Interactive Assessment-Post 2

As a professor of indigenous students, I am always looking for new technology to engage my students. I am a Southern-Puerto Rican, never lacking in conversation, but as I began teaching, feedback from my students was simply a scrunch of the nose or a raise of their eyebrows. I needed more. From that point on, I began the constant search for interactive media that would give me some idea of what my students were coming to the classroom understanding and what I needed to integrate into my lessons. I needed a type of formative assessment that was fun and playful while collecting statistical information for me to use to scaffold instruction. I can build test in our online classroom Populi that will grade itself but they are boring and tend to bring great anxiety, even if they are open notes/texts. I can build quizzes or test in Google Classroom using Google forms that is a little more interesting but still not the gaming vibe I am looking for to connect with my students in their early 20’s. I had to decide what was more important, assessing content knowledge or having data. I want BOTH! So I compromised and used Populi and Google Forms to give concrete data for pre/post assessments and other online interactive platforms to be used to fill in the gaps as interactive classroom activities.

The top 3 platforms my students’ have enjoyed are:

1. Kahoots   This is a FREE online trivia site with thousands of games already created or you can create your own from scratch. Simply find the topic you are covering, select begin and the site will give you a unique number code for your students to type in via their phones, ipads or other devices. The students need to select their own unique names to track points. Quizes vary from 4+ questions.  Benefits: Can be used from any device, it is Fun and interactive……….Disadvantages: Does not save data to assess individual or whole class competency  and students may feel intimidated by public scoring
2. Quizizz has a lot of the same features of kahoots and can be used on any device, but instead of everyone seeing the rankings of the class, this is only viewed by the instructor. It is FREE, set up very similarly to kahoots, but has the additional feature of sharing the link on social media. Students must enter the unique game code, select “go”, enter their name or student number (instructor’s have veto power if names are inappropriate), then they begin the quiz. Instructors are able to see the progress of the class, review a report of individual/group results, gives students’ immediate feedback and has the capability of saving the scores on a spreadsheet for data entries in your grade book. Benefits: Can be used from any device, can access from social media to give access to students outside of the classroom setting, gives immediate individual/group results (breaking down individual questions), is anonymous so there is not an anxiety of performance in front of peers, can be adjusted for various languages (but does not include Alaska Native languages) compiles reports to be saved as a spreadsheet and entered in grade books for data points.
3. Quizlet   Is yet another FREE online platform that can be used to build vocabulary, content comprehension and assessment. Instructors can add images, create interactive fun activities, include language variations (again, does not include Alaska Native languages) to differentiate learning. In order to set up, teachers can choose from pre-existing activities or they can create their own. Unlike the other platforms listed above quizlet allows students to create activities for project based learning or individual learning. Instructors and students can “share” to link their quizlets or email them. Unfortunately, it does not create individual or class reports, but instructors can have students screen capture their scores and send them to in. Benefits: It has the most diverse interactive applications and accessibility for both educators and students, it can be used on any device, it is very user friendly, it has language differentiation, it is anonymous from peers, the quizzes have self correcting mechanisms built in. Disadvantages: Does not create reports or give instructors immediate assessment data.

Screen Cast O Matic-Post 1

As a Mom of 3 school age children, I have had the opportunity to experience various forms of technology that support their studies. One of these tools is Screen Cast O Matic. This is a free video screen sharing platform that allows multiple applications in the classroom. With my children, it was used to give feedback with the assignment rubric outlined and super easy to follow as the teacher evaluated their work. In the classes I teach, I use it to create a blended classroom experience or among my colleagues to highlight new features with our online classroom. I try to have the videos no more than 10 minutes with the screen sharing. It is a nice way to support students of varied abilities, especially those who are auditory or visual learners. It also features a yellow tracking cursor that gives directional focus to students needing more literacy support. I am considering upgrading to some paid features, but for the time being, it is serving my needs well in the classroom to support students.