Ideas for Using
the Classroom Performance System( CPS) on a Daily Basis
Many teachers are interested in the Classroom Performance System simply because of the ability to quickly administer and grade assessments, but that capability only scratches the surface of the great changes CPS can make in your classroom! Using CPS in the classroom on a daily basis to totally change the dynamics of your class is the part that really gets us excited! It is wonderful to see a lethargic, unmotivated class start to sit a little higher in their seats and take some interest, simply because you have taken the time to engage them with a little white response pad. Questions On The Fly One of the most powerful questioning techniques that CPS users can incorporate is the “Verbal Questioning” mode. In this mode, no prior preparation is required. To Create Questions On The Fly: * Select the “Verbal” option from your database toolbar to engage CPS, naming the session and selecting a class or a generic roster to use. * CPS is now engaged so that at any point during the discussion you can activate the CPS remotes by simply selecting the type of
question to be asked. * Ask questions periodically throughout the session to gain some immediate feedback and check for understanding. * Questions can be delivered in multiple ways--verbally, from a whiteboard such as our portable Chalkboard, a diagram, or any number of questioning techniques that you may use in class. By incorporating CPS into your lecture or explanation time, you now have access to real-time data that allows you to see immediately what your students are thinking and how well they are processing the material you have covered. For you the teacher, the ability to check on-the-spot understanding periodically throughout your daily lesson without any prior preparation will radically change the effectiveness of your time spent. Students may find there are others in the class thinking the same way as them or they may actually find they are way off track and need to focus in. On several occasions we've witnessed classes where students respond to a verbal question using CPS, only to find out that there were several other students thinking along the same lines. Teachers can benefit from the verbal questioning mode by correcting misconceptions as they teach and students can use this to eliminate some of the fear of being incorrect or asking the “silly question.” Verbal Questioning is an excellent way to do polls, voting, rating questions, and allowing students to give a genuine answer to their thoughts without the fear of differing from the group. Pre and Post Tests CPS makes it easy to gather pre- and post-test data monthly, weekly, and even daily. Using CPS’s Student Managed Assessment mode, teachers can make answer keys in a matter of seconds and then gather data from students for continual checks of understanding. This is great data to use as a motivating factor in your classroom. One CPS user gives a pre-test as seatwork when students enter the
room. This pre-test covers the new information that will be covered that day in class. After the lecture time and at the end of the class period, the very same test is given as a post-test. Their class goal is to make an 80% on the post-test everyday. Each student leaves feeling like they have learned something during that class period. They have a vested interest in improving the class post-test score. To Create A Quick Pre or Post Test: * Questions to the pre/post test can be posted on the board, an overhead, or even on paper for the students to view. * Create a "Fast Grade" lesson within CPS. This allows you to only enter the answers (a, b, c, etc.), rather than typing in the entire question. * Engage the lesson by selecting one of the three delivery options: Student Managed Assessment, Student Managed Practice, or Teacher-Led Student Managed.
Group Discussions One of the greatest advantages of CPS is the ability to involve all students without ridicule or embarrassment. CPS feedback from group discussion provides a much more accurate picture when the influence of peer pressure does not come into play. You will have both the ability to involve the "quiet kid" on every answer and give the "over-anxious kid" a chance to answer every question! There is nothing like making everybody happy! Group discussions using CPS will allow you to get a clear picture of the need to reteach information or continue on. It will also allow the students to realize if there are certain areas that they are struggling in and for which they might need to get some extra help. To Use CPS In Group Discussions: * Pass out the remotes.
* Turn on CPS. * Ask Questions On The Fly!
Think-Pair-Share This modification of the popular cooperative learning technique can be used during whole class discussions and is an effective tool to get students to think on their own, to listen to differing opinions, and to generate their own opinion about a topic. To Incorporate CPS Into Think-Pair-Share: * Students listen while you pose a controversial question. (No comments outloud!) * Students THINK about their response and answer the question on their CPS remote. * Post graph of results for everyone to see. * Have students PAIR up or get into groups of 3 or 4 and share what answer they chose and why with their group. * Have students answer the question on their CPS remote again after the discussion with classmates. * Have students SHARE their differing opinions and explain why they--if anyone did--may have changed their answer.
Surveys Have you ever posed a question in class only to see one or two hands go up, and--after checking out how everyone else is voting-maybe 3 or 4 more hands go up? Peer pressure often times makes
voting or surveys a little skewed, especially in elementary and adolescent audiences. CPS makes voting easy, whether it be at a school board meeting, over decorations for the prom, or in a corporate boardroom. Several educational organizations use CPS for voting decisions at their annual meetings, and there is nothing like anonymous CPS participation to get a real handle on your employees thoughts and feeling. To Make A Survey Using CPS: * Pass out remotes randomly. * If your survey is ready-made, run CPS through a StudentManaged or Teacher-Managed mode. • Feel free to use "Questions On The Fly" if you are making up an on-the-spot survey.
These are just a few ideas for using CPS. While CPS is an obvious tool for formative and summative assessments, we also want to encourage teachers to think “outside the box” when it comes to using
this versatile tool
For more information about the Classroom Performance System , contact : Bill McIntosh 843-442-8888 Email: WKMcIntosh@Comcast.net My web site : www.schoolvisioninc.com Authorized eInstruction Consultant www.eInstruction.com