BlendKit2017 Week 3 Blended Assessments of Learning

Over the years, I have used a variety of online tools for both formative and summative assessments, formal and informal assessments in my university-level Spanish classes. Some of these have been more successful than others. When they have not been as successful it is usually because I did one of two things (both of which are mentioned in the Week 3 readings for #BlendKit2017):

• I used a new tool or a radically different activity without having adequately prepared students for it. I'm embarrassed to admit it, but one semester I had to completely eliminate the oral final exam component of one of my Intermediate courses because I realized it was very unfair and students were so unprepared for what they were being asked to do that the assessment did not accurately reflect their abilities. 
• I failed to provide enough detail in the expectations and/or grading criteria. With changes in K-12 education and assessment, I have seen a change in my students' expectations concerning assignments. Students never used to expect a rubric, but now they want to know the details of the expectations and grading. I see this as a positive thing since it helps me ensure that I have carefully thought through all of the details and am transparent in my grading.

This semester really presented some challenges for me since the CLEAR applications are no longer available. I had used some of those for a number of years and have not found comparable applications to replace them. The CLEAR site does now have a list of websites and tools [ http://clear.msu.edu/featured/ria-alternatives/ ] that might be helpful until they can get back up and running--I just haven't had a chance to go through them.

In upper-level courses I have had a lot of success with quality participation in whole-class discussion boards (when I have been clear about expectations and grading) and in small-group discussions boards and wikis where students collaborate on a project. I will, for this posting anyway, focus instead on lower-level courses.

One of the challenges of lower-level language courses is "encouraging" students to learn the vocabulary (Spanish to English and English to Spanish) "on time." I have started using Socrative (the upgraded version) regularly for vocabulary and even some grammar points. Students log in on their phones, answer 10-20 questions, and submit their answers which are automatically graded by the site. I then enter the grades into Blackboard under "Preparation and Participation." I post them immediately. There are many of these "mini-quizzes" throughout the semester. They don't up much class time, and students prepare for class better knowing that I will be able to see if they are prepared or not. As a caution if you try this in your classes: If you do not want to have to make adjustments to the grade (giving partial credit, accepting answers the computer counted as incorrect, etc.), you have to do the following:

• Be more specific than you think you need to be in the instructions (i.e., whether they should include the definite or the indefinite article, whether or not to include punctuation and capitalization, etc.)
• Carefully think through the possible correct answers you put for each question

 In order to help them memorize the vocabulary with correct spelling (and verb conjugations), I use Conjuguemos (upgraded version) so that students are not just flipping over flash cards--an activity which really has no accountability or feedback. Instead, students can go through the vocabulary lists as flash cards and practice verb forms and tenses by typing correct answers. They can see their progress based on their percentage (accuracy) AND based on their ability to answer more questions within a certain time period (recall speed).

Of course, it doesn't end there. In class, students work with the new material in a variety of types of activities. Since they have already put in time memorizing and practicing the vocabulary and verb forms, they are able to better use the material in communicative contexts and for tasks that ask them to go beyond mechanical practice. They are better able to negotiate meaning when they have essential content already in their memory and do not need to ask their brains to focus on some of the mechanical components. This way they can focus more on content, self-expression, and effective communication.

https://conjuguemos.com/
https://socrative.com/
http://clear.msu.edu/ and http://clear.msu.edu/featured/ria-alternatives/