Tag: assessments

What Student Assignments and Projects Are Considered Most Difficult: Myths and Truths

What Student Assignments and Projects Are Considered Most Difficult: Myths and Truths

Are you a student who has ever wondered which assignments and projects are the most challenging? We’ve all been there, faced with daunting tasks that seem insurmountable. In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into the myths and truths surrounding the difficulty of student assignments and projects. By the end, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of these academic challenges, along with expert insights and tips to help you excel.

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Dozens of Online Resources for Assessment

Assessment of student work is a crucial aspect of learning. It helps students recognize important lesson goals and teachers gauge  understanding. While multiple choice, short answer, and essays are still proven methods, there are many alternatives teachers can use for their particular student group. Here are some you can look into–and all online:

  1. Easy CBM
  2. Educreations–video a whiteboard explanation of how students are completing a task (app)
  3. Edulastic–formative assessments; work on any devices (app)
  4. Flip — record a video question from your desktop; add attachments; students respond from the app with their answer
  5. Flubaroo (app)
  6. Gimkit–gamified assessment, like Kahoot; freemium
  7. Go Formative (app)
  8. Google Forms (app)
  9. Kahoot–quiz-show-like format (app)
  10. Socrative (app)
  11. Stick Around–turn questions into puzzles (app)
  12. ThatQuiz.org

Add-ons

  1. Flubaroo
  2. Kaizena–add audio and video notes to submitted assignments; add-on

Badges

  1. BloomBoard–badges for teacher PD
  2. Credly
  3. Open Badges

Class Review

  1. Digital Breakouts–review or assessment in a gamelike format; includes mostly history, but other topics; high school
  2. Kahoot–with a new team mode
  3. Quizlet Live–students join with a code, break into teams, and are quizzed on a Quizlet

Common Core Prep

  1. ReadyTest AtoZ--from RAZ Kids, freemium

Flashcards

  1. Flippity–make flashcards in Google Spreadsheets
  2. GoConqr–flash cards, quizzes, notes, more

Grading

  1. Gradescope (from Turnitin)
  2. Paperscorer–create quiz in Google Forms, grade it through Paperscorer
  3. Planbook–online lesson planning and gradebook

Quizzes/Tests

Peer Review

  1. PeerGrade–automate the process

Rubrics

SAT/ACT Online Resources

Warm-up/Exit Tickets

Failure

  1. The Crossing–attempts to cross a gorge; some fail; all result in success
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Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, contributor to NEA Today, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

The Top 5 AI Quiz Builder Tools That Can Transform Your Classroom and Their Benefits

Artificial Intelligence–AI–can greatly assist many mundane education tasks. Tools like Siri, Alexa, ChatGPT, and a plethora of apps seem perfect for handling the repetitive and time-consuming aspects of education that take teachers away from the core of most lessons that require critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving. Done right, this sort of collaboration between AI and teacher results in a better outcome for everyone.

One task identified by many teachers as well suited to AI assistance is generating quiz content, Our Ask A Tech Teacher crew came up with five great options for using AI in quiz creation and then reasons to pick one of them:

  1. QuizGecko
  2. Quizlet
  3. Qzzr
  4. Riddle
  5. Playbuzz

The Top 5 AI Quiz Builders For Your Classroom

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4 Proven Strategies To Boost Exam Preparation

Preparing for exams requires a systematic approach to ensure you cover all the necessary material and feel confident on test day. Here are some effective strategies to help you prepare from the Ask a Tech Teacher crew:

The 4 Proven Strategies To Boost Your Exam Preparation

One of the most stressful periods in a person’s life is when exams are looming. Whether it is for the SATs in high school, or for finals in college, when the time comes, you will feel a lot of pressure to do well. This pressure can actually hurt your chances of doing well on the exams. Stress can dramatically affect your thinking process and ability to concentrate.

This means that you have to find a way to eliminate the stress and pressure from the equation so you can study well. Preparation is the best way to not feel stressed and go into the exams with a clear mind. The better prepared you are, the better your chances at success. In this article, we will go over some proven strategies to help you prepare for exams.

1 – Use technology

Pretty much everything is digital these days so we rely on software and technology to even basic tasks. This is good news for exam preparation, however. There are a lot of apps and software programs that can help you study and be prepared in a way that fits best with your schedule and also your learning style.

Using technology can help you pack studying into your schedule to make sure you get the most out of your time. For instance, a mobile application can help you study while you are commuting on the train, or even getting your morning coffee. You can use an extra twenty or thirty minutes to pack in some studying without having to set yourself up ahead of time.

Software and online tools can also help you break down the materials into a better form for you to understand. For instance, NotesEdu gives you practice tests, guided solutions, and detailed explanations to help you grasp complex concepts better. To see how these resources could improve your study sessions, learn more about NotesEdu’s comprehensive test packs on their website.

There are many educational platforms that offer courses so you can expand on your knowledge by using some of them in addition to your other study materials. From basic algebra to advanced quantum physics, you can find resources suitable for all levels. They use interactive videos, quizzes, and peer discussions to make learning engaging and effective. (more…)

14 Tech Assessment Strategies

It used to be simple to post grades. Add up test scores and see what the student earned. Very defensible. Everyone understood. It’s not that way anymore. Here are factors I consider when I’m posting grades for my tech students:

  • Does s/he remember skills from prior lessons as they complete current lessons?
  • Does s/he show evidence of learning by using tech class knowledge in classroom or home?
  • Does s/he participate in class discussions?
  • Does s/he complete daily goals (a project, visit a website, watch a tutorial, etc.)?
  • Does s/he save to their network folder?

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ChatGPT–Homework Helper or Cheating Aid?

Wall Street Journal sent a young-looking journalist back to high school to test out the effectiveness of the web’s newest homework helper, ChatGPT. It will write entire essays for students, take notes on literature, and compare-contrast chosen pieces in seconds. If you aren’t aware of this hot new (questionable) tool, check out WSJ’s video here:

What are your thoughts on this–education assistant or cheating tool?

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https://eepurl.com/chNlYb

Copyright ©2023 askatechteacher.com – All rights reserved.

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Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

A Teacher’s Best Evaluator

It’s always a challenge to evaluate teachers. I’ve been through many systems, often different each year, and honestly, none seems better than the other. But Christian Miraglia, Education Consultant and part of the Ask a Tech Teacher crew, suggests asking students to evaluate the teacher. Here’s how that would work:

A Teacher’s Best Evaluator

Years ago, I was involved in an effort to restructure my school district’s teacher evaluation system. Months of work were put into the project, which focused on a professional growth model and also allowed for the traditional method of checking the boxes. Hours of research and meeting with other districts took place. One might ask about your typical administrative evaluation, but if you have gone through these, they are cursory and don’t do much to improve your actual instruction. So I was prompted to think about teacher evaluations and their effectiveness. Who ultimately is the best person to analyze the teaching? I concluded with the students. After all, the students are with you daily. They observe teachers at their best and their not-so-effective moments. 

Wait a minute, some might say. “Students are evaluating teachers; they do that on social media and Rate your Teacher. And it is ugly.” Acknowledged, it can be ugly. However, if an environment of trust is established, one might be surprised by the results. 

If a teacher wants a good picture of how teaching impacts students, I suggest using a Google Form survey or Microsoft forms. This approach is low-tech as it is pushed out to the students to the teacher’s choice of platforms.

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7 Ways To Use Technology For Exam Prep

As an educator, I’m always looking for new and innovative ways to help my students prepare for exams. And when it comes to exam prep, there’s no reason you can’t use technology to make the process more engaging for your students. Technology can be a valuable tool for accomplishing this goal, and in this post, we’ll take a look at seven ways educators can use technology to help students prepare for exams.

  1. Integrate interactive quiz modules into the course content

One way to use technology to assist our students in their exam prep is to integrate interactive quiz modules into our course content. This can help students identify areas where they need more review, and it also allows them to track their progress over time. I find that there is a variety of different quiz modules available online, so be sure to find one that meets the specific needs of your students. Based on my experience, this builds engagement overall because students know that they need to pay attention as there are quizzes at regular intervals. 

  1. Record lectures so students can review them at their convenience

Another great way to use technology for exam prep is to record your lectures so that students can review them at their convenience. This can be especially helpful if you have a large class size or if you teach remotely, as it allows students to watch the material again and take notes on key points whenever they need to. I found that this is a great way for students to engage with each lesson rather than worry about taking note of everything that you mentioned during the lecture.

  1. Have students complete interactive activities and exercises online

There are a number of websites that offer interactive activities and exercises for students to complete in order to prepare for their exams. These can be extremely helpful in solidifying key concepts and helping students to identify any areas where they may need additional help. Some of my favorite places to find these resources are Quizlet, Khan Academy, and even YouTube.

  1. Use social media platforms to engage with students and provide supplemental resources

You can also use social media platforms to connect with your students to help them prepare for their exams. There are many ways that this can be done, such as creating study groups on Facebook or Twitter, sharing relevant articles and books on these platforms, and posting online practice questions or interactive quizzes that students can complete to test their knowledge.

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Update on Grading Practices

K-12 grading hasn’t changed a lot in decades. Edutopia thinks they’re due for an update. Here’s an eye-opening article on three grading practices that should be overhauled:

Teacher: Reconsider these traditional grading practices

There are three key grading practices that should be overhauled, writes Alexis “Lexy” Tamony, a high-school math teacher in California. In this article, Tamony asserts that teachers should reconsider averaging scores over time, allowing in elements other than content understanding and reporting “opaque scores.”

Read on…

For more about grades, check out these Ask a Tech Teacher articles:

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