testGEAR
Graduate Credit Course Syllabus
One semester hour of graduate credit
Course Overview
Purpose:
The purpose of this course is to prepare professional educators with the
knowledge and skills to use testGEAR with students as they prepare to
take the ACT exam.
Objectives:
- Overview and benefits of testGEAR
- Establishing a personal testGEAR account
- Using Brainscan
- Using the Smart Curriculum components of
- Practorials
- Micro Courses
- Vocabulary Lab
- Tests
- Using testSCOPE to review testGEAR usage by students
- Developing a local implementation plan
Instructors:
The class will have one lead instructor who has been trained on testGEAR
and has used it with students. All schools with participants in the class
will designate an assistant instructor (or use the lead instructor), who
has been trained in the use of testGEAR, to work with the participants
on their school-based component of the instruction.
Instructional Method:
The class will be a mix of formal classroom instruction and supervised
school-based exercises. The formal classroom instruction will consist
of three, three-hour sessions. The school-based exercises will require
the participant to spend at least six hours, working with students in
their own school or classroom, under the supervision of either the lead
instructor or an assistant instructor.
Instructional Schedule and Outline:
- Session One
- What is testGEAR
- What benefits does testGEAR have for the:
- General discussion as to how students in your school currently
prepare for the ACT
- Establishing a Guidance Central Portfolio (it is recommended
that the class participants set up their Guidance Central portfolio
prior to the class and have practiced accessing Guidance Central
through their portfolio.)
- Setting up a personal login for testGEAR
- Overview of Brainscan
- Taking the Brainscan
- Reviewing your Smart Curriculum
- Review of My testGEAR tabs, especially “Your Entire Course”
versus “Course Library”
- School-Based Assignment:
- Select one or more students to work with during the period
you will be in this testGEAR graduate class, explaining to them
the purpose of testGEAR and where and when it can be accessed.
Work with your student(s) to:
- Establish a Guidance Central portfolio (unless they already
have one)
- Establish a testGEAR login account
- Explain to them the process of the Brainscan and how it
will build their Smart Curriculum
- Take the Brainscan
- Maintain personal notes for your use in a report at the
next graduate class session, specifically addressing (a
one-page summary of these notes will be submitted to the
instructor):
- How did you select your student(s) to work with during
this class?
- How you introduced Guidance Central and testGEAR to
the students
- Challenges you encountered
- Reaction of the students to both the product and the
process
- What might you do differently with another group of
students
- Session Two
- Reports from the school-based assignment
- Practorials
- Complete practorials in three different subject areas. Repeat
at least one of the practorials to an 80-100% level. (if one of
your practorials reaches that level on the first try, choose one
that you didn’t reach that level)
- MicroCourses
- Purpose/Function
- Legend
- Complete a MicroCourse in your subject area. Work to obtain
an 80-100% score.
- Complete a MicroCourse outside of your subject area (don’t
worry about the score)
- Introduction to testSCOPE
- Entering testSCOPE
- Locating student testGEAR username and passwords
- Lab – Vocab Lab
- Purpose
- How Vocab Lab works
- Using the Vocab Lab, repeat the process until you obtain a
score of at least 3500.
- School-Based Assignment
- Have your students complete the first two units other their
Smart Curriculum, which will include Practorials, MicroCourses,
and the Vocab lab.
- Set up a competition on the Vocab Lab (students will have
to log in to testGEAR to show you their score)
- Maintain personal notes for your use in a report at the next
graduate class session addressing (A one-page summary of these
notes will be submitted to the instructor):
- Challenges encountered
- Did you have the students do their work during class time,
during school hours, or as a homework assignment?
- Were you able to have parents involved?
- Procedures you would do differently with your next group
of students
- Student’s reaction to the:
- Practorials
- MicroCourses
- Vocab Lab
- How did you set up your Vocab Lab competition?
- Session Three
- Reports from school-based assignments
- Practice Tests
- Purpose/Function/Overview
- Complete a Practice Test in your subject area in the Learner
Mode
- Complete another Practice Test in a subject are other than
your own.
- Review Practice Tests in the balance of the subject areas
- Overview of the Full Tests
- Another look at testSCOPE
- Summary tab
- Enrollment tab (set a goal for your school on number of enrollments)
- BrainScan results
- Student responses
- Student perception of skill level
- Student learning styles
- Student skill levels
- Lesson Scores tab
- Practice Test Results tab
- Student tab
- Discussion – how do you see using testSCOPE in your
school?
- School-Based Assignment
- Have your students complete a unit that contains a practice
test
- Continue the Vocab Lab competition
- Final Report (to be submitted to the instructor)
- What component of testGEAR did you find was the most valuable
to the:
- Students
- Parents
- Classroom teacher
- School
- What components of testGEAR did you find the least useful
in your setting
- Do you feel testGEAR will be implemented in your school?
- What do you see as the positives and negatives that will
affect the implementation? (This question is very important,
as the responses from around the state will be collected
and reviewed to enhance the implementation process in all
schools.)
For more information, contact the North Dakota Career Resource Network
office at ndcrn.ndcareer@sendit.nodak.edu
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