Xtras + FAQ

Sufficient research on all of these aspects will be introduced throughout this - the explaining and training course - but here are links to the key research for the curious:

• assessment for learning,

• chunk-based theory

• mastery learning,

• retrieval practice,

• feedback

• base10add is skills for adding on 10 using place value e.g. continue the sequence 34, 44, 54

• base10skills is using place value to multiply e.g work out 20 x 700

• place0value99 - i.e. place value between 0 and 99 - it covers reading and writing numbers in words and digits, teenage numbers: 11 to 19 and the value of the tens and ones digits

• place100value9999 - i.e. place value between 100 and 9999 - it covers completing/understanding the value of digits in a place value grid and writing numbers in words and reading numbers written in words

• placeValue10000up - i.e. place value over 10 000 - reading and writing larger numbers especially ensuring that learners know that the columns ten thousand and hundred thousand come before a million in a place value grid

If the teacher hasn’t tapped the floppy disc, then just tap the correct assessment outcome.

If the teacher has tapped the floppy disc (and the assessment has been saved), the teacher need not do anything, the app will self adjust the retrieval practice interval over time.

This helps the app decide on the urgency for adding questions on layers into the next retrieval practice section of the timely practice assignment. The option feedback-on-blank is considered more urgent than feedback-on-attempt. However feedback-on-blank may be an indication that the teacher should select best learned later - because the teacher and learner might be better off putting their limited feedback time to better use.

The teacher should not give feedback on pre assess questions because

• we want pre assess to be fast and accurately find each learner's firm learning foundations;

• each learner’s retrieval practice pool should only contain layers which the learner already knows or has recently be taught (adding almost correct layers into the retrieval practice pool will mean that the teacher needs to give feedback before they have taught the timely practice layer - this will in most cases be a poor use of the teacher’s time - so please do not assess with a tick partially correct answers);

• throughout the time when learners are only or mainly doing pre assess, the teacher can concentrate on getting this message across: the pre assess section, headed Already Learned and Remembered? is to help the teacher teach all learners in the class better in the future. Everybody will have some too easy and some too hard questions. Over time the timely practice app will get better at finding out what each learner can do - unlike a test - meaning that once the teacher begins teaching using timely practice, the learners will find learning and remembering learning easier.

Almost all teachers, by their very nature, will find selecting bell when an answer is almost correct hard to do. The teacher can remind themselves, that they are selecting bell because they can see the learner hasn’t fully mastered all of the topic, but has mastered some of the topic and it is the timely practice app’s job to find learning strengths and gaps within the topic. Equally teachers find it hard to resist giving feedback, when requested by the learner on incorrectly answered layers. Try to resist, as the feedback will be on a random layer - perhaps a “too hard layer” that the trial and improvement process stumbled across. Once the teacher starts teaching the topic, the teacher will be able to give feedback on the layer which the learner is likely to be able to learn easily, rather than a random layer. Any feedback, if feedback is even needed after teaching the layer, will then be on the learner’s firm learning foundations and therefore is likely to stick.