Predicting Classroom Achievement From Active Responding on a Computer-Based Groupware System

Abstract

The predictive validity of active responding on a computer-based groupware system was examined with 48 second graders. Students' achievement at the end of a school year (final performance) was predicted with two independent variables: (a) active responding during the school year and (b) achievement at the beginning of the school year (initial performance). The results showed that active responding correlated highly with initial and final performance measures and that active responding contributed significantly to predicting final performance when initial performance was controlled for. As expected, students with higher initial performance participated significantly more in classroom activities than did those with lower initial performance. We conclude that active responding on a computer-based groupware system can be used as a process variable indicative of later achievement and that classroom teachers can use students' active responding to formatively evaluate instruction.