Assessment and Online Learnging Tools: Overload..

Assessments and online learning tools.

Wow, this had to be the most intense week and the most information overload. The combination of reading the stock material, team members writing, and other group’s projects, I was exposed to a variety of assessment tools. The overwhelming response is that online teachers potentially have more assessment options, than face-to-face classrooms. The ability to duplicate online classrooms with web-based conferencing, student created e-portfolio’s, collaboration, class participation, peer-to-peer communication, and the online adoption of summative and formative assessments. The online teacher has an entire toolbox of assessment options.

The class readings called for the development of frequent diversified assessments. A well-designed online class can provide students with specific feedback, and specific information on how to improve their performance. discussion boards and blogs allow both teachers and students the ability share information about a students writing. The automatically graded quizzes and exams in many online classes can provide students with instant feedback, the correct answer, and information in a book where the correct information can be found. The ease of developing classes and self-corrected quizzes allows students to conduct multiple attempts of an assessment.

As online educator, I am frequently asked if it is hard to teach students that you do not “see” or speak with “daily”. Online teachers can create frequent communication with students through email, by requiring frequent Discussion Board or Blog entries, through online conferencing applications, or through traditional telecommunication. Online teachers have the ability to assess student work through all of these avenues.

The student-centered nature of online education allows creative online teachers to develop formative assessments. I would argue that the online teacher has more tools than the face-to-face teachers to use self-reflective formative assessments. The ability to use surveys, online quizzes, reflective blogs, discussion boards, and Internet based research all allow teachers to create student-centered formative assessments. The ‘reforms’ and modifications called for in the both in the Flexible Learning and Assessments of Understanding articles can be easily incorporated into an online class.

Our group worked with mixed success to complete the midterm project using the jigsaw method. I enjoyed the opportunity to work with a team and use the jigsaw approach to completing the mid-term. However, I have never experienced a lot of communication and success, in a graduate level class, with the jigsaw method. The busy nature and conflicting schedules of graduate level students seems to always make it difficult for teams to truly collaborate. Our group mainly communicated through email, and I feel it developed a high quality product, but primarily worked alone to develop a group product.

It will take me some time to process all of this week’s information and determine how I apply these technologies and applications into the online classes that I teach. The emerging concept that is capturing my attention is the student created e-portfolio. I currently use the Blackboard class management tool and a specific students work is posted in a variety of locations, within Blackboard. I see many benefits and efficiencies with student created e-portfolios.