Action Research Project 1

Erin Morris
EDIT 677
Action Research
Nearpod for Increased Achievement
Introduction

As an elementary school teacher, I am constantly looking for new ways that increase

student engagement and try to deliver instruction over different modalities. Students, even in

third grade, learn on several different levels and what works for one will certainly not work for

all. Teachers are currently trying to develop a “blended learning” atmosphere that allows

students to develop and strengthen skills in various ways. There are many resources that can

target specific standards for pre-teach/re-teach methods. One application that I have had success

within the past for engaging students was Nearpod. Nearpod is a learning platform that

transforms any lessons into an interactive platform where students collaborate and gain further

knowledge on target skills. Nearpod has functions that can incorporate quizzes, polls, videos,

collaboration boards, and so many other outlets that can drive student instruction. This led me to

the research question: Does allowing students to use Nearpod as a review tool (three times a

week) ultimately increase the averages on unit tests? For my classroom, I have more students

that are lower in math than reading so I wanted to focus on a subject where we needed improved

growth. Every several weeks, we give students a unit test from the Everyday Math curriculum

that Horry County Schools uses. Analyzing the data from the previous three-unit tests, I wanted

to incorporate a new strategy for students to review necessary standards to see if it would

improve scores. Beforehand, my students would shuffle through rotation stations the week

leading up to the unit test so that I had time during small group instruction to pull students based

off difficulties that I was seeing. The students would also receive a printed study guide that they
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would work on for homework that week. The overall point of my research was to conclude

whether incorporating Nearpod as a tool for review three days out of the week led to increased

scores over paper/pencil stations and study guides. The experiment was conducted in my

classroom of twenty-four students (thirteen boys and eleven girls). The students were split up

into two groups of twelve that included learners of all different achievement levels. I have eight

students that receive math intervention, so they were split up evenly between the two groups as

well.

Review of Literature

Before gathering data from my learners, it was important for my role as the educator to

find out what other information has been collected in classrooms with the use of Nearpod. With

changing around the structure of the way instruction is delivered, you want to be sure that it is

going to be effective and meaningful for your students. Upon my research, I found several

articles about the effect on Nearpod or interactive presentations that boosts student engagement

and leads to greater understanding of necessary skills. The article titled Real-Time Assessment

of Every Student’s Progress in the Flipped Higher Education Classroom Using Nearpod

focused on a group of upper level students that have begun to transition to the idea of a “flipped”

classroom environment. With the new adjustment, Nearpod was one of the tools that began to be

incorporated into their daily learning. With any new technology, there were several kinks that

needed to be worked out first and students needed to get comfortable using the app

independently. Students were using different instruction delivery methods prior, but with the use

of Nearpod they began to get more involved in their learning and growth towards standards. The

collected data was compared from prior to the flipped classroom environment using Nearpod to

the new format showing that student scores were increasingly higher with the technology
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addition. The conclusion of the study showed that students benefitted from the use of the

Nearpod app and loved the interactive aspect. Nearpod appears to substantially improve overall

student preparation for class activities and performance on the comprehensive exam (Mattei,

2014). If older students in upper level schooling found the app beneficial to their learning, then I

believe that my elementary aged students can have the same growth. Overall student

performance on the final exam, however, was much improved over previous courses employing

the traditional method. Throughout the semester, fewer students fell behind or had trouble

keeping up with the content (Mattei, 2014). This made me feel more comfortable implementing

it into my own classroom to see if it was going to be a long-term effect as well.

The next article Embedding Technology and Assessment into the Music Classroom with

Nearpod was a study of a collection of students that were analyzed in a music class. It focused

on a special area teacher and how she can incorporate this interactive Nearpod app to have her

students make connections in learning visually. Being a music teacher, she focused on one of

Nearpod’s functions which is the “Draw It” feature allowing students to respond to a given

prompt with drawings, text, or images on a blank background. The teacher wanted to see if

student engagement in class discussions and test scores improved with the implementation of this

new app into her classroom. In both groups, the feature was extremely useful for quick content

reinforcement as with the directions given both visually and orally. The assessment was also

immediately recorded for the teacher to ensure understanding and plan future lessons (Dunbar,

2016). After reading this article, I began to investigate the interactive whiteboard Draw It tool on

Nearpod and wanted to incorporate it into my review sessions for their unit tests. I believe as

though this tool allows students to show their understanding by drawing out explanations and

connections in their learning. The biggest take away that I received from this article was to
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explore all the functions of Nearpod before administering it to my students to ensure that I am

making use of every tool that will lead to success in their learning.

Another article that I analyzed to gather more research on my specific topic was Using

Nearpod in Elementary Guided Reading Groups which followed a fourth-grade teacher that had

a large majority of ELL students in her classroom. Throughout the study, the teacher wanted to

focus in on the challenges and benefits that came from the integration of the app in the

classroom. With ELL students, more opportunities for students to orally listen to directions while

using the Nearpod features made their motivation increase. Students were able to respond with

images or pictures, while also listening to embedded videos along the way. The data showed that

while motivation increased, so did student’s ability to retain more information. The teacher

noticed how well students were able to activate prior knowledge and build onto previous

concepts from other lessons. This article made me realize that integration of an app such as

Nearpod will help my ELL students as well with their mathematical skills because they will see

the learning through another platform. The visuals that Nearpod includes is a great benefit to

specific if not all groups of learners.

Another article that I researched was Using Nearpod as a Tool to Promote Active

Learning in Higher Education in a BYOD Learning Environment which involved a case study

that took place in Saudi Arabia that focused on how Nearpod interaction worked on male

teachers and female students. This was an interesting article because the setting was changed

which meant the professors were on a different campus than the students were. This case study

was done completely virtual which allowed me to reflect on my teaching this year and how I

would have structured this study if Horry County Schools was still in an entirely distance

learning platform. Students were successfully able to listen to pre-recorded lectures by their
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teachers and they could interact with their peers by asking questions or offering feedback

throughout (Hakami, 2020). By the end of the case study, teachers had given students an

additional questionnaire to fill out in regard to Nearpod and the overall description that was left

by students was a feeling of being calm and satisfied with this new technology.

After researching through several educators opinions and proven data based off the

implementation of Nearpod in their classrooms, I was better able to create a plan of how I

wanted it to work with my students to better help them prepare for their unit tests. Based off of

the findings, I realized that Nearpod would be a great tool to try and incorporate into their

review. As I began to formulate the most effective way for it to reach my students, I knew what

methods I wanted to include. The final results from my class was ones that were extremely

beneficial to my teaching and their learning as a classroom community.

Methodology:

After reading the articles above and gathering further research, I figured that the best plan

for my levels of learners was to have a thirty-minute review session on Nearpod three times a

week leading up to the unit assessment. All of the standards that were taught and administered on

the exam came from the Everyday Mathematics curriculum that is used throughout Horry

County Schools along with being aligned to the South Carolina Career and College Ready

Standards for Mathematics. The unit test focuses on four different math standards that are

questioned and asked to show work differently. We would do a regular whole group math lesson,

and then leave a portion of our math block for students to review skills on Nearpod for the

upcoming test. Several times, we would review two or three standards in a given Nearpod at a
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time. I made sure that the Nearpod content was related to South Carolina standards and matched

difficulty levels to the assessment questions they were going to see.

To gather my quantitative data, I compared the student test scores to previous unit tests

earlier in the year that were paper/pencil review along with study guides. Moving the platform to

entirely digital, I wanted to see how the assessment scores compared based off individual student

but also class average. With focus on my qualitative data, my role as the educator in the

classroom was to informally assess through observations, running records, student feedback, and

class discussions through the Nearpods. As we focused on each Nearpod, I took a record of how

students were responding to prompts and what aspects of it was challenging for them. I wanted

to see how students could expand on their thinking while also analyzing the steps it took to get

them to that answer. I also observed how students were engaging with the app and how

accessible the functions of the app were. I wanted to record students that were responding

correctly from the Nearpod, and which ones were still struggling in this new platform. After each

Nearpod, I had students fill out a reflection sheet where they wrote down one standard that they

have mastered for the test, which one they were still needing to practice at home, and which one

they were really struggling with. Through the progression of review week, I wanted students to

see that the work they put in will lead them to seeing that those standards do become easier. I

also would pull my students in smaller settings and ask for their feedback about the app. I wanted

to ensure that students were making use of it properly, and not getting frustrated by it. Majority

of my students were very engaged in using the app, while I did have a few that said they would

rather work from a study guide because the app frustrated them. A few times, Nearpod would

crash and they would have to start over, so I think this is where their frustration stemmed from.

Based off of their reflection sheets, I would have students’ pair up based off of their strong point
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to another student’s weak point. By seeing them figure out how to teach the material to someone

else led me to understanding how much they truly dove into the standard. My most beneficial

piece of qualitative data was the oral student feedback. From there, I knew what changes needed

to be made for the next time we did a review along with what needed to be altered to improve

student engagement.

Analysis

After implementing the unit test after the Nearpod reviews, holding informal

observations, hearing student feedback, and analyzing the running records, I began to look

closely at the data that was provided to me. To begin, I went back to my previous unit tests when

we relied on paper/pencil copies of study guides and found my class average along with student

average. Below you will find a breakdown of the way students performed during the original

review of paper/pencil work in the first three-unit tests.

Stats:
Number of Students Assessed: 24
Paper/Pencil Assessment Scores: Mathematics
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Average Unit #1 Test: 78%

Average Unit #2 Test: 83%
Average Unit #3 Test: 81%

Stats:
Number of Students Assessed: 24
Nearpod Reviews (New Version): Mathematics Unit 4 Assessment
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Average of Nearpod Unit Test= 88%

Based off the overall results, students were more engaged and motivated to review for

their test because the platform being used was one that kept them focused. A large majority of

my students’ average grew after taking the Unit 4 Assessment based off the Nearpod reviews. I

had plenty of students asking if we would be using Nearpod to continue to review for other

assessments in our classroom. I believe that it relieved the pressure of understanding content and

moved into a more gradual progression of their knowledge on the specific standards. The

reflection aspect motivated students to master needed skills before the unit test. Students were

even eager to see their scores on the test to see if they beat their scores from the previous units.

Students enjoyed the different way we went about reviewing for our test, and it also provided

more opportunities for peers to collaborate in their sharing of ideas. Nearpod allowed students to

work on standards in an interactive way while also understanding what parts of the standard they
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still had gaps in their learning. As the teacher, it allowed me to see where my students were

falling regarding that specific unit. For a few of my students, the I-Pad offered a bit of a

distraction and took some time getting used it for them to get any purpose out of the review. I

still believe that I have some students that would continue to benefit and focus more on a paper

pencil copy, while I have other students that would rather keep it that form. As a classroom

environment, majority of my students benefited in a switch to Nearpod review. I would be

interested in continuing to incorporate this into our unit tests to see if the results remain

consistent along with including it in other subjects.

Findings

After reviewing the quantitative and qualitative data, I found that my results matched

with my original thinking. I have plenty of visual and auditory learners in my classroom, so I

know using an interactive platform such as this one in an overall subject that we struggle in

would have to lead to improved growth. As seen in the data above, most students improved their

scores from the original assessments to the Nearpod review based test. With the introduction of

self-reflection, I think it allowed students to work harder towards understanding all concepts of

the material before taking the assessment. The average as a whole class was higher than when it

was originally paper pencil with send home study guides. It increased 10% from the first unit

test, 5% from the second unit test, and 7% from the third unit test. Each time, it showed a

necessary increase in overall class test scores. I interpreted all of this information and came to

the realization that my students learn best when different modalities of learning are being

introduced. Through several reviews, they had to write, respond, draw a picture, explain their

thinking, and all these experiences led to being able to expand their thinking when it came to the

assessment. Many of my strugglers in mathematics were able to describe their thinking in greater
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detail or be able to show a drawn representation of their work. However, it is evident that there

are still some students that score higher when given a paper pencil review and study guide. Some

students fluctuated in their test scores throughout the different methods, while most showed a

steady increase. Some scores stayed consistent across the board resulting in the idea that some

students will score the same no matter what platform of review is being used. After analyzing the

qualitative data, I did notice an increased sense of engagement and motivation to do well was

strengthened by themselves but also in their peers. It created an atmosphere that allowed for

more collaborative thinking and idea sharing across the different review topics. When discussing

with students what they liked better, many students responded by saying Nearpod was more fun

to use. I found that both the qualitative and quantitative data matched in a way that made it both

meaningful and effective for majority of my students. My plan moving forward is to continue to

provide students with new opportunities when it comes to test taking so that they will feel

comfortable seeing it in all different ways. As stated earlier, my idea is to see how consistent

these results are moving forward especially in end of the year testing with SC Ready quickly

approaching.
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References

Delacruz, S. (2014). Using Nearpod in Elementary Guided Reading Groups. TechTrends: Linking

Research and Practice to Improve Learning, 58(5), 62–69.

Dunbar, L. (2016). Embedding Technology and Assessment into the Music Classroom with

Nearpod. Gene Hakami, M. (2020).

Hakami, M. (2020). Using Nearpod as a Tool to Promote Active Learning in Higher Education in a BYOD

Learning Environment. Journal of Education and Learning, 9(1), 119–126.

Mattei, M. D., & Ennis, E. (2014). Continuous, Real-Time Assessment of Every Student’s Progress in the

Flipped Higher Education Classroom Using Nearpod. Journal of Learning in Higher

Education, 10(1), 1–7.