In theory, rubrics are useful because they inform students of their level of achievement, providing detailed descriptions of a range of evaluation criteria. Teachers know it's best practice to continually update and tweak their rubrics in response to student performance and feedback. But the question remains: do students actually use these detailed rubrics? Matthew Leisen's suspicion is that they do not, due to some basic flaws in how traditional rubrics are designed and used. He believes by streamlining organization and using positive descriptors, teachers can turn rubrics into tools that students really use.