Learning management system gathering data
Learning analytics is an essential part of an LMS. It is about making sense of your e-learning data and being able to act on them. This can be the difference between a failed or a successful online training program.
Data can help you understand the performance of the program, identify bottlenecks in learning, review learning KPIs, evaluate the effectiveness of your course, and make data-driven decisions.
With the new User Progress Reports, the power of e-learning data is at your fingertips. Every online instructor, trainer, or manager can easily interpret and analyze courses, users, and learning activities.
Reporting helps you identify patterns, drill down into subsets of your data and anticipate trends, or derive actionable recommendations for improving your work.
Some of the online activities that generates data
Along with the increasing popularity of video games, a movement arose to defend the extension and application of elements normally present in video games to the real world and in areas far from just entertainment. The gamification corresponds to the use of gaming-oriented mechanisms to address practical problems or to engagement between specific audiences.
For Libâneo (1994) and Haydt (2008) the specific functions of evaluation are the diagnosis, control and classification. The diagnosis makes it possible to identify, discriminate, understand and characterize the triggering factors of learning disabilities. The control aims to locate, aim, discriminate against disabilities and shortcomings in the development of the teaching-learning process and fix them by means of a systematic control and keep you give by the teacher-student interaction, during class. The classification function provides mainly the execution of the purpose of classifying the student according to the level of utilization, or income achieved in comparison to the group class.
Potential of Gamification as Assessment Tool
The gamification have the potential to improve the way the formative evaluation is conducted, involving students in tasks that, if designed properly, will produce valuable information for the various educational actors (teachers, parents, students and school administrators). One of the main challenges is to create immersive gaming scenarios that can be used as evaluation tasks, provided that they meet the quality criteria of evaluation (for example, considerations of fairness, validity and reliability) (Zapata-Rivera & Bauer, 2012).
There are many possibilities that need to be taken into account in the integration of gamification with the development of assessment tasks. Below we summarize such potential
Virtual field trip apps and website
Field trips are informal learning experiences that get students out into the world, exploring the world and students’ interests. Trips to museums, parks, historical sites, and more show students that learning (and life) happens outside the classroom, too. During field trips, students discover new things and learn in authentic environments, placing classroom content into new contexts. Unfortunately, for many schools and students, field trips are rare (if they happen at all). Thankfully, there are great games, apps, and websites that can bring places and experiences fostered by field trips to the classroom. While not an outright replacement, these field trip tools can offer inspiring and intriguing experiences for students.
An increasingly popular, useful, and cost-effective tool for teachers searching for new ways to use technology in the classroom is taking digital field trips. Google Streetview and other similar apps allow you to virtually explore parks, forests and even national and international landmarks from the comfort of your classroom. Virtually experience the view from the Statue of Liberty or hike through the Grand Canyon to get students excited to learn about a location or subject and extend learning beyond the page!
Nearpod – Interactive slideshow tool engages students, promotes collaboration
This effective tool leverages the capabilities of 1-to-1 environments and offers both teacher- and student-paced learning.
Expeditions – Fire up the warp drive to bring VR field trips to your classroom
With stunning scenes and a flexible delivery method, your students will thank you for journeying together through space and time.
Apollo 11 VR – Thrilling VR experience needs creative teaching to truly soar
With stunning If infused with good teaching, this cinematic experience can provide a rich, unforgettable adventure.
Roundme – Virtual tour library and creation site has limited classroom utility
Tours have some potential for experiential learning, but the consumer focus means it’ll take more work to find them and integrate them in the classroom.
Integrate Social Media
Because students already spend so much of their time on social media, integrating its use into your classroom is among the most innovative ways to use technology in the classroom by connecting students to curriculum, classroom resources, and one another. Create a Facebook group specifically for your class where you post discussion topics or develop unique classroom Twitter hashtags students can use to discuss lessons or ask questions!
Gather Student Feedback
The true test of any classroom structure and/or curriculum is how well it helps students learn, and getting feedback from students is vital to assessing this, determining what is and isn’t working, and addressing problems and confusion as they arise. Use online surveys and polls to perform daily or weekly check-ins with students to get their opinions on lessons and address lingering questions or concerns. Expand on the usage of Twitter hashtags by having students tweet their feedback and questions with a classroom hashtag.
Review and Critique Webpages
While we know you can find almost anything on the internet, we also know that much of what you may find is not reliable information from reliable sources. I remember being told frequently by teachers and professors “Wikipedia is not a reliable source” when doing research papers, but can’t recall a single instructor who explained why. Empower your students with the digital literacy to analyze and discern reliable web pages and sources from unreliable ones by reviewing them together, developing and communicating standards for what makes a good source.
Video/Multimedia Lessons and Presentations
Bring presentations to life for students by incorporating visual effects, photos, videos, and music into them. Developing slideshows and digital presentations, playing music or a video for background and context while presenting, or by inviting virtual guest speakers to engage with your class via programs designed for conference calls (such as: Skype, Google Hangouts, and Facetime) are all fun and creative ways to boost engagement with lessons while teaching the benefits of technology and multimedia use.
Discuss how you can use integration of assessment in your teaching?
Under this topic we reviewed some of the online activities that generates data in order to implement it and adjust it to different learning paths and stiles emphasizing gamification in order to accomodate assessment in more engaging interaction conditions.