Created by an expert tutor and a designer, Virtual Nerd gives students a new option to turn to when they need help. For a fraction of the cost of private tutoring, students gain access to hundreds of interactive step-by-step video tutorials that match up with the practice problems in their textbook. Virtual Nerd's patent-pending e-Learning system anticipates students' questions, so they can easily drill down to related tutorials if they get confused. The innovative design makes it easy for students to stay focused. Plus, unique reporting features mean parents and teachers can stay involved with students' progress.
Now that we are using the Internet in the classroom to support instruction, it is important the area of assessment be addressed. One usable method for teachers is to provide a rubric for student use and for both formative and summative assessment purposes. Another is to provide some type of graphic organizer. Below you will find a collection of assessment rubrics and graphic organizers that may be helpful to you as you design your own. Let me know if you have one you would like to share! A book dealing with both the theoretical and practical design of rubrics is the ASCD publication, Assessing Student Outcomes: Performance Assessment Using the Dimensions of Learning Model.
"In collaboration with my colleague Mike Hutchinson, I have begun to introduce the tools of the Read/Write web to my students. Specifically, my class is now blogging and podcasting. Blogging and podcasting has allowed me to create a forum where my students discuss current events connected to our social studies curriculum while developing language arts skills like critical thinking and persuasive dialogue. It has also given my students the opportunity to be creators-rather than simply consumers-of online content. Finally, blogging and podcasting have given my students an audience for their ideas, which has increased levels of interest and motivation."