Abstract

=Abstract for Technology Assisted Assessment=

 I have been using technology assisted assessments now for over two years. Even before this technology assisted assessment, I felt that students felt more comfortable when using technology while being assessed. The data from my inquiry supports this and also shows dramatic growth by those students that I assessed using the Smart Response System with my Smart Board.

 The lesson I choose for my technology assisted assessment was "The Earth and It's Forces." The main elements of this lesson dealt with the layers of the Earth, plate movement and external forces. After teaching both elementary school and middle school the past 15 years, very little social studies is covered here in North Carolina at the elementary level. This is evident by the pretest average of 23%.

 After teaching the lesson and reviewing the critical facts, I gave them a quiz using the Smart Response Remotes. The quiz can be viewed by clicking on the link under the Assessment heading on the main page. The post test average was 85%. Showing an increase of 62% for this particular class.

 By these results I think it is safe to say that the lesson was a success. In past years before I began using the smart response system, the average for this quiz was around 80%. (This comes from past grade books from previous classes.) So the 5% increase in the overall percentage is another indicator that the technology assisted assessment was a success.

 Overall I think when students are comfortable with their assessment method, they do better. Being at ease and being familiar with something allows you to relax and perform better. When students have the ability to use technology, something they are familiar with, they can be at ease and give their best effort. This is one reason I feel that standardized testing is bias and unfair to certain students. But that is another debate for another time.