Journal 3--Laptops and Assessment

Zucker, Andrew A (2009 June/July). Assessment made easy. Learning and Leading, Retrieved 07 25 2009, from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/20090607/

This article discussed a school in Denver where each student has a laptop. The school has a diverse population and 40% of its students in the free lunch program. Every single student was accepted into a 4 year university; this is particularly impressive as Denver has a dropout rate of almost 50%. The computers are used extensively in the curriculum but the article focused on the positive effect that almost instant assessment has on the students.

When will schools furnish all students with laptop computers?

Schools will furnish their students with laptops when it can be shown to be financially feasible. Unfortunately, it is easy to get caught up in the traditional way of doing things like buying new textbooks every time the standards change, instead of computers and electronic media created for it. If textbooks were digital, the cost would be much lower, allowing funds for needed computers.

What are the best ways to employ instant assessment on Student's work?

According to the article, math teachers love the concept as they could quickly discover problem areas through short quizzes and then work immediately on the concept in class, helping to head off trouble before it happened. Liberal Arts teachers also liked it because they could help edit written work on the overhead, helping all students in the process.