For teaching 21st century learners, there are many
tools for assessing student’s knowledge and understanding. Using interactive
games distracts students from thinking its work since they’re so involved with
the activity of the game. Two interactive games, Kahoot and Socratvie, were
introduced to me this week in Dr. Smirnova’s class. In class we had to create
an assessment and I personally used Google form, however my partner used
Kahoot. When we came back to class and had to complete the quizzes, I was so
taken back by how engaging Kahoot was. I think that using Kahoot or Socrative
in a classroom will allow the students to be involved in an actiivty while
assessing to see what they know and what a teacher needs to work on or review
for the class.
Kahoot
Kahoot is an engaging quiz-like game that is used mostly
in elementary classrooms that have a Smart Board. It can be used on a computer,
smartphone, or tablet. This is an excellent tool for teachers to use for
pre-assessments and formative assessments. Kahoot also has a timer for each
question a student is given. This tool requires teachers
to create an account from the website. Once the teacher is registered, they can
create a quiz. The quiz offers many different types of questions that teachers
can use, along with inserting videos and pictures. When a teacher is ready to
use this in their class, the student’s will need a game pin to enter the quiz.
Once the game pin is entered, the user will be asked to type their name in. If
small groups of student’s are working together, they will create a team name. Kahoot is very simple and
straightforward for teachers to create a quiz. When the teacher registered,
they are given the option to watch a short video of a tutorial of how to use
Kahoot. For the student use, this could be confusing at first when they begin a
quiz. The student’s should be aware that the question will be on the Smart
Board in front of the class and on their computer or tablet; they will only be
given four shapes with colors. The
student’s must look at the answers on the board and pick that shape or color on
their computer or tablet. As long as the student’s are aware of this, it is
very user-friendly for both the teacher and students. Kahoot can be used for
group activities or individual assessments. Students can get competitive with
this game, since it will say the top 5 students that are in the lead. During
Kahoot depending upon if the student gets the correct answer and answers
quickly, they will earn a certain amount of points. All students can see how
many questions they get wrong. If a
student gets a question incorrect, on their screen they will be able to see the
correct answer. On the Smart Board the class will see a bar graph of how many
students answered what question. No student’s name will come up on the board if
they got it incorrect; the only way they will know is if it comes on their
screen. This tool allows teachers to create a various form of questions. Take a
look at the video below to see how Kahoot can be used in a classroom.
There are many benefits
of using this educational tool in a classroom.One reason is that students are always
participating and engaged in the quizzes that their teacher creates. This is not a boring quiz that students need
to do on paper. Students pay close attention and get excited once they respond
to the question. This can be used individually or in small groups. When
teachers use technology in classrooms, the students get excited and Kahoot
increases participation. Kahoot is user-friendly and free, therefore all
teachers should use this to engaged their students in all different quizzes.
Socrative
Socrative is another great
tool for teachers to engage their students by using tablets, computers, and
smartphones. This helps teachers get an understanding how the students are
doing in the class, based on questions they ask. This tool is very helpful for
the students and teachers because they get the results and feedback right away.
Socrative is used as a formative assessment tool, however students do not feel
like they are taking an assessment since it is so engaging. Teachers can set up
various questions for their students. Socrative offers visual based questions,
which is different from an assessment on paper because the students get to look
at a video or picture. This online game is a great tool for teachers to use in
schools. It can be used for all grades and is very easy to use. This tool also
helps teachers with their time, since the assessment is graded right away.
Socrative requires teachers to create an account from the website. Once the
teacher is registered, they can create a quiz, exit ticket, quick questions or
space race. When a teacher is ready to use this in their class, the students
will need the room code to enter. Once the room code is entered, the user will
be asked to type their name in. If small groups of students are working
together, they will create a team name. Teachers will have the opportunity to
learn how to use this tool in the classroom, by a short video. It is user-friendly, therefore teachers and
students should not have an issue. This tool is very organized and simple to
learn how to use.
In this video, an elementary school teacher describes how she uses it in
her classroom. The
students are always participating and engaged in the activities that they are
provided. This will allow the teacher to also see quick feedback. Not many
online tools have immediate feedback; by getting student’s grades right away,
it will allow teachers to see what they have to reteach and who needs more
instruction. Socrative emails the teacher an excel spreadsheet of the student’s
answers and grades. This tool allows teachers to assess their students in which
topics were learned and which topics need more review. Future lessons can be tailored from this
feedback.
Thank you for reading,
Works Cited
Smirnova. (n.d.). Retrieved February 10,
2015, from https://docs.google.com/a/my.msmc.edu/presentation/d/1FTFLqoSIKMJKuBzfQyax5urqjwQAkQlFikS3t1_M-HQ/present?slide=id.p28
Smith, T. (2013, December 12). Kahoot!
Gamify Your Class. Retrieved February 10, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6gER64oFgA
Using Socrative in the Elementary. (2014,
June 25). Retrieved February 10, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLVeqiGBiZ4
No comments:
Post a Comment