Creating a complete set of self-marking AQA GCSE science homework tasks using MS Forms and Teams.

I am attempting to create a complete set of self-marking homework tasks covering the complete AQA GCSE science specification (both combined and separate sciences).

The idea is to use a Microsoft Form (MS Form) with a set of multi-choice questions (MCQs) for each individual point in each science specification. The forms could then be used as MS Teams assignments for homework. Each form would also include a short video explaining the specification point so that the student re-visits what was taught in the lesson before attempting the homework task. (This is also helpful for students who have missed the lesson).

The MCQs would start off just asking questions that are either the same as, or very similar to, those shown in the video. Later questions would ramp-up the level of challenge. Points for the MCQs would be based on the difficulty of the question - so a single mark for the straightforward questions and two marks or more as the challenge increased.

An early example of what I want to achieve can be seen here:

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ShareFormPage.aspx?id=1XlCeQt-h028e-zs2qVKgM_Jc84nIKlFqrv16czMISJUQUdWMVpTSzVXWks4RVg5SEdXVUE4V0xSTi4u&sharetoken=WlgosJzLoqjHBqnhmoBk

The videos that are embedded in the MS Forms are those created by Shaun Donnelly (https://www.freesciencelessons.co.uk/) and I have used them because they are short, focussed and matched closely to the exam specification points. Shaun has said he is happy for me to use his YouTube videos in this manner.

In each form, the first question is always for the student to watch and rate their understanding of the video. This means that the student can give me feedback on whether or not they "get" the topic and if I see a high percentage of students reporting a poor level of understanding on a particular topic I can address it in class.

As questions become more difficult, I also intend to add "I do not understand how to answer this question" as one of the MCQ options. I feel that this is more useful than making a student guess when they really do not know how to work out the actual answer. An example of this can be seen here: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ShareFormPage.aspx?id=1XlCeQt-h028e-zs2qVKgM_Jc84nIKlFqrv16czMISJUOVJZRUpDSEFUMzJaUkowUVBETVJVNVYzTi4u&sharetoken=ibq5jHIVQs8rZ22olxL7

I am intending that the homework tasks are set in the weeks following the initial teaching of each topic. This creates spaced retrieval on top of any similar activities done in lessons. The same homework tasks can be set again at later dates to provide further retrieval opportunities.

Using the Insight function built into MS Teams, it should be possible to build up a useful picture of how the learning of each specification point is developing by class and by individual student. Using appropriately created Teams or by analysing on external spreadsheets, it should also be possible to analyse the performance across whole year groups.

With a complete set of homework tasks covering the whole of the GCSE specification then over several years I hope to develop a more detailed understanding of which topics are learned well and which less so; and therefore be able to develop my teaching appropriately to improve student outcomes.

It will take me a long time to complete all the Forms for all the specification points for all of GCSE Biology, Chemistry and Physics (separate and combined, foundation and higher), but at the end there will be:

• a reusable bank of homework tasks across the whole science curriculum for KS4
• self-marking, spec-linked homework ready to use for all of Y9, Y10 and Y11
• standardised marking to allow better understanding of performance across whole year groups (and eventually compared to previous year groups)
• MS Teams Insights to allow analysis of the homework data in a standardised manner.
• homework tasks that will be consistent both for students to complete and for teachers to set and analyse.
• ready-made homework that can be used as part of a spaced retrieval activity

I am willing to make all of the MS Forms available for any other teachers to use and I am hoping that other teachers would like to contribute to getting this completed by doing some of the Forms. If we could find several teachers for whom this would be a worthwhile tool, then the forms could be completed much more quickly.

If you would like to help, then here is a guide for creating the MS Forms:

How To Make The Forms

This MS Form shows an example of the proposed homework.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ShareFormPage.aspx?id=1XlCeQt-h028e-zs2qVKgM_Jc84nIKlFqrv16czMISJUOFJJTllSSTdUV09NQ09VM1JLN1pHWUZJOC4u&sharetoken=ibq5jHIVQs8rZ22olxL7&wdLOR=cA8FBC05E-7A88-4579-8B5D-7D92A3083962

Title: the title of the form should reflect the specification point being addressed. In this example it is part of “4.1.1.2 Changes in Energy”. Because this point covers multiple items, the title further identifies this homework as looking at “Elastic Potential Energy”

The Video: the first question of each Form is the video. In the example we are using Shaun Donelly’s videos. We should embed the videos in the same way in every homework. Make question 1 a star rating question using the text “First, watch the video and rate your understanding of it (1 star = poor, 5 stars = excellent).”, then click on “Insert Media”. Select video and paste in the appropriate YouTube link.

The Questions: For subsequent questions, base the first few on video content (1 mark each) and then increase the difficulty for higher marks.

More difficult:

When appropriate, allow the student to select an option indicating that they do not know how to answer the question.

Sharing: Once you have created your quiz, create a link that others can use to duplicate it.

Using: when you wish to use a quiz, click on the link in the spreadsheet and then click “Duplicate It” to make your own copy that can be assigned in Teams to your classes.

The spreadsheet with the links is here:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12_gKJh5U79NJqLPiM3KqNDEzS4SvSq9RyA6Kf7nAGyw/edit?usp=sharing