I’m just going to be honest – one of the biggest things I dislike about my job is the assessment and data tracking. To be quite honest, I knew that I didn’t do a very good of data tracking. There are only so many hours in a day and when push comes to shove, I would rather spend my time in lesson planning and preparing over data analysis. But not any more! Find out what made me change my mind.
Now, don’t get me wrong – I know my students, where they are, their strengths and their weaknesses. ย But if you walked up to me and asked for a list of students that didn’t know the number 13 – I couldn’t give it to you. ย Until now!!!! ย I’d like to introduce you to my new FAVORITE assessment and data tracking tool.
Getting Started with ESGI
A few years ago I started using ESGI for my student assessments and data tracking. ย It was truly a tool that revolutionized my classroom. ย It’s super easy to use, my students love assessing with me and the data analysis is just out of this world. ย With the click of a button I have analyzed data at my fingertips. ย Not only did it make me a better teacher, it did so while giving me hours back in my schedule.
I didn’t begin with ESGI at the beginning of the year because I didn’t know about it. ย I actually started mid-year over Christmas break while I was preparing for January report cards. ย So, I kinda did it backwards but it still worked. ย Since I had already assessed my students in December, ย I began by recreating my quarterly kindergarten assessment in ESGI and then adding my students data.
ESGI has a database with pre-made assessments in it to choose from, or you can make your own. ย I decided to use some of their pre-made assessments, but then I also created my own too. ย I watched a quick how to video that was available on the ESGI website before getting started. ย In just a few hours, I had recreated my entire kindergarten assessment in the ESGI software. ย For me, this included letter identification, letter sounds, sight words, number identification, an assessment of counting sets, colors, shapes, money, and word blending. ย Everything I needed was now in their system and ready to go.
Since I had already done my second quarter assessment, I manually put in the data from paper tests into the ESGI system. ย I found the system very user friendly and easy to use. ย With few clicks of the mouse, I had entered all of my student data from the beginning of the year. ย In less than a day I was “up to date” in ESGI and ready to start using it. ย I was able to fill out report cards in about half the time because I had all of my student information in one place. ย What used to take 8 hours during a holiday break or weekend, now takes only 4 hours using ESGI. ย All of my data was at my fingertips, easy to find, and easy to transfer to report cards. ย No more shuffling through papers!!!
Then the January rolled around and I got 2 new students in my class. ย This was the perfect time to try out the ESGI assessment with a student. ย I accessed my account and brought the student to my iPad (or computer) and clicked on the first test. ย As the student gave me an answer I just hit Y or N to show whether their answer was correct. ย The process was easy and quick. ย I was able to fully assess a new student in a matter of minutes. ย The student gives the answer and I just click on the Y or N without them even knowing what I am doing. ย Once they are done the data is gathered and I have instant access to its analysis.
Instant Data Analysis
Yes, ESGI is super easy to use for assessments, but by far my favorite feature is the instant data analysis. ย Once the data is entered, I have access to data analysis in numerous forms. ย I can view each assessment student by student or I can see how my class as a whole is doing. ย I love the easy to read pie graphs that show % of completion. ย Even my students love watching their pie graph grow after a new assessment!
Here’s a screenshot of my class as a whole. ย It is super easy to read and I get great information at a quick glance.
Here’s a student screenshot. ย I can quickly see what skills a student has mastered and what they still need to work on. ย With a quick click of the Details button I can see exactly what they missed!
But that’s not even my most favorite part. ย From my home screen I have the ability to run different reports on my entire class.
In these reports I can view my class data as a whole. ย But my most favorite part, the part that really allows me to use my data in my teaching is the Bar Graph Analysis. ย In the Bar Graph I can pull up a specific assessment and see exactly which students missed a specific item. ย It looks like this:
And with the simple click of a button (click on the gray space above the bar) I get a list of all the students in my class that have not answered this item correctly. ย You could also do the opposite and click on the green bar to get a list of the students who have answered correctly. ย It is so simple!
How ESGI Transformed My Classroom
This one tool has transformed the way I pull small groups for re-teaching. ย My re-teaching is so much more specific now and I can meet the actual needs of each students. ย I also have the privilege to have a paraprofessional help in my room for a few minutes each day. ย Using this bar graph feature to help her pull specific kids to target a specific word, number, letter, sound, etc.
I finally feel like I am able to get the most out of my data! ย But I wasn’t the only one. ย In the spring I entered my first data meeting with my administration and campus interventionists. ย This time I didn’t have a bulky data binder. ย Instead I walked in with my laptop and pulled up ESGI. ย I was able to share the data with more specifics than ever before. ย I showed them graphs of my class as a whole. ย The biggest question of the day what “What is that?”
I had the privilege of sharing ESGI with campus administration that day. ย It wasn’t but a couple days before I was called to the Assistant Superintendent’s office because of this amazing tool they heard about. ย A meeting or two later and every kindergarten teacher in my district was signed up and ready to start the next year with ESGI.
I love ESGI’s assessment tool and data analysis and I know you will too!ย Their slogan “Click. ย Click. ย Done” is really true! ย I believe it is well worth every penny of its cost. ย So what does it cost? ย An annual subscription is $225. ย However, if you use this link you can get an EXTENDED FREE TRIAL (good thru December 31, 2021) and $50 off your first year if you decide to subscribe!ย You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
I've used ESGI for 2 years and love it. It's great for my evidence binder data collection. I also use it for weekly sight word assessments (which my kids LOVE). If my principal hadn't bought it for us, I would have happily paid for it out of pocket. http://haplieverafter.blogspot.com
I've used ESGI for 2 years and love it. It's great for my evidence binder data collection. I also use it for weekly sight word assessments (which my kids LOVE). If my principal hadn't bought it for us, I would have happily paid for it out of pocket. http://haplieverafter.blogspot.com