Another major accomplishment. I found the button that allows me to post a link. Here is the link to my final project on the various assessment tools that I plan to use in the Principles of Microeconomics class I will be teaching in the Fall.
http://http://jschnaedter.jimdo.com/
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Cyber Coaching
Another new word (words) that I don't quite understand. But as is my habit, I will define the concept the way I choose. The role of the instructor seems to be moving from content expert and judge to a facilitator and coach. I believe strongly in this movement, but there is a fear of losing control in a classroom, by not having the right answer or not being able to play the ultimate authority. Over time, I will probably get over this. Cyber, I am assuming has to do with location of instruction and opening that to the internet. I also like this trend, but once again, I need to gain some more comfort with it.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Pre-course Survey
I have never done a precourse survey, but I usually ask my students for their expectations at the beginning of a class. I think I will use a survey like this -
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229FJFLREG3
in the future.
You will have to copy and paste to use the link. Let me know what you think.
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229FJFLREG3
in the future.
You will have to copy and paste to use the link. Let me know what you think.
Monday, July 13, 2009
WIDS
After reading Casey's assessment plan for her journalism class, I gained an appreciation for WIDS or as my wife refers to it Squids. WIDS id basically a database that organizes and link course outcomes with learning plans. I would have like to see some structure in Casey's plan. I have never been a proponent of WIDS because by focusing on organization we may avoid focusing on the real issue - learning. But organization does serve a purpose. It is kind of like grammar and syntax in writing. Not the most important thing, but does have some value.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Assessment Toolbox - Group Project
Midterm Team Report: Assessment Toolbox
Jim Schnaedter, Glenn Sokolowski, Christene Wilson-James
The main focus of instructors in technical college education is to help develop a student’s skills and knowledge base in order for them to be successful in real-world work situations in business and industry. Therefore, assessments must measure a student’s progress and level of learning using a variety of methods that may also be used in their future careers. Instructors should try to assess their students in ways that are comparable to an employer assessing their employees. These similar links between education and employment can help produce quality students and, ultimately, quality and prepared personnel.
Jim Schnaedter: Assessment - Quiz and Test Builders
Probably the most traditional assessment tools in education are tests, exams, and quizzes. Tests can take the form of true/false, multiple choice, fill-in-the- blank, essay, or some combination. One of the major strength of tests is the fact that they are traditional and have been commonly used at all levels of education. This lends to familiarity which leads to comfort and automatic acceptance of tests as effective assessment tools. Another advantage is the flexibility of tests as assessment tools. Tests can range from short quizzes to comprehensive final exams. Tests can be simple true/false to conceptual and argumentative essays. Tests can measure memorization, conceptual and/or persuasive abilities, and they are easy to construct and administer.
Weaknesses of traditional tests seem to be based on the fact that the skills needed to take tests may be as important as the technical of soft skills that they are trying to measure in terms of student success. The ability to memorize ideas, formulas, and facts can play a key role in successful test taking, but memorization plays a much smaller role in the workplace. Basic life skills and the ability to find and utilize a variety of resources appear to be more important. Application of skills, which is difficult in a traditional testing environment, seems to be a better way of assessing real learning. Another weakness in testing may be because of their acceptance, most tests are cognitive, which do not provide a thorough assessment of psychomotor skills. They seem to be the default tool for assessment. However, this seems to be changing. In the Wisconsin Technical College System, hands-on learning and technical skills attainment are emphasized, and memorization plays a very small role. A final issue with test taking is “test anxiety, where a student performs poorly on the assessment tool because of the tool used for the assessment rather than the lack of knowledge or skill in the area being assessed.
An application of testing online that has been found to be very useful is weekly quizzes. One of the benefits is that the student receives feedback on the quiz immediately. Within the online platform of Blackboard, the test option allows the student instant feedback when they complete a quiz. The student is able to view the score, the questions missed, and the correct answers. The system also allows for feedback options, where an instructor can provide individual feedback for each student. The fact that instructors don’t have to grade individual quizzes is beneficial because of the time savings. The element of instructor error is also minimized. Many online instructors allow students to complete online tests open-book, whereas, students can use whatever resources they have available. Also, many technical college instructors choose open resources testing because it relies less on memorization and more on preparation. It also is nearly impossible, short of proctoring, to keep students from using resources.
A learning objective that can be addressed in online quizzes is comprehension and application of the material covered in the designated course textbook. Online quizzes can be used as a scheme which forces the student to do the required reading and gain a basic understanding of the material and concepts covered in the class. The use of different methods of assessments: group projects, case studies, presentations, and final projects to address the learning objectives that include application, problem solving, and creativity can provide fair assessment for all learning styles. An instructor can be comfortable using online testing as an assessment tool as long as it is used in conjunction with other forms of assessment.
Glenn Sokolowski: Course Tracking Tools – Excel Spreadsheets
One of the most time consuming, but necessary, responsibilities of an online instructor is the documenting and organizing of assignment and test scores. Within the online format of Blackboard, exams that are automatically scored are also instantly placed within the electronic grade book and are updated to show an earned test score and grade value. While this is a great method of keeping an electronic grade book, it is always good to have a backup plan for checking the accuracy of your grading system and securing a duplicate copy of electronic grades.
Many instructors still use a paper (red) grade book and manually record scores, grades, and comments as a method for documenting student assessments. Others use various software programs such as GradeQuick (http://www.rediker.com/grade_quick.html), and GradeSpeed (www.gradespeed.net) which may be readily available for instructor use at their educational facility. Another readily available software program that may be used for recording scores, calculating grade values, and inserting instructor comments is Microsoft Excel.
Many educational facilities use Microsoft products, and the Excel program is just one of the many helpful programs included in the Microsoft Office package. While other grading software will allow documentation of student assessments, the Excel spreadsheet program is flexible, permitting the user to customize and format the spreadsheet layout, formulas, keyed values, etc. Another advantage to using Excel is that previous knowledge of Microsoft products are to the user’s advantage since information from Microsoft Word, Access, and PowerPoint, as well as many others, will integrate with each other. Information from one program can be copied and pasted within another making the flow and manipulation of information fluid.
If a new user would like to create and manipulate Excel spreadsheets, it would be wise to seek basic Excel training opportunities by campus mentors. Otherwise, it is simple just to use a template grading spreadsheet that already contains the necessary formulas and fields for assessment values.
There are many spreadsheet templates available within the Excel software program. As you continue to use Excel to document scores and assignment values, you may desire the spreadsheet to perform other calculations. As a new user, the best advice would be to contact a technology mentor at your business or education facility to help customize your spreadsheet to include these new functions.
As with any type of instructional documentation, entering grade values can be time consuming. One technology that can help speed the entry of grade values is by using speech recognition software, such as Dragon Naturally Speaking (http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking) which allows speedy data entry by using your voice. The user simply speaks into a microphone and the data is automatically entered in the correct cell.
Each method of recording assessment values will have positive and negative implications, but with the availability of the Excel software program in many facilities, the need and cost to purchase additional software packages is eliminated. Using an Excel spreadsheet to document student assessments can help the online instructor organize assignment/test scores, letter grades, and post comments for each entered value. The attached template spreadsheet, “Assessment Excel Example Template,” provides an example of how a spreadsheet can be used to calculate grades based on a point total for the University of Wisconsin-Stout online course, “Assessment in E-Learning.” (All information shown was entered for the purpose of this example and is not actual earned student scores.)
All of the information for the class and its students may be entered in the left hand columns and the course assignments/tests and their point values may be entered in the appropriate row. As point values are entered for each student, the spreadsheet automatically calculates the percentage of total points earned, the letter grade, and GPA (grade point average.
As the user moves the mouse cursor over the cells with a red triangle in the corner, a comment will appear on the screen. A comment can be added to any cell, which would allow the instructor an area to enter comments directed to the cell assignment value.
Finally, the user can quickly observe the status of each student’s GPA and percentage of total points earned in the class by viewing the horizontal bar graphs below the input section. The type of graph may also be changed according to the instructor’s needs.
Since many companies look for potential employees with experience with Microsoft Excel as well as the other Microsoft programs, students would benefit by having to create a simple spreadsheet that would document and calculate a running GPA while they are working toward a diploma or degree. It would involve basic formatting of a spreadsheet, inserting simple formulas, and creating a template for future use. Since cells in Excel can be locked, the spreadsheet only allows the final user to enter in specific cells, whereby, saving the integrity of the formulas from potential misuse. When exposed to how software can be used to simplify real world tasks, technical college students find that Excel can be a valuable tool when creating calculators for accounting purposes, material waste, cost of manufacturing, algebraic and trigonometric formulas, and many other applications.
Christene Wilson-James: Reflection Assessment Tools - Blogger
Whilst it is required to provide online test and quizzes as part of the formative assessment of the learner and understanding the need to document and organize test scores using the most efficient methods, what the learner takes away from the learning environment is of paramount importance in any learning cycle.
Assessing the learner and the learning process will become valuable, only when we can measure the levels of understanding and applications of new information by the learner. The six facets of understanding requires for us to examine the learner using the following questions:
• Can the learner accurately explain?
• Can the learner give a meaningful interpretation of the information?
• Can the learner effectively apply the new information?
• Is the learner’s perspective on the subject matter credible?
• Is there a level of sensitivity and self-awareness demonstrated by the learner?
One important strategy that can be used to assess this level of understanding is the reflective process. The ability to reflect on ones learning experiences and practices is one important measure of learning, whether these experiences were good or bad. Reflection not only accounts for lessons learned but also helps to bring the learner into a higher level of self awareness.
Using reflection as an assessment tool is still in its embryonic stages and is still not suitable for certain levels of learning. However, it seems to have found its rightful place as an effective self- assessment tool for the learner in the online learning environment.
According to Black and Wiliam (1998) Self assessment of the learner is not to be considered a luxury, but that it is in fact an essential component of formative assessment. They established that whenever anyone is trying to learn new information, that there are three main elements about the learning process that must be clearly understood: the recognition of the learning goals; understanding of their present position; and a clearer understanding of how the gap is going to be closed.
If reflection is to be viewed as an effective learning tool and as part of the formative assessment of the online learner, then it is important that instructors provide clear learning goals that should be attained. It is believed that when learners have this clear understanding they become more committed and effective learners. Their own assessment becomes an object of discussion with others and this discussion further promotes the reflection of one’s own thinking, that which is essential to effective learning.
Black and Wiliam (1998) stated that students who engage in reflective learning:
• Recognize that learning is associated with a positive kind of difficulty.
• Experience a growth in self-awareness
• Experience improved learning through increased self-awareness.
This assessment for learning through reflection is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence used by both teachers and students. Some strategies used in the process are:
• The strategic use of questioning
• Peer feedback
• Student self-assessment
In the face to face classroom, exit card and oral reflections are two excellent tools used to provide students with these learning opportunities. On the other hand, the creative use of online tools such as https://www.blogger.com/start now provides for teachers and students in the online learning community the same opportunities at even greater benefits.
The use of blogs ( a shortened term for weblog) such as the one identified, provides a forum for student to journal their learning experiences in a form that is easy for them to use and express themselves. According to Bell (2009) “blogs are posts not pages”. They can become creative outlets for student expression and students’ participation increase when they are given the option of using a tool that they are comfortable with. These are expressions of grade 8 students who are using a blog for the first time. After they returned from a field trip, they were given the writing prompts and here are a few of their responses:
“ii LyK DiiZ W3bSiiT3...iT'z NiC3 4 OuR Sk3wL WrK...Wh3n w3 MiGhT Nt B iiN cLaS...uMa CuM oN iiT m0r3 oFt3N...THNX”
“Hi Mrs. Wilson-James. This is a very nice to help us study and help us improve our knowledge. The biostation was also a mind opening expierence”
“This website is good to help students when they're away from school i guess...it will help students prepare for tests and quizzes and high school...”
-Krista
This became a teaching and learning opportunity for both teacher and students. As you can see there was a communication barrier in one of the post (a clear representation of the freedom of expression only that the teacher did not understand the language, neither was this forum appropriate) .Though the thoughts were not intended to be long students had to be reminded about sentence structure and grammar. This can be one of the biggest disadvantages of using such a public forum.
After learning the principles of blogging and the teacher attaching a grading rubric, students began taking responsibility for their own learning by taking ownership of their information. Here is an example WILSON-JAMES M3 BLOG of their remarkable improvement over their first attempt within a week.
Providing immediate feedback is one big advantage of blogging as an assessment tool. Teachers and students alike get involve in performance evaluation and there is no need for extended waiting periods. As students review their performance they begin to consolidate and assess their own learning. Teachers can post didactic questions and open ending writing prompts as guides for the learners. Students can also provide peer to peer reviews as they read each other postings. Students can also rate their own performance using rubrics provided by the teacher.
The use of blogs now provides a formative use of a summative type of assessment as students daily expressions of their learning can be store electronically for future reference. According to (Pang, 2009) a blog-based journal enhances the learning experience of an online student by reinforcing key ideas and concepts and allows one to make connections with the real world. The value of this reflective learning tool should not be underestimated.
Conclusion
An online instructor has many tools available to perform some important daily tasks. Although there are other online platforms, the online assessment tools located within the online platform, Blackboard, allow an instructor various methods of assessing. Self-correcting tests and exams are a time-saver and also minimize the chance of instructor calculation error. Online instructors can also document and backup valuable student assessment information by using the software program, Microsoft Excel. Using templates, spreadsheets provide electronic copies of grade books, which are also customizable to fit an instructor’s needs. One good practice worth mentioning is that grades stored in the Blackboard grade book can also be downloaded and viewed within Excel. This linear transfer of information between software programs is important when precious time is needed for instruction preparation. Using blogs as a source of student reflection is yet another method of using technology to assess and obtain feedback information from students. Blog links can be posted within Blackboard to allow students easy access to peer communications.
Developing and continually adding this type of information to an instructor’s “toolbox” can prove to be a good resource when reevaluating teaching practices, sharing best teaching practices, and mentoring new instructors. Therefore, instructors should keep abreast of the potential of new technology tools that may enhance their existing teaching practices and curriculum.
References:
Bell, A. (2009). Exploring Web 2.0- Second Generation Interactive Tools. Georgetowm Texas: Kathy Crossing Press.
Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Inside the Black Box:Raising Standards through Classroom Assessment. Phi Delta Kappan , Vol.80. No.2.
Pang, L. (2009, May). Application of Blogs to support Reflective Journals. Retrieved June 11, 2009, from DE Oracle @UMUC: http://deoracle.org/online-pedagogy/teaching-strategies/application-of-blogs.html
Jim Schnaedter, Glenn Sokolowski, Christene Wilson-James
The main focus of instructors in technical college education is to help develop a student’s skills and knowledge base in order for them to be successful in real-world work situations in business and industry. Therefore, assessments must measure a student’s progress and level of learning using a variety of methods that may also be used in their future careers. Instructors should try to assess their students in ways that are comparable to an employer assessing their employees. These similar links between education and employment can help produce quality students and, ultimately, quality and prepared personnel.
Jim Schnaedter: Assessment - Quiz and Test Builders
Probably the most traditional assessment tools in education are tests, exams, and quizzes. Tests can take the form of true/false, multiple choice, fill-in-the- blank, essay, or some combination. One of the major strength of tests is the fact that they are traditional and have been commonly used at all levels of education. This lends to familiarity which leads to comfort and automatic acceptance of tests as effective assessment tools. Another advantage is the flexibility of tests as assessment tools. Tests can range from short quizzes to comprehensive final exams. Tests can be simple true/false to conceptual and argumentative essays. Tests can measure memorization, conceptual and/or persuasive abilities, and they are easy to construct and administer.
Weaknesses of traditional tests seem to be based on the fact that the skills needed to take tests may be as important as the technical of soft skills that they are trying to measure in terms of student success. The ability to memorize ideas, formulas, and facts can play a key role in successful test taking, but memorization plays a much smaller role in the workplace. Basic life skills and the ability to find and utilize a variety of resources appear to be more important. Application of skills, which is difficult in a traditional testing environment, seems to be a better way of assessing real learning. Another weakness in testing may be because of their acceptance, most tests are cognitive, which do not provide a thorough assessment of psychomotor skills. They seem to be the default tool for assessment. However, this seems to be changing. In the Wisconsin Technical College System, hands-on learning and technical skills attainment are emphasized, and memorization plays a very small role. A final issue with test taking is “test anxiety, where a student performs poorly on the assessment tool because of the tool used for the assessment rather than the lack of knowledge or skill in the area being assessed.
An application of testing online that has been found to be very useful is weekly quizzes. One of the benefits is that the student receives feedback on the quiz immediately. Within the online platform of Blackboard, the test option allows the student instant feedback when they complete a quiz. The student is able to view the score, the questions missed, and the correct answers. The system also allows for feedback options, where an instructor can provide individual feedback for each student. The fact that instructors don’t have to grade individual quizzes is beneficial because of the time savings. The element of instructor error is also minimized. Many online instructors allow students to complete online tests open-book, whereas, students can use whatever resources they have available. Also, many technical college instructors choose open resources testing because it relies less on memorization and more on preparation. It also is nearly impossible, short of proctoring, to keep students from using resources.
A learning objective that can be addressed in online quizzes is comprehension and application of the material covered in the designated course textbook. Online quizzes can be used as a scheme which forces the student to do the required reading and gain a basic understanding of the material and concepts covered in the class. The use of different methods of assessments: group projects, case studies, presentations, and final projects to address the learning objectives that include application, problem solving, and creativity can provide fair assessment for all learning styles. An instructor can be comfortable using online testing as an assessment tool as long as it is used in conjunction with other forms of assessment.
Glenn Sokolowski: Course Tracking Tools – Excel Spreadsheets
One of the most time consuming, but necessary, responsibilities of an online instructor is the documenting and organizing of assignment and test scores. Within the online format of Blackboard, exams that are automatically scored are also instantly placed within the electronic grade book and are updated to show an earned test score and grade value. While this is a great method of keeping an electronic grade book, it is always good to have a backup plan for checking the accuracy of your grading system and securing a duplicate copy of electronic grades.
Many instructors still use a paper (red) grade book and manually record scores, grades, and comments as a method for documenting student assessments. Others use various software programs such as GradeQuick (http://www.rediker.com/grade_quick.html), and GradeSpeed (www.gradespeed.net) which may be readily available for instructor use at their educational facility. Another readily available software program that may be used for recording scores, calculating grade values, and inserting instructor comments is Microsoft Excel.
Many educational facilities use Microsoft products, and the Excel program is just one of the many helpful programs included in the Microsoft Office package. While other grading software will allow documentation of student assessments, the Excel spreadsheet program is flexible, permitting the user to customize and format the spreadsheet layout, formulas, keyed values, etc. Another advantage to using Excel is that previous knowledge of Microsoft products are to the user’s advantage since information from Microsoft Word, Access, and PowerPoint, as well as many others, will integrate with each other. Information from one program can be copied and pasted within another making the flow and manipulation of information fluid.
If a new user would like to create and manipulate Excel spreadsheets, it would be wise to seek basic Excel training opportunities by campus mentors. Otherwise, it is simple just to use a template grading spreadsheet that already contains the necessary formulas and fields for assessment values.
There are many spreadsheet templates available within the Excel software program. As you continue to use Excel to document scores and assignment values, you may desire the spreadsheet to perform other calculations. As a new user, the best advice would be to contact a technology mentor at your business or education facility to help customize your spreadsheet to include these new functions.
As with any type of instructional documentation, entering grade values can be time consuming. One technology that can help speed the entry of grade values is by using speech recognition software, such as Dragon Naturally Speaking (http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking) which allows speedy data entry by using your voice. The user simply speaks into a microphone and the data is automatically entered in the correct cell.
Each method of recording assessment values will have positive and negative implications, but with the availability of the Excel software program in many facilities, the need and cost to purchase additional software packages is eliminated. Using an Excel spreadsheet to document student assessments can help the online instructor organize assignment/test scores, letter grades, and post comments for each entered value. The attached template spreadsheet, “Assessment Excel Example Template,” provides an example of how a spreadsheet can be used to calculate grades based on a point total for the University of Wisconsin-Stout online course, “Assessment in E-Learning.” (All information shown was entered for the purpose of this example and is not actual earned student scores.)
All of the information for the class and its students may be entered in the left hand columns and the course assignments/tests and their point values may be entered in the appropriate row. As point values are entered for each student, the spreadsheet automatically calculates the percentage of total points earned, the letter grade, and GPA (grade point average.
As the user moves the mouse cursor over the cells with a red triangle in the corner, a comment will appear on the screen. A comment can be added to any cell, which would allow the instructor an area to enter comments directed to the cell assignment value.
Finally, the user can quickly observe the status of each student’s GPA and percentage of total points earned in the class by viewing the horizontal bar graphs below the input section. The type of graph may also be changed according to the instructor’s needs.
Since many companies look for potential employees with experience with Microsoft Excel as well as the other Microsoft programs, students would benefit by having to create a simple spreadsheet that would document and calculate a running GPA while they are working toward a diploma or degree. It would involve basic formatting of a spreadsheet, inserting simple formulas, and creating a template for future use. Since cells in Excel can be locked, the spreadsheet only allows the final user to enter in specific cells, whereby, saving the integrity of the formulas from potential misuse. When exposed to how software can be used to simplify real world tasks, technical college students find that Excel can be a valuable tool when creating calculators for accounting purposes, material waste, cost of manufacturing, algebraic and trigonometric formulas, and many other applications.
Christene Wilson-James: Reflection Assessment Tools - Blogger
Whilst it is required to provide online test and quizzes as part of the formative assessment of the learner and understanding the need to document and organize test scores using the most efficient methods, what the learner takes away from the learning environment is of paramount importance in any learning cycle.
Assessing the learner and the learning process will become valuable, only when we can measure the levels of understanding and applications of new information by the learner. The six facets of understanding requires for us to examine the learner using the following questions:
• Can the learner accurately explain?
• Can the learner give a meaningful interpretation of the information?
• Can the learner effectively apply the new information?
• Is the learner’s perspective on the subject matter credible?
• Is there a level of sensitivity and self-awareness demonstrated by the learner?
One important strategy that can be used to assess this level of understanding is the reflective process. The ability to reflect on ones learning experiences and practices is one important measure of learning, whether these experiences were good or bad. Reflection not only accounts for lessons learned but also helps to bring the learner into a higher level of self awareness.
Using reflection as an assessment tool is still in its embryonic stages and is still not suitable for certain levels of learning. However, it seems to have found its rightful place as an effective self- assessment tool for the learner in the online learning environment.
According to Black and Wiliam (1998) Self assessment of the learner is not to be considered a luxury, but that it is in fact an essential component of formative assessment. They established that whenever anyone is trying to learn new information, that there are three main elements about the learning process that must be clearly understood: the recognition of the learning goals; understanding of their present position; and a clearer understanding of how the gap is going to be closed.
If reflection is to be viewed as an effective learning tool and as part of the formative assessment of the online learner, then it is important that instructors provide clear learning goals that should be attained. It is believed that when learners have this clear understanding they become more committed and effective learners. Their own assessment becomes an object of discussion with others and this discussion further promotes the reflection of one’s own thinking, that which is essential to effective learning.
Black and Wiliam (1998) stated that students who engage in reflective learning:
• Recognize that learning is associated with a positive kind of difficulty.
• Experience a growth in self-awareness
• Experience improved learning through increased self-awareness.
This assessment for learning through reflection is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence used by both teachers and students. Some strategies used in the process are:
• The strategic use of questioning
• Peer feedback
• Student self-assessment
In the face to face classroom, exit card and oral reflections are two excellent tools used to provide students with these learning opportunities. On the other hand, the creative use of online tools such as https://www.blogger.com/start now provides for teachers and students in the online learning community the same opportunities at even greater benefits.
The use of blogs ( a shortened term for weblog) such as the one identified, provides a forum for student to journal their learning experiences in a form that is easy for them to use and express themselves. According to Bell (2009) “blogs are posts not pages”. They can become creative outlets for student expression and students’ participation increase when they are given the option of using a tool that they are comfortable with. These are expressions of grade 8 students who are using a blog for the first time. After they returned from a field trip, they were given the writing prompts and here are a few of their responses:
“ii LyK DiiZ W3bSiiT3...iT'z NiC3 4 OuR Sk3wL WrK...Wh3n w3 MiGhT Nt B iiN cLaS...uMa CuM oN iiT m0r3 oFt3N...THNX”
“Hi Mrs. Wilson-James. This is a very nice to help us study and help us improve our knowledge. The biostation was also a mind opening expierence”
“This website is good to help students when they're away from school i guess...it will help students prepare for tests and quizzes and high school...”
-Krista
This became a teaching and learning opportunity for both teacher and students. As you can see there was a communication barrier in one of the post (a clear representation of the freedom of expression only that the teacher did not understand the language, neither was this forum appropriate) .Though the thoughts were not intended to be long students had to be reminded about sentence structure and grammar. This can be one of the biggest disadvantages of using such a public forum.
After learning the principles of blogging and the teacher attaching a grading rubric, students began taking responsibility for their own learning by taking ownership of their information. Here is an example WILSON-JAMES M3 BLOG of their remarkable improvement over their first attempt within a week.
Providing immediate feedback is one big advantage of blogging as an assessment tool. Teachers and students alike get involve in performance evaluation and there is no need for extended waiting periods. As students review their performance they begin to consolidate and assess their own learning. Teachers can post didactic questions and open ending writing prompts as guides for the learners. Students can also provide peer to peer reviews as they read each other postings. Students can also rate their own performance using rubrics provided by the teacher.
The use of blogs now provides a formative use of a summative type of assessment as students daily expressions of their learning can be store electronically for future reference. According to (Pang, 2009) a blog-based journal enhances the learning experience of an online student by reinforcing key ideas and concepts and allows one to make connections with the real world. The value of this reflective learning tool should not be underestimated.
Conclusion
An online instructor has many tools available to perform some important daily tasks. Although there are other online platforms, the online assessment tools located within the online platform, Blackboard, allow an instructor various methods of assessing. Self-correcting tests and exams are a time-saver and also minimize the chance of instructor calculation error. Online instructors can also document and backup valuable student assessment information by using the software program, Microsoft Excel. Using templates, spreadsheets provide electronic copies of grade books, which are also customizable to fit an instructor’s needs. One good practice worth mentioning is that grades stored in the Blackboard grade book can also be downloaded and viewed within Excel. This linear transfer of information between software programs is important when precious time is needed for instruction preparation. Using blogs as a source of student reflection is yet another method of using technology to assess and obtain feedback information from students. Blog links can be posted within Blackboard to allow students easy access to peer communications.
Developing and continually adding this type of information to an instructor’s “toolbox” can prove to be a good resource when reevaluating teaching practices, sharing best teaching practices, and mentoring new instructors. Therefore, instructors should keep abreast of the potential of new technology tools that may enhance their existing teaching practices and curriculum.
References:
Bell, A. (2009). Exploring Web 2.0- Second Generation Interactive Tools. Georgetowm Texas: Kathy Crossing Press.
Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Inside the Black Box:Raising Standards through Classroom Assessment. Phi Delta Kappan , Vol.80. No.2.
Pang, L. (2009, May). Application of Blogs to support Reflective Journals. Retrieved June 11, 2009, from DE Oracle @UMUC: http://deoracle.org/online-pedagogy/teaching-strategies/application-of-blogs.html
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Tests and Quizzes
My attached thoughts on test and quizzes.
Assessment – Quiz and Test Builders
Probably the most traditional assessment tools in education are tests, exams, and quizzes. Tests can take the form of true/false, multiple choice, fill-in-the- blank, essay, or some combination. One of the major strength of tests is the fact that they are traditional and have been commonly used at all levels of education. This lends to familiarity which leads to comfort and automatic acceptance of tests as an effective assessment tool. Another advantage is the flexibility of tests as assessment tools. They can range from short quizzes to comprehensive final exams. They can be simple true/false to conceptual and argumentative essays. The can test memorization, conceptual and/or persuasive ability. They are easy to construct and administer.
Weaknesses of traditional tests seem to be based on the fact that test taking skill can be as important as the technical of soft skills that they are trying to measure in terms of student success. The ability to memorize ideas, formulas, and facts can play a key role in successful test taking. Memorization plays a much smaller role in the workplace and basic life skills where the ability to find and utilize a variety resources appears to be more important. Application of skills, which is difficult in a traditional testing environment, seems to be a better way of capturing real learning. Another weakness in testing is that because of their acceptance, I believe they are overused in education. They seem to be the default tool for assessment. However, this seems to be changing. I work for a Technical College, where hands-on learning and technical skills attainment are emphasized and memorization plays a small role. A final issue with test taking is “test anxiety, where a student performs poorly on the assessment tool because of the tool used to assess rather than the lack of knowledge or skill in the area being assessed.
An application of testing online that I have found to be very useful is weekly quizzes that are taken online. The benefit that I have found is that the student receives feedback on the quiz immediately. I used the test option in Blackboard and when the student finishes the quiz they receive their score, the questions they miss, and the correct answers. The system also allows for feedback options which I haven’t taken advantage of. The fact that I don’t have to grade individual quizzes is a bonus. Since the course is taught online I allow the students to use whatever resources they want. I like open resources testing because it relies less on memorization and more on preparation. It also is nearly impossible, short of proctoring, to keep students from using resources.
The learning objective that I usually address with my online quizzes is comprehension and application of the material covered in whatever text I am using. I use the online quizzes as a “security blanket” which forces the student to do the required reading and gain a basic understanding of the material and concepts covered in the class. I use different methods of assessments; group projects, case studies, presentations, and final projects to address the learning objectives that include application, problem solving, and creativity. I have found a comfort level in using testing as an assessment tool as long as it is used in conjunction with other forms of assessment.
Assessment – Quiz and Test Builders
Probably the most traditional assessment tools in education are tests, exams, and quizzes. Tests can take the form of true/false, multiple choice, fill-in-the- blank, essay, or some combination. One of the major strength of tests is the fact that they are traditional and have been commonly used at all levels of education. This lends to familiarity which leads to comfort and automatic acceptance of tests as an effective assessment tool. Another advantage is the flexibility of tests as assessment tools. They can range from short quizzes to comprehensive final exams. They can be simple true/false to conceptual and argumentative essays. The can test memorization, conceptual and/or persuasive ability. They are easy to construct and administer.
Weaknesses of traditional tests seem to be based on the fact that test taking skill can be as important as the technical of soft skills that they are trying to measure in terms of student success. The ability to memorize ideas, formulas, and facts can play a key role in successful test taking. Memorization plays a much smaller role in the workplace and basic life skills where the ability to find and utilize a variety resources appears to be more important. Application of skills, which is difficult in a traditional testing environment, seems to be a better way of capturing real learning. Another weakness in testing is that because of their acceptance, I believe they are overused in education. They seem to be the default tool for assessment. However, this seems to be changing. I work for a Technical College, where hands-on learning and technical skills attainment are emphasized and memorization plays a small role. A final issue with test taking is “test anxiety, where a student performs poorly on the assessment tool because of the tool used to assess rather than the lack of knowledge or skill in the area being assessed.
An application of testing online that I have found to be very useful is weekly quizzes that are taken online. The benefit that I have found is that the student receives feedback on the quiz immediately. I used the test option in Blackboard and when the student finishes the quiz they receive their score, the questions they miss, and the correct answers. The system also allows for feedback options which I haven’t taken advantage of. The fact that I don’t have to grade individual quizzes is a bonus. Since the course is taught online I allow the students to use whatever resources they want. I like open resources testing because it relies less on memorization and more on preparation. It also is nearly impossible, short of proctoring, to keep students from using resources.
The learning objective that I usually address with my online quizzes is comprehension and application of the material covered in whatever text I am using. I use the online quizzes as a “security blanket” which forces the student to do the required reading and gain a basic understanding of the material and concepts covered in the class. I use different methods of assessments; group projects, case studies, presentations, and final projects to address the learning objectives that include application, problem solving, and creativity. I have found a comfort level in using testing as an assessment tool as long as it is used in conjunction with other forms of assessment.
Assessment
I'm starting to realize that there is no silver bullet when it comes to assessment. We have been working on assessment where I work since I have been there. I have read numerous articles and studies on this topic. I just finished a traing workshop on assessment and this class is about assessment. I thought by now I would have an answer on how we can assess whether our students have mastered the intended outcome of of class or program. The best answer that I can come up with is to use as many different assessment tools as possible and use as many points in the process as possible to take the opportunity to assess. Maybe I should take a process perspective with a starting point of communicating expectations followed by a series of steps that all include task assignment, assessment, and feedback leading to a couple of comprehensive assessments. Not a silver bullet, but maybe a sharp stick.
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