In-Class Quiz
Back to basics
With so much apprehension, confusion and disillusion about teaching online it’s hard to remember sometimes that “I LOVE TO TEACH!” It’s the reason so many teachers are trying something new after over 10 to 20 years of teaching in a way that worked so well! We do it because we love it!
And so with that in mind, let’s go back to basics. Good old-fashion asking your students questions in class! It’s how you keep them engaged. It’s how you know that you’re getting through to them! They are eager to raise their hands and share their opinions, thoughts and answers. This is particularly true in Primary School. Now something happens as teenage angst grows. Even your most eager student somehow no longer thinks it’s cool to actively participate orally in class. But guess what? Send that same teen a text and she’ll text right back! Seemingly even before you had pressed send! Why is that? It’s a different generation and their preferred method of expression is digitally! They’d even rather send you a voice note than call you! Huh?!! Yep!
Back to school
So that’s exactly why some schools, even before the whole COVID-19 era, took steps to talk to students in a language they understood. For example some local school used the app Quizlet to do a quick Quiz game. Teachers would ask questions in the face-to-face classroom and students would submit their answers on their Smart Phones! Schools in T&T that allow Smart Phones in class?!! Yep! Just like any tool there are times they are appropriate and times when they are not. And if you don’t take advantage of technology you can potentially miss out on opportunities for learning, collaboration and improved efficiency!
Upping the ante
So now that we’re online how can we find new ways to do the same old tried and true questioning approach. Of course continue as normal. For example you can
- Use your class list to ensure you ask every child a question as the day progresses.
- Ask students to use the “raise hand” feature in zoom when they want to answer.
- Use the poll feature in ZOOM to create an atmosphere of community and excitement.
Using a Poll
An online poll or real-time quiz is exciting because:
- Students will get to see their answers on screen.
- They’ll get to communicate in a modern way that comes naturally to them as digital natives.
- It will break the monotony of answering questions orally, which is fun for a lot of students but not all!
- And it would create an experience or event. Students remember experiences and so it’s a great way to embed learning!
When to use a Poll?
Reinforce key learning points.
Did you just cover Independence Day? How about a little in-class quiz on key dates, important historical figures and the reason behind Independence Day! In order to reinforce what they’ve already done.
Get feedback on the level of student mastery of a topic.
About to move on to an advanced topic? You can use the poll either as a refresher of the foundational material or to gauge whether your students have mastered the basic concepts sufficiently to move on!
Discover which concepts to revise with your class
It’s the end of term and you have enough time to go over 2 Science topics with your class. But which to choose? You can use the poll to ask your students directly which topic they prefer Or quiz them on a few topics and focus on the topic that gave them the most trouble.
When not to use a Poll?
The poll shouldn’t be used as a test for marks. In fact there’s no reason why your poll can’t be anonymous. The aim isn’t to know who got the answer right and who go the answer wrong. The aim of the poll is more to assess the effectiveness of your lesson delivery to date and to find another avenue to engage your students!
How to create a Poll?
In Zoom go to settings then polling and click on the button to enable the feature. And that’s it! The next time you start a new meeting the Polling Option will be available.
https://youtu.be/erz4xtQHoVs
Prepare your Poll
As with everything Online it requires a little more preparation. You can probably wing some in-class questions as you go through your lesson plan. But not if you want to use the Polling Feature! You’ll have to take 20 to 30mins to create your poll before hand But try it! It will be worth it!