BP_8 Google Forms

I am really excited by Google Forms.  I thought it was pretty slick when we filled out the survey by Rena and all the information was gathered in one place, so I spent several hours checking out what other teachers have posted on YouTube and articles written on various Ed Blogs.  I found out a way to generate a quiz via Forms, and then through formulas, have the quiz graded right on the spread sheet.  All you as a teacher do after that, is to record the grade.  How COOL is that! 

The basic survey is made in a quiz format.  As the teacher, you complete the quiz with the correct answers for each question.  In the formula box, for each column, you enter the equation of  " = if (D3=$D$2,100,0) with D2 being the correct answer box you filled in and D3 the student's answer.  For each question, the answer either matches yours and receives a 100% correct or if it doesn't, then receives a 0% correct.  Averaging the 100's & 0's, the spreadsheet then comes up with an overall percentage grade.  Great tool for multiple choice or one word short answer question.

I can think of so many ways of using forms within the school setting.  Administrators could use a survey that asks questions about teachers during observations.  If the administrators had an iPad, iPod or other wireless appliance,it could be filled in as the observation took place and the final summary completed on the spot. 

Anonymous teacher surveys by students could take place regularly on their learnings, if any, and where improvements might be made.  I know this is a little scary for teachers to ask students what is needed to improve education, but the way I see it, they are our customers, and we need their satisfaction measures to see if we are hitting the mark.  Grade tallies alone do not tell us how we are doing.

I plan on using the surveys to gather data on students I consult with on a monthly basis along with their teachers.  Face to face meetings are hard to complete and it removes the student from the classroom for 10-15 minutes, time which some shouldn't miss.  Many of my students have cell phones which I text to communicate with, now I have one more tool to do so.