Classroom Tech Specs

This past school year I tried to incorporate more technology into my curriculum. Overall, it was successful and the students really enjoyed it. I’d like to share my reviews of three mobile apps I used: Quizlet, Socrative, and Kahoot!

Mobile App #1: Quizlet

The Quizlet app can be used on both iOS and Android platforms. Quizlet is a FREE study tools app that allows teachers and students to create flashcards, matching games, and multiple choice tests. These study tools can then be shared publicly so they can be searched and used by others, shared with specific individuals such as a class of students, or kept private for your own viewing. The Quizlet website has even more options and syncs to your mobile app.

The app can be used by anyone but it was designed with teachers in mind. Teachers can set up their own classes and their students can join the class. This allows a teacher to create a study tool and share it with all members of the class with the click of a button. Most teachers that I know, including myself, use the app to help the students learn vocab terms. Students could even insert a picture for the term instead of a written definition, which would be great for foreign language classes.

For my students, every day when they come into class they have to add a new vocab term and its definition into their vocab lists. Every friday the students have a quiz over the 4 new words from the current week and any 8 words from the past.  Before the quiz I see my students practicing on their phones.  Quizlet allows the students to practice their terms in three ways. The students can just review the flashcards in which the term or definition appears and you tap the screen to flip the card to see the answer.  A second option provides them with the definition and they have to type in the term. A third option is a timed matching game created by Quizlet. Most of my students enjoy playing the matching game. They can even compete against other students in the class for time.

I have also created practice tests as a review just before a test. My students have also searched for other tests created by other teachers and students to use as review. Quizlet allows you to add pictures as well as text, so there are many options for quiz questions.

The app also has a paid version that allows teachers to see how many times their students have studied and keep track of scores on quizzes. This is a nice feature because you can assign the students to take the quiz for homework and then you can see if they took it and what score they earned.

The app has many pros as suggested above, however, there are a few cons. The app functions differently on different phone carrier services so when we first started using it in the classroom there was a lot of troubleshooting and exploration to get all of my students on the same page.  For one phone carrier, the dropdown menu was different, and for another the students were able to add vocab terms much easier than others. One phone carrier allows the students to add new terms to the top of their vocab lists while others have to scroll to the bottom of their list to add a new term, and we currently have 128 terms so it is a lot of scrolling. Another issue is that some of the carriers offered possible definitions for the students to select instead of them typing in the definitions. But all of these cons are overcome with a little practice on the student's part.

I would definitely recommend this app to others.  It is easy to use, it’s free, and my students enjoy using it.  They even use it for their other classes now that they know how to use it.

Mobile App #2: Socrative

The Socrative app can be used on iOS, Android, and Chrome platforms. There are two apps, one for teachers and one for students. Socrative is powerful app that allows teachers to create quizzes, polls, and exit ticket questions for students and obtain instant results. Of course, anyone can use the app but it was designed for teachers.

Using the teacher app, teachers are able to create quizzes with multiple choice, true/false, and short answer questions. Once the quiz is created, the teacher can make the quiz active. Teachers have the option of allowing the students to take the quiz at their own pace or the teacher can control the quiz in class. There are options for providing feedback when questions are answered wrong, randomizing the questions, and allowing students to change their answers by going back to past questions. As the students take the quiz, the teacher receives immediate feedback and results. The results can be projected on the screen for all students to view.

Another option is to create a “Quick Question,” or poll, which can be a single multiple choice, true/false, or short answer question.  For both multiple choice and true/false, the students can see what percentage of the class selected which answer - if the teacher is projecting it on the screen for the class to view. For short answer questions, the student’s answers pop up on the screen as they are submitted. The teacher app even has the option to let the students vote for a particular short answer response, delete responses, and even hide names.

A third option is to create a “Space Race” game where students can compete against each other individually or in groups set up by the teacher while taking a quiz. When projected on the screen, the students can see who is in the lead or who needs to catch up.

A final option is an exit ticket. The exit ticket is composed of 3 pre-set questions that are automatically sent to the student. The first question is multiple choice and asks the student how well he/she understood the lesson.  A second question asks them to type in what they learned during the lesson. For the final question, the teacher must either write the question on the board or ask it in class so the students can answer it. Again, immediate feedback of the results allows the teacher to determine if reteaching is necessary.

In addition to the benefits of the Socrative app above, it is also really easy to use both in class and at home.  The only con is that on occasion the app freezes on the students while they are taking a quiz and they need to start over.  This complicates things if the quiz is required as a homework assignment. However, if this happens, the teacher can see that the student at least started the quiz and can see how far they got. This feature helps eliminate the fact that a student can say they tried to take the quiz when actually they never attempted.

I would highly recommend this app for teachers. As long as students have a phone, iPod, or tablet with internet connection, they can participate in quiz taking during class. It is an easy to use interface and provides instant results.  They students will even enjoy using it.

Mobile App #3: Kahoot!

The Kahoot! app is a game-based classroom response system that works across all platforms such as Windows, iOS, Chrome, and Android. The app allows teachers to create quizzes using words, pictures, and/or videos.  The quizzes can be shared with the public, chosen individuals, or kept private. One of the best features is that teachers can search for quizzes that may have already be created and modify them to meet their needs. When a quiz is selected for play, a game pin will be provided for the students to participate.

Quiz creation is simple and quick.  All questions are multiple choice and it is recommended to assign a time limit to the questions. Before making a quiz active, the teacher has the option to randomize question order and/or answer choice order.

Students will need to download the Kahoot! app or go to kahoot.it to enter the game pin provided by the teacher. Students will get to type in their own user name for game play and it is wise to tell the students what their user name should be so you don’t get inappropriate user names. After each question closes, the students will be told how many points they have accumulated and which place they hold compared to their peers. When the teacher clicks to the next question, the top 5 students will be displayed with their points. The students earn points based on how quickly they answer the question and if they answered correctly. The students can also see how many chose each answer.  This is more beneficial for the teacher so that reteaching can occur for that particular question.

Although there a many pros such as the app is easy to use, the interface is appealing, and the students enjoy the competition, there are also several cons. One con is that when you have a whole class of 36 students participating, some of them often get kicked out of the game and need to re-enter.  Upon re-entry, they lose all of their previous points earned. The fewer the students playing and the stronger the internet connection, the better.  

A second con is that only the top 5 students are displayed after each question.  It would be nice to see who answered the fastest or who won that round as well, because a student who is in 20th place could have won that round and a student in the top 5 could have lost the round.  Students would be more motivated if they could see that they won a round versus knowing they will never be able to move from 20th place to the top five.  

A final con is that the teacher is limited in the number of letters that can be used for each answer. This is so that the question can fit on the screen, however, it can sometimes be annoying.  

Overall, I definitely recommend the Kahoot! app for teachers.  The students really love playing it and they love the competition.   

Flippin' Out

 

I’ve been teaching AP Biology for 5 years now and every year I never seem to make it through the curriculum before the AP Biology Exam. I have 37 weeks to cover 44 chapters, conduct 10 multi-day labs, and give 7 two-day test;, but that seems reasonable, right? Forget it! It’s nearly impossible, there simply isn’t enough time. My first year teaching the class I tried to incorporate several projects and class activities and I didn’t even come close to finishing the curriculum before the AP Exam. Over the next few years, I cut out the activities and got closer to finishing. But now, I find when I lecture on certain chapters, I am bored. I’m bored! So I can’t imagine how my students feel sitting there listening to something they already read in the textbook.

A few years ago at a conference I heard about “flipped classrooms.” A flipped classroom is when the students watch video lectures at home so that during class they can engage in hands-on activities. It sounded perfect! Why couldn’t I do this with the lectures that bore me or the ones that are simple enough for the students to understand without my help? Then during class I could help my students with what they didn’t understand and help them apply what they learned while working on case studies or labs. Watch a short video about flipped classrooms below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQWvc6qhTds

But now the big question is, HOW do I flip my classroom?

Since I first encountered flipped classrooms I’ve attended 3 other workshops to fully understand how to implement it into my classroom. What you must understand is that I am the type of person that must wrap my head around something and think through all of the details before acting. So, now, I’m ready to act. This summer I plan to use Camtasia to create videos for my AP Biology students and maybe even some of my Honors Biology students. I’ve even learned about a way to know if my students watched the videos and are prepared for class. At a recent conference I learned about a website called Blendspace. I can upload the videos there and the students can log in and watch them. Then Blendspace allows me to see who logged in and who watched the videos in their entirety. I can even create short quizzes through Blendspace for the students to answer when they complete a video, or I can make a Google form for them to fill in.  

I know I’m in the beginning stages, but I plan to make it work next year; and it if doesn’t, well at least I tried. Others have been very successful with flipping their classroom and test scores have even improved; therefore, I have to try. I will write a follow-up blog post after I’ve implemented my first flip, so stay tuned!

Interactive Digital Textbooks...Gone Wild!

Throughout my years of teaching I have come to dislike textbooks for two main reasons. The first reason is that textbooks contain way more information than the students are required to know for standardized testing. In fact, it isn’t possible to teach every single topic in the textbook within the 180 day school year. The second reason is that the issued textbook doesn’t always explain a topic well and I end up resorting to other textbooks in which my students do not have access. My solution for both of these problems has been to construct thorough notes that either replace or are a supplement to their textbooks. Everything the students are required to know is in their notes and all homework assignments and tests revolve around their notes. If I took all of my notes and printed them in a giant packet, I would have a mini textbook only containing the content my students were required to learn. 

After years of tweaking my notes I began thinking that maybe I should just write my own textbook. Originally it was going to be a print textbook, but as technology advanced it became an online textbook; then when Kindles, Nooks, and iPads hit the market it became an eBook; and now it has evolved into an interactive eBook curriculum. A curriculum! A complete, fully digital curriculum! Not only the new era of textbooks but also a new era of instruction.

I envision the curriculum would be a website or app that the students would access through username and password.  The website would contain reading content along with “checking for understanding” questions, quizzes, tests, videos, worksheets, graphic organizers for note taking, lab worksheets, etc.; basically, a complete curriculum packaged into a paperless, digital parcel.  I understand that these types of sites already exist; however, mine would allow the teacher to modify any part of the curriculum to meet the needs of his/her students, for a price of course - maybe an annual fee.  

The classroom could be completely paperless if 1:1. Being digital wouldn’t interfere with organization skills because the students would be able to construct digital notebooks of their worksheets and notes. They could keep units grouped, each with its own table of contents. I’ve seen how a teacher has gone paperless using apps from Google for Education. She had her students create Google websites and they would keep track of their assignments by unit. They would post all videos, handouts, assignments, etc. all on one page so they could go back and review the content for that unit. I envision this feature could be included in my digital curriculum package.

The ideas keep compiling and hopefully I can make this a reality. Better now than later though because the digital box has been opened and I believe there will be high demand for a product like this if it is offered. Maybe I need to pair up with Google - if someone from Google reads my blog, please contact me! Lissa.clelland@gmail.com