This research explores the implementation of self-assessment (SA) in educational settings, focusing on law students’ presentation skills. This study examines the efficacy of SA criteria by introducing Actionable Assessment Criteria (AAC), which emphasizes explicit and structured self-evaluation methods. Utilizing a mixed-method approach, this study involved 85 second-year undergraduate law students from a college in Goa, India, over two academic semesters. Data was collected via observations, surveys, and performance analyses. The first semester (C1) employed a flexible SA criterion, while the second (C2) implemented the newly conceptualized explicit criterion AAC. Both these models were compared with the traditional assessment criterion (C0). The research was conducted using Google Sheets for data collection and evaluation transparency. The findings show a positive correlation between the explicitness of assessment criteria and students’ academic performance and perceptions. In surveys, 69.1% of students reported that AAC method (C2) was the most effective in improving their performance, compared to 22.2% for the implicit method (C1) and 8.6% for traditional methods (C0). Additionally, 67.9% of students felt better prepared for presentations under C2, and 72.8% believed it helped them identify their strengths and weaknesses more accurately. The study highlights the need for educator-driven interventions to create effective SA frameworks that promote self-reflected learning.