Karla Keller

Tell me about how your school uses BRAVO!, PRONTO! or Q&A.
I use Bravo and Q&A with Reply keypads in my third grade classroom most often for pre- and post assessment of content. That’s an average of 5-8 times each week across all curriculum areas. Q&A allows me to quickly see which students are ready to move on and who needs more help.

How long have you been using the software?
I used the software for several years before getting the keypads. The software alone is great for introducing or reviewing content. However, the keypads changed my life! Prior to using the keypads, I would spend hours correcting pages and pages of tests, tabulating results, analyzing test questions to see what concepts needed to be reviewed. Now, at the end of a test (game) I can see all the data immediately!

How is the software working for you?
It’s working perfectly. I have pre-assigned keypads for my homeroom class and know each student’s number. For other classes, students sign-out a keypad and I use that list to assess participation and learning. Since it is anonymous, students are motivated to respond. I get 100% participation and can utilize incorrect responses for more teaching.

What are your teachers learning as they use the software?
I’m the only teacher in my building using this system. A few other teachers use SmartBoard products but not to the extent that I use Bravo and Q&A.

My students are learning more now that I have more time to spend teaching and designing curriculum. I utilize pre-assessment data to determine which students need enrichment. It is so easy to modify questions for English Learners using these programs. I can quickly drop in pictures or act out a verb to help them understand what a question is asking, so they can respond honestly instead of guessing because they didn’t know what a castle moat is.

I am currently involving students in writing their own questions and multiple choice answers for a Social Studies unit. Students are learning grammar, questioning, social studies content, and test-taking skills at the same time.

What direction do you see yourself/school/teachers going with the use of the software in the near future?
I see my students go on to other grades expecting the same level of differentiation, time with the teacher, and the fun this software brings to learning.

Classroom teachers are faced with increasing demand for data to prove their students are learning. This is forcing teachers to spend more time assessing and less teaching. Using these tools, learning is fun and engaging. With the data function built into these programs, teachers can accomplish their goals while having the data to back it up.