Google Apps in preparation for assessments

Post date: Jan 11, 2016 9:35:52 PM

I've just had one of the moments where I wonder what I did last year when we weren't signed up and using Google Apps!

The suite of tools has been so valuable in my pupils' preparations for their upcoming prelims. After using Google Docs to help identify the correct support pupils needed it's continued to grow.

Google Drive

As all my files are kept on Google Drive, I was easily able to add them to shared folders which both my Higher and N5 pupils can access. Using shift+z lets you have a file in two locations (rather than copying the file across) - so if I update my own copy of the unit Slides the pupils also have the most up-to-date version. I've installed a Google Drive extension called glinks which allows me to add weblinks into Drive, taking pupils directly to revision sites, videos etc all within the same folder (see the examples of Bitesize and Prezi in the image below). This all means there's very little admin - I only had to share the top level "Shared Resources" folder with the relevant pupils and any subfolders or files within it are automatically shared with the same pupils.

Practice Questions in Docs

Each of my Higher pupils also has a Practice Questions Doc. This is shared between the pupil and teacher and begins with some general assessment info to remind them of command words and exam technique. It's then a space where they can complete questions which I'll then dip into and mark. It reflects an old-school revision jotter but there are a couple of definite advantages in my book:

1. I can mark from home, easily. Rather than coming back to school to a mountain of marking, I was able to mark a couple of questions from each pupil, as they completed it, over the break. This provided them with feedback which could be incorporated into their answers and I can see a definite progression as they went on.

2. Pupils receive detailed feedback. I had a couple of pupils who completed several questions in jotters and I found myself constantly looking for space and struggling to add comments to particular sections. Docs allows this very easily and encourages discussion about the feedback they've given in replies. Once they've built up a set of answers they can re-read the feedback, summarising the main points which are brought up across a whole suite of questions.

3. It's organised! All their answers are in one place; they can see what they've done and what is left to do.

4. I'm able to link pupils to past paper marking schemes (where appropriate) so they can see where marks are allocated and other suggested responses.

Clever and Useful Real-Time Help

With my N5s sitting their prelim exam tomorrow (and being out of class today due to another exam) we haven't had time in class to consolidate the revision and work they completed over the holidays. One pupil has been working on written exam questions but needed his jotter at home to revise so I didn't get a chance to mark them. This evening I received an email from him, with pictures of the questions from his jotter. We quickly copied the pictures into a shared document and I was able to mark, give feedback and make suggestions for ways he can improve upon them. We used the chat feature and the marking became a discussion with clarifications and (again) links to marking schemes. It was a reward for me to see the work he has put in and he now feels more confident going into his exam tomorrow.