Teacher Appreciation: Introducing Stephen Parkes!

This month’s Teacher Appreciation goes to Teacher Stephen Parkes from The Netherlands. Stephen teaches English at different levels (VMBO B/K/TL years 1 / 4 and HAVO AND VWO years 1 / 3) and uses Quizalize in his classroom to help deliver his learning materials and ensure that his students achieve the highest attainment levels possible.

Stephen is also the winner of our March monthly competition, playing over 2,000 quizzes with his students in just one month!

The Quizalize team asked Stephen how he uses Quizalize is his classroom and why his students love engaging in the platform. His answers blew us away, and we are delighted to share his thoughts with you!

1) Why do you enjoy using Quizalize in your classroom?

I enjoy using Quizalize for a variety of reasons: I like to see the progress of each student. How many times did they try a quiz? How much did they improve? All this data gives you a lot of information about the student. I also like that you can print out the grade book in an excel format. This is of great help to the coaches/mentors of the classes I teach. Each week I set a number of exercises for my classes. I set a minimum I want them to achieve. Usually, I give my students until Sunday 23:59. On Mondays, I send an overview to the coaches which tells them in one handy spreadsheet who’s done what.

I also like that I can gradually build up the degree of difficulty. At the start of a new chapter, I start with multiple choice because the words are new. Then after a week or two, I switch to scrambled word order. And finally a week or two before the test free text entry. In the final phase alternating between all the different formats ensures a lot of repetition. The same goes for grammar: you can find loads of existing quizzes in the resources tap! Freetext is also really helpful to get your students to really drill the irregular verbs! As a result, I see a massive increase in the students’ grades because of the constant repetition.

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2) Do your students enjoy playing Quizalize quizzes?

Not at first 😊. All students lead stressful lives they keep reminding me. So in the beginning they saw this as extra. Now it has completely changed. They now know each week a number of quizzes have to be made. Because they see the effect it has on their grades it really motivates them. It is very satisfying to hear the familiar sounds as students run through the quizzes and showing off their scores! The thing I hear most is that this really does help them. Because they have practiced the words/grammar so often by the time the test comes (let’s not kid ourselves most students really start learning a day or two before the test) and they review the chapter not much studying is involved because they know the words/ grammar already.

Even the students who have dyslexia (for whom the scrambled word order is a living hell), depending on the severity of their dyslexia of course. I am noticing a decrease in spelling mistakes from dyslectic students.

3) What results have you seen in your students, since using Quizalize in your classroom?

My scores have really increased! Far above the national average. And in all my classes. And at all student levels. So I am really pleased with the money I have spent on an annual subscription.

Wow! We love to hear that teachers are experiencing the power of the Quizalize platform and witnessing score increases across the board. Thank you Stephen for sharing these illuminating insights and excellent results with us all. We are delighted to feature you in this month’s Teacher Appreciation feature!

Not signed up to Quizalize yet? Click here for FREE access to over 1 million pieces of content and to start using Quizalize in your classroom today! And if you are ready to level-up your teaching even more, select the ‘Premium’ option at check-out to access unlimited classes, unlimited activities and so many more impactful Premium features.

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And if you are a teacher anywhere in the world who loves Quizalize and wants to help grow your local teacher community, please do get in touch! We would love to tell your story too and show our appreciation for all of your hard work.

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