Category: assessment

Webinar: How to use FreshGrade in an ESL/ELL Classroom

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, image editing, social media, tech inquiry, twitter, video conferencing, video editingLeave a comment

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This webinar was not quite the video that I thought it would be. I thought that it might be a webinar revolving around how to help non-english students through the use of FreshGrade but instead it is a webinar describing a teachers use of FreshGrade with her English students who are learning to speak French.

Nonetheless it still provided some good examples as to how FreshGrade can be helpful when learning a new language.

The person who ran this webinar is named Michelle Grenne (@MGreenehansen). She has been teaching French for the past 17 years, grades 9-12. Greene works at Stratford school which is famous for its theatre productions. She uses the hashtag #freshgradeL2 if you wish to discuss similar FreshGrade experiences over Twitter with her. She found FreshGrade through Twitter one day and decided to try it out for herself. Immediately she realized that the application has immense potential for helping students learn French. Basically, what she found was that FreshGrade promotes speaking in French through their recording option. This allows class discussions to take place online as students record themselves speaking French on the iPad throughout the class.

Some key points that were discusses included FreshGrades ability to:

  • Encourage shy students to speak
  • Challenge students to use vocabulary in new contexts. For instance, assessment tools can be created to mark students online discussions with regard to the amount of new vocabulary that they are using on the app
  • Motivate students to be more engaged in classroom activities as their assessments about class participation are shown on their portfolios
  • Build confidence in French by allowing students to see their progression over time
  • She likes how she can track student progress online as there is less paper used
  • It also helps her with exit slips as students can post their answers quickly to the application at the end of class. This allows her to see students proficiency in what they have learned on a particular day

Although the title this video is a tad misleading it does provide some helpful information pertaining to how the recording option of FreshGrades app can allow students to practice a second language more comfortably. With that being said, I think that FreshGrade can be an extremely useful tool for middle school French (6-8).

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Webinar: Introduction to FreshGrade for Parents

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, image editing, social media, tech inquiry, video conferencing, video editingLeave a comment

A customer care representative for FreshGrade ran this webinar. Of course, the beginning hook was ” FreshGrade communicates student learning giving parents a window into their students classroom. Parents can download FreshGrade on any IOS or android device or web browser using their home or a public computer.” (I feel like I could recite what FreshGrade is to you now that I have heard the same sentences over and over again.)

There was a short audio clip that was presented from a parent using FreshGrade. Described below is her response:

Her son was in grade five when they started using FreshGrade and it is has been truly impactful to use. It is a window into the classroom through videos, pictures, and comments that has made her understand what her child is doing and made her better able to support her child at home. Further, it is the highlight of her day when she gets notifications about her son.

Some other facts presented throughout the webinar:

  • Notifications and emails will let you know when your child’s portfolio is updated.
  • Can get access to all of your childrens accounts at the same time.
  • You have the option to email the teacher, look at the portfolio, view portfolio history, look at report cards, view any invites, and view announcements.
  • You can download any photos added to FreshGrade.

I wont walk you through how to create an account as I did that with the student webinar but I have uploaded photos with easy to follow steps.

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As you can tell this was a shorter webinar. It would be useful for a parent to watch that is new to FreshGrade. If you have already read my other blogs with regard to FreshGrade then you probably didn’t learn anything particularly new and exciting but nonetheless now we know that this webinar is exclusively for NEW FreshGrade parent users.

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Webinar: Introduction to FreshGrade for Students

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, GAFE, image editing, social media, tech inquiry, video conferencing, video editingLeave a comment

The webinar “Introduction to FreshGrade for Students” is exactly what you would expect, “an introduction to FreshGrade for students.” Here is a quick summary of what the webinar discussed. Because this webinar is only twenty minutes long I am going to summarize it perfectly for you.

So here are the key points from the webinar:

  • FreshGrade allows you to share your accomplishments or something that you are proud of with your parents while also being able to reflect on your learning.
  • Students can download FreshGrade on any IOS or android device as well as have access on a web browser to add or comment on their work.
  • An interview from a student using FreshGrade took place. This student discussed how FreshGrade makes her feel more confident in her work and allows her to talk with her teachers and parents about her work more easily. She also stated that she likes comments that tell her how to improve her work.
  • Each student will receive their own digital profile where teachers and students can share examples of their work. Teachers, students, and parents can comment on portfolio artifacts to encourage progress, celebrate success, and deepen learning.
  • Notifications and emails will let you know when your portfolio is updated.
  • When creating an account you can download FreshGrade from student.freshgrade.com, from the iTunes App Store, or from Google play.
  • Once you go to create your account you will need an access code that your teacher should provide for you. Once you have this code you can log into FreshGrade and then create your own login information that will replace your access code.
  • Once you have your student account set up you can see all FreshGrade elements on your portfolio. These include any comments that have been made, previous report cards, and classroom announcements. On the student portfolio page you can email teachers directly, upload work and/or make comments, add different classes into different portfolios, and view your portfolio history which allows you to see any previous years portfolios.
  • Voice to text was briefly mentioned as a tool for younger students to use to quickly upload comments to FreshGrade.

This webinar would be good for new students or parents to utilize as it briefly describes  FreshGrade and shows what the application looks like. This webinar probably isn’t the most informative for someone who has already used FreshGrade or knows a bit about it.

Here is the link if you wish to watch it for yourself:

https://learning.freshgrade.com/courses/369157/lectures/5634829

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Webinar: Expert Panel on Portfolios & Assessment

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, classroom observations, collaboration, curration, distributed learning, edcamp, image editing, multimedia, PLN, professional learning, social media, tech inquiry, video conferencing, video editingLeave a comment

The webinar “Expert panel on Portfolios & Assessment” discusses assessment, portfolios, and 21st-century learning with FreshGrade. Four presenters discuss their experience and ideas about FreshGrade.

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Kelli Vogstad is a vice principle who uses FreshGrade. Feel free to follow her blog               —-> Kellivogstad.com

In this webinar Kelly discusses how to best document learning on FreshGrade. She states that the documentation must show growth over time, provide reflection, and bring in the core competencies. To make learning visible on FreshGrade we must include the curriculum activity and task, but move beyond the picture of the worksheet or test. Our pictures need to show growth and learning. Further, FreshGrade should have two prominent voices: student and parent. Students should be encouraged to document what they have learned, what they still need to work on, and their plans to move forward. Additionally, parents voices should be included but their comments should move beyond praise.

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Damian Cooper is an assessment consultant who works to make assessment relevant for students and less work for teachers. Currently he is working on validating the use of observation and conversation as assessment tools.

Damian discusses the importance of a curriculum that focuses on know, do, and understand. He states that there is often an over reliance on factual knowledge and that we need to move toward observing students skills, competencies, and conceptual understanding. One way in which we can observe these areas is through FreshGrade. FreshGrade allows students to record information which we can view as evidence of learning on smartphones and tablets. This type of learning and assessment challenges the traditional marking approach but can be more beneficial as it allows students to gather their own evidence.

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Wanny Hersey is a superintendent in Northern California.

Wanna discusses how FreshGrade is utilized to document student achievement and growth at her project based learning school. The school that she describes utilizes focused learning goals. According to her, these goals and certain 21st century skills can be hard to demonstrate in a traditionally academic sense. In her opinion, FreshGrade is able to capture the entire learning experience of the students. Students are able to post about their goals online, which relates to metacognition. This also promotes engagement and conversations. Some challenges that Wanna describes includes the amount of devices available for uploading. For instance, you may need to take time to create a system for uploading if you only have access to a small number of devices. You also need to take time to train parents, teachers, and students about what strong evidence looks like. Further, some of the benefits discussed include the ability to document skills such as, collaboration and critical thinking. Additionally, because many teachers can have access to different student portfolios collaboration between teachers is common, and teachers can use FreshGrade as proof of their own professional growth.

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Karen Fadrum helps teachers understand how to utilize portfolios and assessment.

Karen mentioned that while using FreshGrade teachers need time and space, access to information, and a connection to the community. When shifting to using FreshGrade, teachers are learners and need to make FreshGrade work for them and their students. Some tools that can be utilized to support teachers includes: readily available technology, documentation tools for teachers and students, access to creative apps, and flexible learning spaces. Further, teachers should be given professional learning opportunities to share their FreshGrade experiences with each other.

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I won’t go over the q & a part of the video as it is twenty minutes long and I am ready for bed! But please watch the video for yourself! There is plenty of fabulous information located at the end of the video –> –> –> –> –> https://learning.freshgrade.com/courses/368996/lectures/5632299

Here is my cute certificate (extrinsic motivation at its finest)

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Thanks for reading,

Another webinar summary will be uploaded on the weekend!

Webinar: FreshTips and Advanced Techniques

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, image editing, social media, tech inquiry, video conferencing, video editingLeave a comment
For some unknown reason right now I cant edit the spacing on this post. Especially with regard to the spacing between the text and photos. Because of this, the post doesn’t look as appealing as I would like it to be. Hopefully tomorrow the site will have fixed itself and I can fix the spacing issue. For now just try to enjoy the content..
This week I watched the webinar, “FreshTips and Advanced Techniques.” Specifically, this webinar shows you how to use custom assessment tools, weighted categories, custom objectives, objective management, and filtering on the app. One thing that I really like about this webinar is that it shows you each individual step through screencasting so that you can follow along yourself.
Custom Assessment Tools: Allows you to create your own assessment tools to meet the needs of your classroom. You can also weight these forms of assessment at a certain level.

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Once you have created your assessment tools you can start to create activities for your students to do. When adding an activity you can include a title, the date, a description, and a category. You can then assess students activities through their gradebook or through their profile.
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See the title, date, description, and category options
Custom Objectives: Allows you to add objectives to your activities. You can create custom objectives or select some from a list provided to you located under subject area. The only thing to be careful about is that once you add an objective there is no way to edit it or delete it. Another option that you have is to create objectives first and then create activities that meet those objectives (objective management).
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You can select objectives from a list provided to you located under subject area
Filtering: You can filter your gradebook and portfolios. Specifically, you can filter your gradebook by subjects, labels, and categories and your portfolios by data range, subject, category, label, private, and reports. These filters allow you to see specific information quickly, saving you time. You can access this information in the saved filters folder. This allows everything to be laid out quite nicely. Portfolio filtering is a new feature that only teachers have access too. Parents and students cannot do this yet, but in the future it may be added.

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After viewing this webinar everything started to come together for me. Looking at a blank FreshGrade account and reading FreshGrades website provided me with valuable information but actually seeing how things are created deepened my understanding of all of the features that the application has. I think that it will be extremely valuable for me to watch all of the webinars. Unfortunately, there are 25 of them! So hopefully I can get through them all in the next four weeks..
These webinars are extremely valuable for first time users. In fact, if you are going to use FreshGrade I would suggest that you watch all of them before you begin adding to the application yourself! Further, if you have time to watch the webinars while they are being webcasted you can ask questions to the presenter at the end of the tutorial.
On a side note, once you’re done a webinar you get a cute certificate & lets be honest, there is something about certificates that make us feel special.
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Here is a link to the “FreshTips and Advanced Techniques” webinar: https://learning.freshgrade.com/p/freshtips-and-advanced-techniques-webinar
All of the webinars are FREE so don’t be freaked out when you see the register now button.

FreshGrade Implementation

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, classroom observations, social media, tech inquiryLeave a comment

Although I was going to look into FreshGrade’s privacy settings this week, there was a surprise visit in one of my classes from a teacher who actually uses FreshGrade with her students! Because of this, I am going to post what I have learned about FreshGrade from this talk. So here we go…

The teacher who talked to us gave us examples of the guidelines for reporting using FreshGrade that are used in her school district. Some of these guidelines revolved around student progress reports. During these reports teachers in their first year of using FreshGrade will continue to use formal progress reports at defined reporting times during the school year. On the contrary, teachers in their second year of using FreshGrade may provide summative comments at key times during the year rather than providing progress reports. These summative comments will appear as part of the FreshGrade portfolio. All students will receive a final written report that summarizes their learning over the course of the school year. Additionally, the final written summative report will include a student self-assessment of the core competencies.

Some of the portfolio requirements include a minimum of one piece of evidence of learning each month in the key areas of reading, writing, and numeracy. Additionally, a minimum of one post per year in other required areas of study. Lastly, summative information for reading, writing, and numeracy should be reported in the student portfolio at least two times per year.

With regard to letter grades and performance, neither letter grades nor percentages are used to indicate student performance in all elementary grades (k-5). Although, student progress may be communicated using language consistent with the Ministry of Education Performance Scales in areas of reading, writing, and mathematics. For grades 4 and 5 letter grades may be communicated verbally to parents who request them but letter grades are not to be communicated via electronic portfolios.

Some of the forms used by the school included a electronic portfolio checklist for teachers new to FreshGrade, a parent informed consent form, a web-based tools consent form, a parent letter for mid-year student progress reports for teachers in their second year of FreshGrade use, sample student progress reports using FreshGrade, a core competency self-assessment form, prompts for student self-reflections, examples of documentation, and guiding principles and beliefs about reporting.

Some other key attributes included attendance information, which should be posted two times per year and as part of the final summative report. Further, an indication of the school name must be included on student progress reports and summative reports.

Some cautions discussed about using e-portfolios included:
-Less is more: We want to ensure key areas of learning are shared and that we don’t overwhelm parents.
-Carefully choose evidence that demonstrates and shows student learning.
-Make clear assessment decisions: Decide which key assessment matter most and avoid overwhelming the portfolio.

This is only some of the information that was discussed in class. I hope, with permission, to include more information later in the week. For now I will be adding this information to my word document that holds my tech inquiry assignment.

Thanks for reading!

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^ Pro of FreshGrade ^

Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, classroom observations, collaboration, distributed learning, edtech, gaming, Learning design, network literacy, open pedagogy, social media, trello, virtual realityLeave a comment

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Last Friday my class visited the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry. Although I had never heard of this school before I was pleased to find out that it is a high school that personalizes education through a formal inquiry process where learners create projects and activities that take them through the curriculum on their own. Seeing this type of learning environment in person was very eyeopening for me.

Previously, I had loved watching the documentary “Most Likely to Succeed” in class. Although there are differences between HTH and PSII, both schools are doing some pretty different stuff compared to the traditional model of education. Plus, watching a movie barely compares to physically visiting a school. While walking around PSII I could feel the energy of the students and see how well that type of learning environment can work. Every single student was engaging with something throughout the hour that I was there. While talking to different students I felt like I was having a conversation with my own peers. I could see each student light up when talking about their current project. They were genuinely interested in the material that they were learning about and they loved talking about it. To me, it is without a doubt the future of education.

One thing that I would like to learn more about at PSII is assessment. Jeff Hopkins briefly described this process stating that students and teachers work together to discuss evaluation and grading. I got the sense that there is a lot of formative assessment during the year where teachers are working one-on-one with students, although there is still summative assessment where student learning needs to be compared to curriculum standards.

On another note, I really liked the integration of technologies like WordPress and Trello into the classroom, as I didn’t start using these technologies myself until taking this course. In fact, many of the students Trello accounts were much more creative and better organized than my own. It’s super awesome that students are getting acquainted with these sites as I believe that the internet provides a vast amount of entrepreneurial opportunities. If students are already starting to explore some of their ideas online they could have a successful business already built by the time that they graduate high school.

It was also interesting to hear how students are using virtual reality in the classroom in different ways. For instance, some students were using it for building, others gaming, and others art (I have mostly viewed virtual reality as a type of 3D gaming device, but it can be used for so much more!)

Although I can’t describe everything that I loved about this school, because there simply is too much, I encourage you to browse the schools website https://learningstorm.org/ and watch Jeff Hopkins TED talk about an inquiry approach to education.

 

 

Most Likely to Succeed Film

On By michellecherylshieldsIn assessment, blogging, classroom observations, collaboration, distributed learning, edtech, Learning design, network literacy, open pedagogy, social mediaLeave a comment

 

 

Last class we watched a film called “Most Likely to Succeed,” which is a documentary examining the history of education in the United States. This film revealed some of the shortcomings of the conventional education system in today’s increasingly technological world. Specifically, this film followed the problem and project based learning strategies used with students at High Tech High. Problem based learning requires higher order thinking skills that go beyond the level of understanding required by traditional classes that have clearly defined questions to be solved. The problems presented can often be too difficult to be solved individually and therefore require teamwork and collaboration between students. Additionally, project based learning allows students to increase their  autonomy by giving them control to create their own projects, although teachers still define parameters and completion dates. For instance, in the film all of the students in the school were working towards a project that would be displayed at the end of the year in front of other students, teachers, and parents. The project based approach to learning  challenged students to overcome problems (such as, working with others, defending points of view, dealing with frustration) in order to produce a project of substantial work.

Watching problem and project based learning was super interesting because I could see how students were being prepared for future careers. On film it looked like students gained confidence, increased their communication skills, learned how to critically think, and became more creative. This is awesome because schools today aren’t necessarily preparing children adequately for the workforce (in the way that education does not always lead to a job.) One of the reasons that this has occurred is due to an increase in technology that decreases traditional white-collar jobs. (I have seen this in action with friends and siblings and worry about it myself!) For a large majority of my own educational experiences I feel like I have only been taught how to memorize things effectively and take tests – without retaining a majority of the information presented to me.

Although I think that this new school is extremely forward thinking and fantastic, I can see how certain students might have problems with the way that things are done. For instance, there is lots of group projects and presentations which may make more introverted students feel burnt out. (It would be interesting to see if schools could be built and run according to learning styles or different temperaments? Why are we still stuck using one similar model of education when students are extremely diverse? Does more research need to be done? Are we too closed minded? Is it even possible?)

I hope that wasn’t too long for you..Thanks for reading!