Linda Lavinder Tavares

Question 3: Assessment
Computer technology can help assess and monitor student learning in a variety of ways. I keep track of student grades using an electronic grade book program called InteGrade Pro (IGPro). With this software program, I can enter student grades and the grade average for each student is automatically updated with each entry. This way, I can instantly recognize any grade concerns and address them without delay. The program allows me to print a hard copy of the students spreadsheet and share pertinent information with parents regarding their childs progress, which aligns with the Maryland Teacher Technology Standard to; Use appropriate technology to share results and solutions with others, such as parents and the larger community (mttsonline.org). Grades can be viewed as percentages or letter grades. I use IGPro for keeping attendance records and to log demographic information for each student. Using this program is much less time consuming than logging students individual scores in a record book and using a calculator to find a total. With IGPro I can also create charts and bar graphs that display a visual representation of student progress. As a formative assessment, I use a Classroom Response System (Clickers). With clickers, students use a handheld device that looks like a television remote control, and click to answer yes or no type questions or choose a letter response. As the students answer questions with their clickers, the answers are shown on a screen as a bar graph. I can then use the information to talk about ways to reach reasonable conclusions to a question. Since I create my own list of questions, I can include every kind of question from drill and practice, to higher order thinking skills. Using this tool in the classroom with my students helps to ensure that I am meeting the requirements of The ISTE National Educational Technology Standards (NETST)

Linda Lavinder Tavares

and Performance Indicators for Teachers, specifically standard A which states, design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity. The students enjoy using this system. Since the feedback is instantaneous, it is a valuable tool to use for on-going assessments. For my math class I use two different test generators. One is Exam View test generator (ed.pearsonassessments.com). Exam view provides a bank of questions that correlate with state standards and my third grade curriculum requirements. It allows me to choose from a list of objectives to select questions based on my criteria, or choose from a bank of test questions. Once I create the exam, I can print a hard copy for students to complete. The other test generator I use is linked to the text book we use in class from Scott Foresman Publishers. When I log onto the textbook website, pearsonsuccessnet.com, I am able to choose from a list of questions that relate to a particular chapter in the textbook or I can allow the program to create a test using randomly generated questions. Both of these programs are wonderful sources for assessment in my classroom. In the future, I plan to practice integrating more technology into my assessments. I want to use Adobe PageMaker (www.adobe.com) and ask that the students create newsletters and brochures that may be used to assess student learning. While they are creating these materials, I can visually check for student technology use and understanding. I am also looking forward to using rubric generators in my class. With rubric generators the teacher follows a set of prompts, and once the information is entered, a rubric can be printed out and used as an assessment tool (IETT p. 160). Electronic portfolios are especially interesting and seem to present the opportunity to assess student progress at each step during project creation. While the technology to create an

Linda Lavinder Tavares

electronic portfolio would be too advanced for students at my grade level, I can see where they would work well for high school students, specifically seniors. High school seniors spend months during creating a Senior Portfolio, which includes a rsum, awards (photos of which could be scanned and downloaded), extra- curricular activities, and volunteer experience. These subjects would present themselves nicely in the form of an electronic portfolio and the students could carry a CD with them to college and job interviews instead of a notebook and the possibility to add links to other interesting artifacts would benefit the student. Martin Kaczmarek made a valid point in our classroom discussion about Electronic Portfolios when he said, we cannot expect all students to plan on moving on to college. But I feel employees would be more impressed to interview a prospective employee that can share an electronic portfolio which charts their life experiences. I also agreed with Craig Luntz (from our classroom) when he wrote, With the tools available today, an electronic portfolio can provide a rich snapshot of a students academic development by incorporating all types of projects and multi-media content.

References Exam View Test Generators. Retrieved April 24, 2009 from http://www.ed.pearsonassessments.com/formative/examview/index.htm MTTS online Maryland Teacher Technology Standards. Retrieved April 24, 2009 from http://mttsonline.org/ The ISTE National Educational Technology Standards (NETST) and Performance Indicators for Teachers. Retrieved April 24, 2009 from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_ T_Standards_Final.pdf