors — click any cell and rewrite it
  • Weights — set how much each criterion contributes
The generated descriptors are usually the part worth rewriting. MESO gets the structure and the criteria close; the wording that distinguishes “Proficient” from “Developing” for your class is a judgement it cannot make.

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Rubrics and outcomes

A rubric built from unit context measures the outcomes the unit was planned against — that is the point of alignment. Before using one, check that each criterion actually maps to something you taught.

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A rubric on its own

You can also generate a rubric as a standalone resource without attaching it to a unit — useful for a one-off piece of work. Generated in a unit’s context it will be sharper, because it knows the outcomes.
Check any levels, marks or weightings before using a rubric for real assessment. MESO drafts these; it does not know your school’s marking conventions.