Technology Assessment 8th Grade Students

Why Assess Technology Literacy of our 8th Grade Students? Our students NEED to have the digital skills to succeed in the 21st century. With the advent of No Child Left Behind Act, the need to assess our students has become even clearer.

NCLB ‘‘(A) To assist every student in crossing the digital divide by ensuring that every student is technologically literate by the time the student finishes the eighth grade, regardless of the student’s race, ethnicity, gender, family income, geographic location, or disability.” Part D—Enhancing Education Through Technology - SEC. 2402. Purpose and Goals. Page 404 ‘‘(1) … to improve the capacity of all teachers teaching in schools served by the local educational agency to integrate technology effectively into curricula and instruction.” Part D—Enhancing Education Through Technology - SEC. 2414. Local Applications. Page 414 Source: http://education.vermont.gov/new/pdfdoc/pgm_edtech/performance_tasks.pdf

Educational Technology Standards NETS for Students NETS for Teachers NETS for Administrators Developed by ISTE (International Society for Technology Education) Source: http://nets.iste.org International Society for Technology in Education

Results Click for Report

CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION: Overall: 60.90%

1. Creativity & Innovation 1A – Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes (55/45) Put the following steps in the correct order for creating and publishing a podcast. Where do you click to begin rotating the selected object by clicking-and-dragging? 1B – Create original works as a means of personal or group expression (74/26) What statement best describes graphic organizers?

1. Creativity & Innovation 1C – Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues (40/60) Which of the following would help you better understand a classroom concept by letting you both visualize it and manually interact with it? 1D - Identify trends and forecast possibilities (71/29) You are working on a social studies project about population movement into South American cities. What would be the best way for you to show population trends?

COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION: Overall: 50.48%

2. Communication and Collaboration 2A – Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media (57/43) Match each for of communication below with the best description. Which of the following is NOT an audio file format? 2B – Communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats (68/32) Your teacher asked you to update a page of your classroom wiki. Place the following steps for adding a wiki in the correct order.

2. Communication and Collaboration 2C – Develop cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with learners of other cultures (20/80) Your teacher has assigned you a pen pal from Ireland. If you want to communicate with your pen pal in REAL TIME, which of the following online tools could you use? 2D – Contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems (44/56) You need to e-mail a classmate to ask a question about a homework assignment. Place the following steps in the correct order.

RESEARCH AND INFORMATION FLUENCY: Overall: 61.89%

3. Research and Information Fluency 3A - Plan strategies to guide inquiry (55/45) Your teacher has asked you to use Google’s search engine to find the average lifespan of a crocodile. How would you do this? Place the following steps in the correct order. 3B – Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media (70/30) All information in wikis is true and accurate? Which of the following resources are helpful when researching new technology?

3. Research and Information Fluency 3C – Evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks (81/19) Several classmates are going on a school-sponsored trip and will miss class for about a week. They will have access to the Internet. What is the best way to keep them updated about a class project? 3D - Process data and report results (46/54) Where do you click to begin the process of creating a chart?

CRITICAL THINKING, PROBLEM SOLVING, AND DECISION MAKING: Overall: 49.28% This is our lowest scoring section with a 49.28 and an area where our students need improvement.

4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making 4A – Identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for investigation (81/19) Match each problem type with its definition. What is the first step in developing a research plan? 4B – Plan and manage activities to develop a solution or a complete a project (20/80) The picture you inserted into your slideshow presentation is too blurry. Place the following steps in order to change the blurry image and solve this problem.

4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making 4C – Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions (50/50) Your teacher has asked you to upload a single image into your school newsletter. Which of the following files would you upload? 4D – Use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions (47/53) Place the following steps in the correct order to help you solve a real-world problem.

DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP: Overall: 77.20% When analyzing our data with Info Source, it was noted that this was a very high score and an area where most scores do not perform well. We believe this has a direct correlation to our eLearning course.

5. Digital Citizenship 5A – Advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology (60/40) Which of the following are unethical and/or illegal behaviors? 5B – Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity (86/14) Digital etiquette would suggest that having your cell phone turned on during school and other formal events is…

5. Digital Citizenship 5C – Demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning (90/10) If you have a question about the safety of an Internet technology, the best thing to do is… Which of the following pieces of personal information is usually ok to post on your blog? 5D – Exhibit leadership for digital citizenship (80/20) Which of the following closings would be appropriate in an e-mail to your teacher? One of your classmates has a blog that has mean and insulting posts about classmates and teachers. What should you do?

TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS: Overall 64.26%

6. Technology Operations and Concepts 6A – Understand and use technology systems (64/36) Booting describes the process of… A ____ is the main part of the personal computer to which all the necessary parts are attached. It contains the central processing unit. 6B – Select and use applications effectively and productively (48/52) Match each task below with the most appropriate software application.

6. Technology Operations and Concepts 6C – Troubleshoot systems and applications (78/22) Your home computer may have been accessed by someone who stole personal information. To prevent this in the future, you should install… 6D – Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies (60/40) Where to you click to begin inserting a table into the document? Please match the following domain suffixes with the type of business or organization it typically represents.

Quote Project Tomorrow CEO Julie Evans said in a statement: “The students in many ways are far ahead of their teachers and parents not only in the sophistication of their technology use, but in the adoption of emerging technologies. It is in our nation’s best interest that we support and facilitate student usage of technology for learning.” (Speak Up, 2008)