Once educational goals are set, an important step to reaching those goals is providing feedback. When learners are given information regarding their performance and progress, they are better suited for improvement. Timeliness is a vital component to feedback: its impact is greatest when it is more immediate. Technology gives educators many resources to facilitate immediate feedback; two of these are Data Collection Tools and Communication Software.
Data Collection Tools are very valuable because they enable one teacher to simulateously give immediate and personalized feedback to a classroom full of students. The Data Collection Tool that I see the most potential for is the Classroom Response System that collects student responses (and data) via the students' use of clickers. Even though they rely solely on multiple choice questions, the questions can be written in a variety of different ways so that all skill levels and information can be assessed. I envision using a Classroom Response System in the library to survey readers' interests and assess student knowledge on research strategies and information literacy skills. One thing that I really appreciate about the Classroom Response System is the anonymity that provides the learners. I imagine that using this tool would be much like watching a game show on television and playing along. Once the students' answers are submitted, they are immediately shown the correct response and they can compare their response to the correct one.
A second technology tool that provides timely feedback are those that fall under the category of Communication Software. There are many types of communication software and it is easy to see why they are called that--they all facilitate communication among people. I particularly like the idea of using blogs in an educational setting. Because their nature encourages readers to leave comments and replies to individual posts, they are effective in providing feedback. I think that a "What I'm Reading" type of blog would be an effective way to spread the word about new books in the library; readers could post reviews to the books that they've read, thereby providing feedback. Such a blog could also be used as a forum to recommend different book titles; students could post what types of books they like and readers could leave feedback about other books they've read that may be of interest. Blogs could also be implemented in our language arts department as many of the classes require students to keep a Reading Response Journal that contains responses to open-ended questions about the books that each student is reading. Rather than use an "old fashioned" journal, students could post blog entries that other students and the teacher could respond to. I also like the use of wikis in educational settings because they are so collaborative in nature. Teachers can oversee student group wikis and chart their progress while seeing first-hand each person's contribution. On a professional level, wikis are also very valuable in that they can be used as forums for discussion. There are two big obstacles, however, that I see to fully implementing blogs and wikis in our district. The first issue is that of availability of computers. The second issue is that many blog and wiki sites are blocked by the district filter.
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I love student response systems because they are engaging and motivating for students. They provide valuable information to teachers. Depending on the system you use, I like those from eInstruction, they can do much more than multiple choice if you are willing to put in a little more time and effort. Combined with an interactive slate even more can be done with them.
ReplyDeleteOur students are so familiar with social networking. Using blogs and wikis in the classroom in a variety of ways makes so much sense. Showing them meaningful ways to use the technology for "professional" purposes is very important.