Technology Integration into Formative Assessment: H5P

Technology has been rapidly and significantly changing. As a result of this rapid change, the variety and accessibility of technology has increased in general. Teachers have more opportunities to use technology and their toolbox has expanded. The practical use of technology in the classroom is significant for numerous reasons. It prepares students for their roles in society, it has the potential of increasing motivation and engagement of learners, it caters to different learning styles, etc. (Eady & Lockyer, 2013). In addition, it provides numerous tools for assessment, in particular formative assessment.

Formative assessment involves analyzing student performance by looking at what learners did well and what they need to improve next time. Understanding formative assessment helps teachers to follow students’ progress and adapt their teaching. In other words, formative assessment and classroom assessment, and including self-assessment, is like a mirror. Learners look at themselves in the mirror and they know where they are and they know what they look like. This helps learners to achieve their goals. Formative assessment goes beyond a score. It goes beyond what a learner did correctly, and it guides learners how to continue learning.

Integrating technology into formative assessment is beneficial for several reasons. Firstly, it increases interaction and engagement of the learners especially when they are not in the physical classrooms. Otherwise, it is challenging for educators to observe the learners when they engage online activities and tasks. Additionally, self-assessment and receiving computerized feedback can be meaningful for learners to see their own process. Learners have access to language learning materials online. However, as feedback and assessment are important parts of the learning process, it is important to provide formative assessment integrated into online materials. In short, increasing engagement and interaction of the learners by providing technology integrated formative assessment should be taken into consideration carefully by the teachers to enhance their teaching.

H5P is one the tools to be used while teaching English and providing formative assessment for the learners. It is an open source, free and user-friendly web tool. It is possible to create content and integrate it into an LMS such as Moodle or Blackboard. It unlocks new opportunities for language assessment both for the students and learners. It enables creating interactive assessment and presenting items.

Class presentation with interactive slides, accordion, branching scenario, virtual tour, and interactive video are the content types for presenting a language point or task. The learners are not merely passive listeners; they are encouraged to participate in the lessons with these tools. For example, teachers can integrate a video in which there are various questions to be answered to continue watching the rest.

Multiple choice, fill in the blank, flashcards, and T/F questions provide learners with immediate feedback to see their process. Teachers can prepare language learning activities such as a cloze test, vocabulary and grammar quizzes as well as reading and listening activities. Visual aids can be included in these quizzes. Learners are expected to interact and engage more as they do the activities.

Image hotspot, column, flashcards and interactive books can be used not only for presenting a language point interactively but also assessing and providing feedback for a language point.

(Apart from the above-mentioned task types, there are other useful tasks available on its website. Please visit the link below.)

Final Word:
In the 21^st century, it is inevitable to keep up with the latest technology opportunities to enhance the language learning process. Providing formative assessment online is becoming more and more significant with the increasing amount of online language learners. H5P is definitely a useful tool to cater to this need.

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https://h5p.org/

https://h5p.org/documentation/for-authors/tutorials