rubricist

A rubricist is a person who writes rubrics or designs rubrics for texts. The term originates from the practice of rubrication, the addition of red or colored text to distinguish headings, instructions, or important passages within a manuscript or printed work. The word rubric comes from Latin rubrica, meaning red chalk or red ink.

Historically, rubricists were scribes or scribal assistants in medieval and early modern manuscript production. In liturgical and devotional books such as missals, breviaries, and psalters, rubrics provided directions for how to perform ceremonies, when to recite prayers, or how to structure the text. These instructions were often written in red ink to stand out from the main body of text, guiding readers and performers. Rubrication helped organize complex liturgical cycles and facilitated correct ritual practice.

In contemporary usage, rubric can refer to a scoring guide used to assess performance or works in education and other fields. A rubricist in this context would be someone who designs or selects rubrics—defining criteria, performance levels, and descriptive indicators to evaluate outcomes. Such work emphasizes clarity, alignment with objectives, and reliability across evaluators. The term is uncommon in everyday use, with terms like rubric designer, assessment designer, or evaluator more frequently employed.

Related concepts include rubrication (the act of applying rubrics), rubric (the instruction or heading in red), and assessment rubrics used to measure achievement.