Formative assessment provides a snapshot of student comprehension and needs, giving teachers invaluable information needed to guide their students to success. Using technology in the classroom to obtain this information just became easier. The Answer Pad, billed as a student response system and grading solution, allows teachers to gain real-time insight into their students progress through an interactive feature available through their website or mobile app.
The student response system feature is the perfect tool for formative assessment. In the ‘quick connect’ interactive feature, the teacher dashboard displays each student’s response and includes an option to give immediate individual feedback. This online formative assessment can lead to increased student performance on summative assessments (Yeo, Ke, & Chatterjee, 2014). This whole class display allows the teacher to see each student’s participation and need for guidance.
Student work can be saved through the “capture” feature. This gives the teacher a snapshot of the class progress for self-assessment as well, determining any adjustments needed in the lesson to increase student comprehension. This added benefit from The Answer Pad meets the International Society for Technology in Education’s (ISTE) Standards for Educators of being an analyst and using data to drive their instruction (ISTE Standards for STUDENTS, 2016).
Using the answer sheets function in The Answer Pad, teachers can tag quiz/test questions to correspond to standards (Common Core, etc.). Detailed reports by group or individual are displayed after assigned quizzes/tests are completed. These reports coupled with the formative assessment obtained in the ‘quick connect’ mode provide priceless information for teachers to adjust their instruction to best fit their students needs.
Available as a free account, the upgrade at $10 yearly is highly recommended to fully unlock all the features including many pre-made interactive templates to use in the ‘quick connect’ mode.
Resources
International Society for Technology in Education. (2016) ISTE Standards for Students. Retrieved February 13, 2019, from https://www.iste.org/standards/for-educators
Yeo, C.H., Ke, K. & Chatterjee, B. (2014). An investigation into the relationship between on-line formative assessments and performance of students. E-Journal of Business Education & Scholarship of Teaching, 8(1), 18–31.
