I’ll admit it, I’m becoming more of a formative assessment advocate this year. I believe that formative assessments have a place in the elementary math classroom. As a technology enthusiast, I’m always searching for ways to improve my instruction through the use of technology. For the past year I’ve had the opportunity to use Socrative and Scootpad apps (both free) with my math class. Both of these apps are web-based and offer the ability to provide immediate feedback to the student. I’ve added a few snippets of information about these apps below.
Socrative is a web-based program that is similar to a wireless clicker system, but with a keyboard. Teachers can create multiple choice, true/false, and short answer quizes with this app. The quizes are quick and easy to create – I actually created a 10 multiple choice question quiz on an iPad. Teacher have the option for students to complete the quizes at their own pace or at an assigned pace as a class. Similar to Google Docs, student information is updated and you can actually show the data on an LCD screen live. Once short answers are submitted students also have the option to vote for the answer they feel is best. This option definitely promotes student engagement. Reports on student progress can be sent to you via email and they are in Excel format for easy sorting.
Scootpad offers teachers a way to assess students on Common Core Math Standards (Grades 1-5). Teachers are able to individualize assessments based on the needs of their students. Mastery (as a %) can be determined by the teacher and students have opportunities to earn badges and other awards. The interface takes a while to get used to, but overall this app allows teachers a quick opportunity to assess students’ understanding. Student data is aggregated and can be sorted easily. Scootpad will be expanding to middle school math Common Core Standards in the near future.
What formative assessments do you use?
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