Sarah Larson’s Updates

Update 6: Freckle: Differentiation Platform K-12

Freckle (formerly called Front Row)is an ELA/Math platform that provides students activities based on their level. Students take a pretest for two ELA components (Reading and Word Study) and a variety of math pretests (depending on the grade level). Students can choose the subject they want to work on or the teacher can assign them activities. A teacher could assign the same article to each student in her class and students will be reading at their level. In addition, students receive immediate feedback on their work from the platform. Students earn coins for their work and can spend them in the store when the platform allows them to. Students only have 2 minutes to spend their coins and if they don't, they have to wait until the next time they are invited. Below is a review on Freckle in regards to the seven digital affordances of reflexive learning. 

Ubiquitous Learning: Students can access Freckle anywhere and at any time as long as they have a computer. 

Active Knowledge Making: Students can learn from reading and working through problems on the website. Students could learn from their mistakes. However, students don't create anything on this platform. They are usually receivers of the information. 

Multimodal Meaning: Students answer questions and read articles that include pictures and diagrams to help them make meaning. 

Recursive Feedback: Students receive feedback from the platform directly.

Collaborative Intelligent: Students are not able to collaborate on this platform. They are given tools to foster their learning and can access information on this platform.

Metacognition: Students are engaged in the learning process on this platform. The instant feedback provides them with the ability to think about their learning and where they are in the learning process. 

 

Differentiated Learning: Perhaps the strongest component of this learning platform is the differentiation. Students must take a pre-test before every new unit the student is practicing. Students are constantly working at their own level. 

Overall, the student engages in 5 out of the 7 digital affordances in this learning platform. More work could be done to make this platform more collaborative and creative for the student.