In the remediation phase, Driscoll’s students set the pace. “As a group, math educators don’t reflect often enough upon performance,” he said. “For me the standard is attainment of the concept, not the time it takes me to get there. It might start off slow, but if your total delivery is always about attainment of a concept, they attain it. My students have their foot on the accelerator or the brake; I’m just responding to that and helping them steer.”
Continued assessment using student response technology also ensures that teaching is based on real-time accurate information. “As I explored the technology, I discovered that what my gut was telling me wasn’t always true,” said Driscoll. “I’ve learned not to rely on my gut alone, but to assess and then move forward with confidence. My class average speaks for itself. It’s in the 80s for a lower level grade nine math class.”
In assessing classroom performance, Driscoll takes both a macroscopic and microscopic view. “I can look at a bar graph of the incoming responses and make a decision on whether or not they understood the concept,” he said. “I can also look microscopically to see which students had trouble with the concept, so that my focus can be honed on those particular individuals. In addition, the response system immediately groups the misconceptions for me. That’s very critical because I can then discuss the most consistent wrong answers. We don’t do enough of that in math classrooms. We always discuss what the right answer is, but there is a lot of learning that can be afforded by taking a look at where students go wrong.”
When to test is more important than what to test, according to Driscoll. “I test when they’re ready, not when I’m ready,” he said. “If you’re in tune with what’s happening through the pre-test scores and you see the remediation scores increasing to 80 percent as you flush out the misconceptions, then you post-test. If your post-test matches your remediation phase, the concept is learned.”
Driscoll encourages teachers to think about why they teach the way they teach. “What tools do they use to check their effectiveness?” he asked. “What tools do they use to judge whether their students comprehend? Student response pedagogy is a basic change from the usual teacher-centered, lock-step class. In my classroom, learning difficulties are revealed to all by real-time data, and my students and I are engaged in a continuous process of improving performance. There is no blaming and there are no excuses. We are all detectives.”
Student response technology enables daily formative assessment integrated with instruction so that teaching can be informed and adjusted to students’ needs. Classrooms become high-performing, fun, interactive learning environments that keep all students engaged, motivated, and participating.
From elementary to higher education, SRS technology represents a valuable resource for education professionals. As part of a system for frequent and timely formative assessments, SRS facilitates focused and timely feedback while providing the real-time tools teachers need to meet the educational requirements of their students. As a bonus, teachers can use this technology to lessen their administrative burden and channel more time into classroom instruction. As the research suggests, SRS technology has the potential to revolutionize the 21st century classroom.
Eileen Shihadeh-Shald is a vice president with eInstruction.
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