Traditional ABCD Cards
A formative assessment technique that a lot of faculty like to use is the ABCD card. The traditional “ABCD Card” is a sheet of paper marked with each letter in each quadrant with bright colors shading each quadrant. The teacher can pose a question with four possible answers and students can hold up the folded quadrant of the card that matches their answer. It is a quick, easy-to-implement teaching strategy that increases engagement and interactivity in a class space.
ABCD Card Mobile App
Especially with larger classes, getting color-printed sheets in each student’s hands not only becomes a hassle week after week, but is also an environmental concern with the use of paper and toner.
The CIIA at Western created an app for Android and iOS mobile devices that students can download and use for free. The app, once installed on student phones, can be used in classroom spaces in lieu of paper. View the Polling Tool Comparison 2023 for similar products and capabilities. The following information page includes links to the app stores, a non-app, web-based version as well as to the printable PDF.
Virtual/Zoom-Based Uses
In web conferencing settings, while students could use the ABCD card app in conjunction with their phone or virtual backgrounds, they also can use other strategies set up by their instructors such as responses in the chat, the reaction tools, or yes/no tools. See Zoom polling and Socrative Student Response System and Student Polling for other excellent options for getting student feedback.
Image Attribution: “ABCD Cards” by Justina Brown, CIIA, Western Washington University is licensed under CC BY 4.0
Originally contributed to the TLCo-op by Alina Holmes, Graduate Research Assistant of the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment, 2020.