top of page
Introduction
The conclusion of each course ends generally with some type of assessment. Within that course, successful and proactive educators would also provide formative assessments throughout in order to best modify instruction or reteach where necessary. Online tools have developed over time to help meet the needs of both educators and students to assess and collect data that would eventually be used as an indicator of where to go next in the learning process. Through Online and Blended Learning approach we can see that data is quickly available to educators to plan accordingly to the modification or accommodation of learners. The introduction of authentic assessments through technological platforms also can be seen as a defining factor within the success and progression with students, and also include a personalized approach to their capabilities and passions.
Reflection
Original Blog Post
https://chyartblog.wordpress.com/2019/04/02/authentic-assessments-in-the-blended-learning-classroom/
A teacher's Leading Edge Certification reflection on Assessments in the Blended Learning Classroom.
Assessments in a Blended Learning Classroom are vital to student success. With the use of instructional tools, teachers can support learners to achieve academic skills needed for mastery and spark an interest to create something based on their learning.
iNACOL Blended Learning Teacher Competency Framework
Assessments are one of the most influential elements in your classroom.
Assessments drive instruction, assessments showcase student mastery, and assessments allow learners to make connections to potential real-world scenarios they may come across.
Assessments are important on every level. That being said, what are the current types of assessments that represent the 21st-century classroom?
Formative Assessments - Think of these as mini check-ins with your students. In order to gauge their progress and also change up your teaching, formative assessments are a great tool for both! Anything from simple observations, tickets out the door, or activities that support certain learning mastery, formatives are your best friend when it comes to student success!
Tech Suggestions for Formative Assessments:
https://kahoot.com
https://quizizz.com
or... Good ole'
https://www.google.com/forms
Peer Feed Back & Self Reflection - General communication of progress through written discourse or face to face, is at times the best authentic and organic means of assessment. When a student gets the one on one advice from the teacher or maybe a peer, they have the opportunity to use the feedback in real time and make necessary corrections or improvements to their work.
For example, your 5th-grade student is in the midst of writing their informational report on an Earth conservation topic, having access to you as an educator, in the moment sit down, and to be able to review work gives the opportunity to the student to have in real time support and direction.
Or, if working on a live Google Doc, the teacher can make corrections on the paper and together the student and teacher are collaborating in real time. Win-win for everyone!
Voices of Peer Feedback also can be very powerful. Not only do you have students engaging in a collaborative activity, but when peers review each other's work, they are then given the opportunity to receive multiple perspectives of their work, which can equal to more of a robust product when done with the revision process.
Tech Suggestions for Formative Assessments:
https://gsuite.google.com/
https://flipgrid.com/
https://www.screencastify.com/
Summative Assessments - The final task at the end of a section, unit, or year. The summative pretty much sums it all up! This is the area where students need to show their learning independently, whether it shows standard mastery or concept development, the summative assessment can be used as a piece of evidence of what the students learned. Many times we see these assessments as being lengthy, but in today's 21st-century classroom, Project Based Learning or Performance Tasks are used to help make connections to standards needed for mastery and how they will apply them in the "REAL WORLD". Many curriculums include Performance Tasks, but when teachers come together to collaborate to develop Performance Tasks that reflect learning taking place in the classroom and connect to students' current interests, you get a really magical combination!
Tech Suggestions for Summative Assessments:
https://goformative.com/
Authentic Assessments - Now to the good stuff! The authentic assessment is the heartbeat of a Blended Learning Environment because it connects directly back to the idea of what Blended Learning is trying to develop in each student. Authentic assessments support learners by giving the opportunity to creatively brainstorm, design, develop, and execute a product that could reflect a future occupational or personal endeavor. This would be a true representation of the "Real World" project that is produced by using technology in a way that would redefine a situation or problem and allow the student to authentically move through a series of tasks or objectives.
Final thought - Assessments are your driving force, therefore make that force meaningful for students, and allow them to experience something that they will never forget.
Works Cited
National Standards for Quality Online Teaching. INACOL, Oct. 2011, www.inacol.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/national-standards-for-quality-online-teaching-v2.pdf.
bottom of page