The importance of technology in the classroom continues to increase. One area where technology is making a significant impact is in providing real-time feedback to students and teachers.
This feedback loop is particularly important for learning science competencies, so that students can apply them to new topics. At Inq-ITS, we've harnessed the power of AI to provide real-time feedback to students, which is demonstrated to transform their learning of science competencies.
The Need for Timely Feedback
In the traditional classroom, students often receive feedback on their work long after they've completed an assignment or assessment. This delayed feedback cannot really benefit their learning because it is challenging for students to connect the feedback to the specific task or concept they were working on, and by the time they receive it, they have already moved on to a new topic.
How Inq-ITS Delivers Real-Time Feedback
At Inq-ITS, we understand the importance of timely guidance. That's why our platform provides real-time feedback during virtual science labs. Here's how it works:
Immediate Assessment: As students conduct an inquiry with our virtual labs; our AI-powered system assesses their competencies in real-time. Whether it's formulating hypotheses, conducting experiments, or analyzing data, our agent, Rex, provides instant feedback to students.
Targeted Guidance: Our feedback isn't generic. It's tailored to each student's specific actions and responses. This means that if a student is having difficulties with a science practice (or skill), they are guided as to how ti improve.
Continuous Improvement: Real-time feedback allows students to learn from their struggles as they happen. This fosters a culture of continuous improvement, where students can iterate and refine their scientific thinking and problem-solving skills.
The Benefits for Students
The impact of real-time feedback on students is profound:
Personalized Learning: Real-time feedback allows for personalized learning experiences, catering to each student's unique needs and learning pace.
Enhanced Learning: Students can grasp complex scientific concepts more effectively when they receive immediate feedback, and their improved understanding is robust, that is, it transfers across domains and long periods of time. This instant correction of misconceptions helps solidify their understanding!
Increased Engagement: Knowing that their learning is being assessed and monitored in real time, students report “knowing that this is important for their learning”.
AND Real-time feedback isn't just beneficial for students; it's a game-changer for educators as well:
Time Efficiency: With immediate feedback, educators can identify and address learning gaps more efficiently, making the most of valuable classroom time.
Informed Instruction: Teachers get real time formative data on their students' science competencies, and also get alerts that identify who is struggling, how they are struggling. Teachers also get real time TIPS (Teacher Inquiry Practice Supports); along with the alerts, teachers are empowered to change class instruction on the fly, do differentiated instruction to small groups of students who are struggling on the same science practice, or dod 1:1 instruction with a student who otherwise will fall behind. Teachers call our alerts and TIPS a “game-changer” and “a crystal ball”.
Below are some teacher quotes.
Pam Perry, Bellingham Middle School, Bellingham, MA:
“I use the microworlds at the completion of a unit as a formative assessment for my students. The results help drive my instruction and optimize student grouping. Students find the microworlds very engaging and they are able to connect the concepts they have learned with actual situations and real data, while sharpening their inquiry skills. Not only were the reports valuable to me in assessing my student’s progress, they were valuable evidence I was able to provide to my administrators as part of the new teacher evaluation process. In addition, the reports were very easy to upload to TeachPoint, the online teacher evaluation system now used by many districts.”
Heather Feinberg, North Marion Middle School, Aurora, OR:
"Virtual labs can have a great place in the science classroom. Time and resource availability are often scarce, and the Inq-ITS labs allow my students to explore scientific concepts with an inquiring and exploratory lens that they may not have had the ability to otherwise. I really appreciate that digital labs such as this one allow teachers to collect and view digital data on our students' performance. It has really streamlined my formative assessments for these kinds of activities! I also appreciate that the standards being measured are consistent throughout the labs, so its very easy to track student growth if Inq-ITS labs are used consistently with the same students."
At Inq-ITS, we're proud to be at the forefront of AI-based education, enabling students and educators to harness the power of real-time data and support for greater success in science!
Access your 30-day trial here!