Screencasts as a Formative Assessment Tool for Mathematical Explanations

• In Event: 29.088 - Measurement and Assessment With Technologies for Learning

Abstract

Screencasts have been used extensively by educators as tutorials or to provide feedback to students. We investigated children as they generated screencasts while solving mathematical problems. Using clinical interviews, we interviewed 9 students between the ages of 7 and 10 as they solved problems on an iPad using an application called Explain Everything®. Using a self-created Screencast Observation Tool rubric, we analyzed 45 screencasts and found they provide windows into students' mathematical thinking as their problem solving process and explanations were documented in their entirety including mistakes, which are often lost in written work. Screencasts have the potential to transform the learning environment by allowing teachers to gain more insight into their students’ mathematical thinking.

Authors

• Melissa Marie Soto, San Diego State University

• Rebecca Ambrose, University of California - Davis