How to Track and Measure Learning Progress with Our LMS

23 Nov 2023

Which students are struggling the most in the class? What is the attendance pattern in the class? Which subjects and areas require further improvement? These are crucial questions that teachers often consider to enhance the overall class performance.

But it can be quite challenging to find solutions and answers, especially with outdated and manual methods. Furthermore, tracking the ongoing progress is the need of the hour, which teachers can accomplish with the help of a learning management system.

How Does the LMS Help Track and Measure the Learning Progress?

1. Establish clear objectives

What is the ultimate aim of learning trigonometry? What mitigation strategies can we apply to solve real-life issues? These questions indicate the ultimate purpose of learning a particular concept or subject, which is vital to know at the beginning of the lesson.

Learning for the sake of learning without knowing the objective can lead to confusion, a lack of motivation, and distraction among learners. That is why establishing clear objectives is a significant step in academic strategy.

Teachers can formulate the objectives with regard to different subjects and course modules accordingly and simplify learning in the following ways:

• They can use action verbs such as define, analyze, create, or evaluate to specifically highlight the outcomes. The abilities or skills that students would be able to demonstrate towards the end of the course
• Having prior knowledge of the outcomes will assist teachers in preparing appropriate exercises to assess the students.
• They can implement varied activities with the help of the LMS software and determine whether or not students have been advancing.

2. Strategic Assignments and Quizzes

The conventional classroom approach is for the teacher to complete a lesson or topic and provide homework related to it. Most question types include long and short questions, which students can easily copy from the books.

There is no use for homework and class tasks if they do not serve to assess students' knowledge and comprehension levels. Therefore, strategic assignments are ideal options that teachers can incorporate as part of regular classroom sessions.

In fact, we can include specially focused questions that aim to analyze student learning accurately; they can also include the following types of questions:

• Quizzes or entry and exit slips are given at the start and end of each lesson, allowing them to check their pre-existing and after-class knowledge.
• They can provide group assignments, wherein students will need to work in pairs or groups to complete a given task.
• The above assignments will not only help to ensure their academic development but also foster collaboration and social learning skills.

3. Interactive Learning

A positive student-teacher relationship is a critical aspect of a student’s academic journey; therefore, both must try to maintain it. At the same time, it is vital to facilitate collaborative learning by providing opportunities for interactive learning.

Besides, teachers can assess students’ understanding levels when they engage in interactive discussions with their peers. In addition, the software has built-in discussion forums, allowing students to ask questions, share perspectives, and analyze concepts with each other.

We can observe the discussion forums in the form of comment sections, wherein they post their thoughts about a particular concept or lesson. Consequently, teachers can check the frequency of participation of all students.

Regular participation indicates students' active interest in the learning process; the students who participate the least may require additional support.

4. Monitoring the Pitfalls and Progress

Is it possible to determine the pitfalls and shortcomings of individual students? The question is noteworthy, especially as it is difficult to emphasize equal focus on all students. Thankfully, we can do the needful to ensure the overall development of all students.

One of the advantages of the best LMS software in India is that it comes with analytics and reporting features, simplifying the progress measurement mechanism. For instance, we can monitor student activities in the following ways:

• Determine how long each student spends on each course or solving a particular assignment or home task.
• They can check their academic task completion percentage, quiz scores, and assignment submissions.
• The analytics features allow one to identify at-risk students through their overall performance, including incomplete assignments and infrequent participation.

5. Personalised Feedback

Adequate student support services are more than solving queries during the enrollment process. It entails providing students with appropriate assistance in a timely manner with regard to identifying their core issues and solving them effectively.

That is where incorporating a feedback system can prove to be immensely productive. In fact, teachers can use the system to review students' activities and assignments and send feedback in real-time.

Furthermore, it is a perfect opportunity for them to send personalised recommendations, for instance, steps to improve their learning habits. They can also suggest ways to adapt their learning styles for areas that need improvement.

6. Generate a progress report

Creating individualised learning plans and monitoring ongoing progress are two processes that teachers can execute simultaneously. The LMS software allows for the generation of progress reports for each student, helping to record and track crucial student information such as:

• Primary student data, including their name, enrollment number, email, etc.
• The completion status of particular course or programme modules, including assignments and projects,
• Scores, grades, and percentages that students have received in quizzes, assignments, and assessments
• Teachers can generate progress reports on a weekly or monthly basis, which allows them to keep an accurate track of students' ongoing progress.

7. Continuous Assessment

Examination is a vital academic process that aids in analysing a student's subject knowledge. However, the typical summative examination is ineffective in determining their growth.

Therefore, conducting continuous assessments is an effective way to track their progress. That is where the LMS software can help us create and manage impromptu tests.

For instance, the tool can help teachers create different kinds of tests, including short and long questions and quizzes. They can include descriptive and qualitative types of questions.

As a result, students would be encouraged to analyse their thoughts and answer to the best of their ability. Hence, teachers would be able to monitor their thought process and overall development.