My favorite MindTap feature is the Progress App. Within the Progress app, you will find a gradebook with powerful data about engagement and class progress. Students can also view their learning profile. This shows where they stand at all times, both individually and compared to the class at large.
The challenge I had previously was easily identifying and communicating with my struggling students. The Progress App is a one-stop shop. It allows me to pinpoint areas that might be troubling the entire class and see how individual students are doing. This is where I spend the majority of my time when working with student assignments and grades, especially when a student reaches out for assistance and I need to quickly access their details.
Analyzing student performance with the Progress App
All tabs on the Progress App are powerful, but I find the Analytics tab (or the Reports tab, depending on which version of MindTap you are using) to be the most helpful in giving me the information I need. MindTap Analytics measures student engagement using an algorithm based on the number of times a student logs in to MindTap, the types and number of activities they access (including highlights, readings, and searches performed), and overall time spent in MindTap. There are three Analytics views—Engagement Level, Time in Course, and Percentage of Activities Accessed. At the bottom of each chart, the course dashboard displays class averages, time in MindTap, number of logins, and percentage of activities accessed. This allows me to see how my classes are doing as a whole.
Throughout the Analytics tab, students are represented as gray dots. Hovering over a dot will reveal the student’s name, time in course, course score, and engagement score. This allows instructors to instantly access an in-depth analysis for each student by clicking on their name. In addition to the individual student’s engagement details, you can view all the students’ assignments and scores. Here you can email the student about their class performance, encouraging them to do better or to seek help. You can also send the high-performing students kudos, which I find they appreciate. And if needed, you can also drop students from MindTap.
You will be provided with a breakdown of students’ scores as well as a list of all the gradable activities. In addition to seeing each score, you also see the number of attempts made. You can also view notes that indicate whether it was a graded assignment or a practice assignment. It may also indicate whether late submissions are allowed without penalty.
Clicking on an assignment name from the student’s page opens detailed information about that assignment and enables you to perform several important functions. You can extend a due date, view or delete an attempt, remove or edit a score, or add a comment that only that student will see. If you want to review the assignment with the student, you can click View to see the student’s exact attempt and their responses. Adding a note with tips or hints on how to fix mistakes and resubmit an assignment can make the difference in a student passing or failing your class. This small act of communication really helps in building connections with your students.
I find that students are empowered and motivated when the dashboard shows them where they stand in class. Many instructors find that the data in MindTap Analytics mirrors the actions of students outside of MindTap, which is helpful when providing assistance. You can also export data in Excel for outcomes reporting or for further analysis.
I LOVE the MindTap Progress app because it allows me to identify and accelerate student progress, ensuring course completion and overall success.
Sandy Keeter is a Professor in the Information Technology Department at Seminole State College in Florida.
Join Sandy for a walkthrough of the Progress App in this tutorial video:
