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What creative, yet realistic ways can you think of for using PDA technology to help you record assessments based on
observation of students during the school day?
PDA technology could be used to assess more than just participation in my music classes. I looked at each of the suggested
links and generated the following:
1. “Participate” seems to be the application that will work best for me. I have downloaded this to my Palm and
it is able to handle my 500+ students. Beyond merely recording participation grades, I can see how I might use this to assess
listening skills as well.
I use an auditory test for my 5th graders to discern tones that move up, down or stay the same in the music. They traditionally
close their eyes and show me with their thumbs: up, across or down. I can now use the Participate software to assign points
if they have the answer correct. This would allow me to step away from my gradebook and move around the room.
The import function allowed me to export text from last year’s gradebook and then import it into Participate. This saved
me a substantial amount of time and frustration. By choosing the Secondary Level feature I could assign students to their
new classes for next year just by checking off their name.
More importantly, this will work very well in my large ensemble groups. I have Choruses of anywhere from 40 to 90 students.
Assessment is often sketchy at best in a 35 minute period. I would be able to walk through my chorus and hear who is singing
on pitch. A simple tap of the screen would log my points. I could assign negative points for those under pitch and positive
for those few that are sharp. No tap would be necessary if the student was singing on pitch. This might be the first opportunity
for me to assess my chorus students accurately!
Separating behavior from achievement could be accurately recorded here, as well. Behaviors could have a point value also.
The only caveat would be to be sure that the assignment was recorded as such. This software does not provide that capability
(or at least I haven't found it yet!) Keeping track of that piece in my lesson plan assessment block or in my gradebook would
handle that piece, however.
2. Learner Profile Assessment Tools were not available for Mac OS X. I found that very disappointing. This looked like a great
program.
3. Wireless Generation has updated system support for both platforms. This software appears to be very good for pre-designed
assessments (DIBELS, etc.) My subject area does not lend itself to this software.
4. I looked over the list of education related applications at the following url: http://www.edteck.com/palm/software.htm
- there were many bad links here and much of the software was not appropriate to my subject.
5. Go observe at: http://www.goknow.com/Products/GoObserve/ does not provide Mac Support.
The San Antonio School District uses a Handheld Initiative. They have provided handhelds to teachers, administrators and students.
In regards to evaluation, the Dept. of Education had this to say: “Ongoing assessment is a critical component of the
handheld assessment initiative. Assessments address instructional impact through periodic monitoring of student reading skills
and strategies, technical implementation, and data reporting. Assessment measures that address instructional impact are elaborated
online via the SAISD iDataPortal, a Web-based data portal for all assessment information collected within San Antonio ISD.”
(Guhlin, 2006)
I would love to see our progressive state adopt handhelds just as they have adopted the laptop initiative!
Guhlin , M (2006, March 24). Palm handheld computers--National technology plan. Retrieved July 20, 2007, from U.S. Dept of
Education Web site: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/plan/2004/site/stories/edlite-SanAntonio2.html
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