I thought I would look at Kahoot.com, an interactive quiz maker that I have used in the past. It will be interesting to see how well this program measures up to the checklist we created.
Student Engagement and Collaboration: Kahoot is known for its interactive quizzes and games, which can foster student engagement and collaboration. It allows students to participate simultaneously in class with quizzes and challenges, promoting collective learning. The degree of student engagement and collaboration depends on many factors, not least of which are the various ways the teacher can structure the activity.
Accessibility and User-Friendliness: Kahoot is quite user-friendly and accessible. It is free, (Basic plan) both for students and instructors. Its simple interface and the ability to join games via a web browser or app make it easy for even young students to navigate. When a teacher wishes to use Kahoot with the class, a game code is generated. The students simply go to the website, (kahoot.it) and then type in the game code. They are then prompted to enter a nickname, and the quiz is ready to play. In schools where there are not enough devices, students can be paired up or placed in small groups. If permitted, students can also easily use their own devices.
International Accessibility and Cultural Considerations: Kahoot can be used internationally and supports multiple languages. However, its content will need to be created and adapted to consider cultural backgrounds.
FIPPA Privacy Guidelines: Kahoot is hosted outside of Canada, so to meet privacy regulations the teacher will need to ensure that students do not use their real names. Teachers will also need to ensure that they do not save quizzes to the platform that include confidential student information.
UDL and IELPs: Kahoot quizzes and games can be adapted to meet the diverse learning needs of students. You can create questions and quizzes that align with UDL principles and accommodate IELPs.
Assessment and Evaluation Tools: Kahoot provides built-in assessment and evaluation tools through its quizzes. Instructors can assess student performance and receive reports on quiz results.
Adaptability for K-12 Learners: Kahoot has a large library of stock material that has been created by other teachers. These quizzes can be used with K-12 students, but their appropriateness and quality may vary dramatically. The quizzes can be edited easily, and often make good templates to modify to suit the specific age group and subject matter.
Accommodation for Neurodiversity: Kahoot can be made accessible for neurodiverse learners by adapting quiz content and providing additional support.
Higher Order Thinking Skills and Creativity: While Kahoot primarily focuses on quizzes and knowledge recall, instructors can design questions to encourage critical thinking and creativity. Previously, I had students create several questions each to review a science unit. I then used these questions in the class “review quiz” on Kahoot. Additionally, I have had students create Kahoot quiz questions to accompany or summarize their presentations.
Evidence of Learning Outcomes: Kahoot provides data on student performance, offering evidence of whether students have met learning outcomes. This quiz format can also give you effective formal and informal insight into student understanding part-way through a unit.
Reliability and Cost-Effectiveness: Kahoot offers both free and premium versions which include additional features. If a teacher were to use the program occasionally, the free version will work very well. I have used the program several times, and have no plans to pay for the premium version.
Instructor-Friendly and Support: Kahoot is designed to be user-friendly for instructors, and it offers a support system that includes tutorials and a knowledge base.
Summary:
Overall, Kahoot.com can be a valuable tool for enhancing student engagement and conducting assessments in the classroom. However, it is important for teachers to customize its use to meet specific educational goals and consider privacy and cultural factors. Kahoot is most easily used as a lower level thinking activity. Students can be tested on their knowledge and comprehension with various subjects. A Kahoot quiz can also be used as an engaging way to determine class knowledge about a particular topic before teaching it. While this is a common use by some teachers, it should be noted that Kahoot can also be used to encourage higher level thinking. To accomplish this, teacher will need to structure activities beforehand and cannot simply rely solely on stock Kahoot quizzes. Once introduced to Kahoot, students will happily write review questions for others to answer. Writing questions can be an exercise in higher level thinking skills in itself, with a teacher modelling writing various types of questions that demand different levels of thinking. With this in mind, I will continue to use Kahoot occasionally with my class in the future.
lpeter
October 15, 2023 — 1:08 am
Hi Geoff,
Thank you for reviewing this great app! Even though it might focus more on lower-level thinking skills, it can be great for building relationships as students play on teams together, which adds to its benefits. Kahoot’s lighthearted approach to learning also helps reduce student stress, which is important for students as they try to memorize or learn new concepts. I like your idea of having students write the questions – I agree with you that doing this would add another level of engagement.
Lenna
glammie
October 15, 2023 — 6:20 pm
Hi Geoff, thanks for sharing your review of this technology. I have used Kahoot and agree that it provides student collaboration and interaction opportunities. I like the idea of allowing students to participate in writing questions, which will foster critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
hwinsnes
October 16, 2023 — 10:43 pm
Hi Geoff,
Kahoot is always a winner! The one thing to consider is that the students are going for speed over knowledge as it is about the fastest one to get the answer correct and in my experience they often don’t engage with critical thinking skills. It is more a ‘how fast can you hit the button’ jeopardy skill they are developing. There is another online review system that I prefer much more which is called GimKit. In this system, it is still a game but the students can work in a team or alone to answer as many questions as they can. If they get it wrong there is a minor penalty to their score so there is more incentive to read and get the right answer. Just thought I would share! https://www.gimkit.com/
gjohnson
October 20, 2023 — 1:14 pm
Hannah, Thank you very much for suggesting gimkit. I hadn’t heard of it before. I just looked it over and will be trying it out with my class next week!