#teachagtech -> Using Google Forms for Formative Assessment

Assessments are everywhere, but one way to ease the burden of constantly assessing students’ understanding is using Google Forms for formative assessments.  I have used this several times already and have enjoyed seeing the student responses to the automatic feedback. 

To learn how to set-up a Google Form, please watch the following video:

Setting up a Google Form for the Agriculture Classroom

{For anyone who wants to use Evernote as a repository for information and would like to know where you can find your Evernote e-mail:  Log-in or Sign-up for Evernote >  In the web based version you will see your name in the upper right corner > Click on your name > Than click on "Account Settings".  There at the bottom of your "Account Summary" page you will find your Evernote e-mail which ends in "@m.evernote.com".  You can copy this into your e-mail contacts for easy reference to save a whole host of materials.}

Once you have the Google Form established, you will want to add the Flubaroo script in order to automatically grade the assignment.  In addition, you can e-mail student results to them with the answer key if you choose.  Please review the following video for this information:

Using Flubaroo in Formative Assessment 

When you have e-mailed the results of the assessment out to students, this is what they will receive:

You too will receive an e-mail that shows you the number of student responses, whether you included the key, and a quick link to the “Responses” form.  It looks something like this:

I am beginning to love the Google Form tool.  It provides a way for us to collect information for our FFA Chapters, survey students or evaluate the level of our students’ understanding.  {For those non-educators reading, you can do the same for various types of feedback.  Perhaps you had a safety briefing at your place of business and you want to see how much information your employees retained prior to a formal qualifying exam, you could poll them the same way.}  

As a side note:  this blog post came about through a collaboration between myself and my PAAE / PSU Center for Professional Department mentee +Caleb Wright (@thewrightcaleb).  It is a wonderful experience to help with real-time questions to help in classrooms.  Caleb wanted a way to easily assess his students, but have the material available later for students to study for the summative assessment.  Proud of our young teachers out there who are innovative and working hard! (I neglected to mention this in the original posting.)

I hope what I have to offer will be of use to you in your classroom.  If you would like to see learning technology tidbits, follow me on Twitter @DGCornman.  

Yours in the Quest to be a Tech Savvy Aggie,

     

Diane Glock-Cornman

PSU Teach Ag! Technologist
@DGCornman
+Diane
elearninag.com

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Bringing You Along on the Quest to be a Tech Savvy Aggie…

In the spring of 2013, I set out to create a blog {E-Learn in Ag: A Quest to be Tech Savvy Aggie} to begin journaling ways of diversifying teaching techniques by integrating technology.  It began as an online notebook of sorts, but to also {hopefully} help fellow educators in their classroom.  Over the last several years, I have had the privilege of developing online curriculum and taking some post-masters courses in learning technologies.  I have learned a great deal about how effective online learning happens {and doesn’t}.  As I start this journey, I’m not sure how I feel about the title “technologist” - this implies I’m an expert in this field - but I would rather think of myself as a lifetime learner who is focusing efforts in the area of technology and to help out my fellow educators.  I am humbled and feel privileged to be asked to provide information to help my colleagues provide resources to ease the magnitude of responsibilities placed on ag teachers, find ways to be more effective educators, provide support for teacher evaluations and practically integrate technology in their classroom.  So, here we go….

After teaching for nine years in my hometown at the Juniata HS Agriculture program as a single teacher to my current role as a team member of four agriculture educators at Penn Manor High School, I have seen a wide array of differing opportunities available to educators and differences in technology utilization.  My perspective on technology is that no one technological tool will fix poor classroom pedagogy. I feel integrating technology is one more tool for your teacher toolbox.  If managed properly, it can be a way to more effectively manage time, assessments and student engagement.  In addition, I feel we must present students with as advanced technology as our districts will provide to keep them current so they are poised to be successful in future careers.  

In previous educational technology experiences, I have learned in some cases, we end up teaching the platform for the technology as opposed to effectively communicating the course content we want the student to master.  In this time period of teaching the platform (ie Moodle, Blackboard, or MindMeister), we lose them just as if we were standing in front of the room lecturing and dictating from a book with our kids slouched over in their seats daydreaming about what the coming weekend.  {Below is the visual I had of my classroom when things go wrong.}

Source:  Illustration Friday ®Charles Shultz

Through my series of blog posts, I will be covering the following general topics:

•   Easy classroom integration tools (Nearpod, Socrative, etc)
•   Why technology and SAMR Model of technology integration.
•   Google Drive and Education Tools
•   Open-Source vs iPad Technologies
•   Agriculture Apps
•   Moodle and Blackboard use in the classroom
•   Graphic design, video and using other types of media

I ask you to begin thinking about what you need help with in your classroom: “if I could only do this…it would be so much easier”.  Evaluate how you use technology in your classroom and what you would like to improve on.  In addition, I ask you to begin thinking about how social media plays a role in your agriculture program.  I would like to tailor blog posts to real-time problems and issues.

I hope what I have to offer will be of use to you in your classroom.  If you would like to see learning technology tidbits, follow me on Twitter @DGCornman.  

Yours in the Quest to be a Tech Savvy Aggie,

Diane Glock-Cornman

PSU Teach Ag! Technologist
@DGCornman