TUHSD EdTech | Page 4

EdTech Cohort

Tool Review

by Janeen Nichols

Kahoot! Is for Everyone

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A teacher's perspective on using Kahoot! in the special education classroom.

You are sitting in a classroom, and you know today is the day. Your heart starts beating faster, you start sweating, your stomach starts hurting---is it just your hands shaking, or is it your whole body? Then it happens. The teacher hands out a piece of paper to each student, and you feel like you are going to throw up. She comes to you and smiles, but it does not  help or make you feel any better. You know you have accommodations that can be made, but still, will it be enough? Nothing makes you stop shaking or makes your stomach stop hurting. Inside you are crying, but you bite your lip and start answering questions on this TEST. Nothing seems familiar on this TEST--did the teacher teach you any of this? You wonder if this TEST is written in English, because you don't understand a word of it.

This is a scenario that happens thousands of times a day for students who not only receive special education services but also for students who suffer with TEST anxiety. What if there were a way to relieve this anxiety for your students--would you take the extra time it takes to make it happen? Would you consider doing something "outside the box" to help your students to be successful? 

In my classroom we have instituted a test practice strategy using the program Kahoot (https://getkahoot.com/). Simply put, when we start a unit, I create a Kahoot that has questions related to the test. Some are exact test questions and answers, and some give hints to help them figure out the answers for the test. We "play" Kahoot every day we work on the unit--even on the day of the test. We "play" by using a quiz format that allows students to answer questions on their phone or on a computer. In this activity, students are able to compete with each other, using real names or made up names.

As the teacher, I have the option of using this tool strictly as practice or as a way of monitoring what the students have learned or not learned prior to giving the test. This also allows me to decide if I want to use the Kahoot quiz for the actual test score or not. Some students will do so much better when they do not think they are being graded or they do not see it as a "TEST." If I see that a student or several students, who normally do poorly on a written test, are scoring highly on the Kahoots, I can excuse them from the test and use their scores from the Kahoot instead. I can also choose to give them bonus points on the test based on how they scored on the Kahoot activity. So if a student scores a 60% on the test, I can go back and look at their scores on the Kahoot and offer bonus points or take an average. 

This tool helps all students because they are able to hear information multiple times throughout the unit, which has raised all of the students test scores in my classes. So, what does this cost me as the teacher? The program itself is free and the tests are extremely easy to set up. You type in a question and four responses then select which one is the correct answer. The most time consuming part is the time it takes to enter in the questions and answers (If you hunt and peck, it will take you longer). I also enjoy putting in my own pictures to give hints on the questions as well as videos can be added to help my students.

What is the price of having a student be successful who previously wasn't? Or what is the price of seeing a student get more comfortable with tests and not become so overwhelmed that they literally cannot think or read correctly?  For me it is priceless!

Janeen Nichols is a member of the TUHSD EdTech Cohort who teaches Special Education classes at La Joya Community High School.