FIPP Activity Report
Name: Michelle Priest
October 13, 2010
Department: Biology
FIPP Partner: Ivan Crosbie
Section#: Biology 10 Section 9056, 9057, & 9058
Activity/Strategy: Online weekly quizzes – I had to change my proposal to something that worked.
Category: Out-of-Classroom Learning Experiences
Briefly describe the activity/strategy, providing enough detail so that a colleague can replicate
the activity/strategy.
Introduction: In this activity, each week after the lecture presentation, students are asked to find 10
minutes in a specific 48 hours window to take a 10 point quiz online. They have 2 attempts to take the
quiz and the better of the two scores counts. The quiz is randomized and each test bank has
approximately 50 questions so no two tests are exactly alike.
Set-up and Supplies: I have written over 50 questions per chapter and loaded them into the online
learning environment. I then have the capabilities to arrange the quiz to open and close at specific
times and days. Students who don’t do the quiz in the specified time range receive a zero. Students are
given all 10 questions at the same time and have 10 minutes to submit their answers to the online
learning system. The quizzes are automatically graded and the student knows the score after but not
the specific questions they get wrong. The answers to the quiz questions are reveled after the window
of opportunity is over.
Directions: Students are notified by emails and by announcements in the online learning environment
and in class that the quiz will open at 9am on Thursday and will close on 9am on Saturday. Students
have 10 minutes to answer 10 multiple choice questions on the topic covered in lecture that week.
Students can take the randomized quiz up to two times within the 48 hour period and some weeks the
BEST score is recorded, some weeks the LAST score is recorded—this second option makes the
students know if they are really ready to take the quizzes.
What worked well? The students are taking the quizzes. Many are saying that the “homework” of the
quiz keeps them current in the class. I can quickly assess the group for key knowledge as some
questions are mandatory for all students—these are the key SLO based questions.
I also like the LAST score recorded instead of the BEST score recorded. What I see, in the online data,
is that students will not try as hard on the first attempt when they know the BEST score is the last
score. I find that when the LAST score is recorded the students wait a bit in the 48 hour window…..I
can only assume they are taking the time to study a bit more before taking the quiz.
I also like the 48 hour window to cover most of the work week and part of the weekend. This way
students who don’t have access to a computer outside of work have an option to take the quiz and I
know the school library opens at 8am on Saturdays..so if needed the student can come back to campus
to take the quiz.
Survey Data: Despite the fact that students generally do not do the online quizzes, many feel the
quizzes are helpful to their learning. The quizzes, according to student comments, indicate the quizzes
keep the student focused on studying all week.
Many comment that they wished they had more time on each quiz. The students have 1 minute per
multiple choice question. My fear would be that more time would allow for cheating or looking up
answers in the book.
Interestingly, is that many thought the strategy was useful to their learning, the topic interest, to stay
active but more than most commented that the quizzes should NOT be used by the instructor again.
What would you change? I would make registration to the online environment mandatory for staying
in the class by the end of the second week. I have students who even now, in the 6th week of classes,
have not enrolled in the online environment and are losing 10 points a week. Many are claiming a
variety of financial, personal and social issues to their resistance to paying the $30 for the online
access. Others have stated that they would rather wait until the first exam to see if they are even going
to stay in the class. The later group is the same group that has not purchased the textbooks as well.
I would make it a requirement to purchase by end of the 2nd week; or the student will be dropped for
lack of participation. I would also put more points in the online environment very early in the semester
hence, the external motivation would more heavily present.
Would I use the activity/strategy again? Absolutely, this really does get at the weekly homework
students need to stay honest in their weekly learning. I have used this strategy for quite sometime and
it mirrors what happens at the 4-yr environments….the movement to all classes being web-enhanced
and having a heavy assessment in the online environment.
Please describe any student learning and/or changes that you observed after the implementation
of the activity/strategy. I see students taking the practice and pre-test quizzes more in the online
environment and using the learning tools in the online environment as well. These students will find at
the next level (CSU or UC) online/web-enhanced courses are the norm and the student must be
exposed to this level of computer literacy early and often.