Toronto, Ontario, Canada (June 4, 2015) Crowdmark, Inc., the education technology company that created the world’s first online collaborative grading and analytics platform, today announced that the University of Toronto is making Crowdmark available to select courses to improve the assessment workflow in order to enhance student learning opportunities.
“This new implementation makes Crowdmark available via the University’s Learning Portal (LMS) on a course by course basis” according to Avi Hyman, Director of Academic and Collaborative Technologies. “We are using a unique hybrid model where the application is managed institutionally, but individual divisions regulate its use.” The implementation of this application is part of the Academic Toolbox Renewal Initiative, where the goal is to create a flexible but integrated environment that supports the teaching and learning needs of our students, instructors, departments and divisions.
Crowdmark provides a collaborative online grading and analytics platform available over the Internet. Its workflow provides efficiency gains in exam administration; grading, data recording and analysis, returning exams and handling re-grade requests, and data visualizations of student performance.
“Previous pilot testing, and use at other institutions has validated that Crowdmark improves the dialogue between students and instructors. It will be exciting to watch the benefits amplify next year with this institution-wide deployment.” said James Colliander, CEO of Crowdmark.
“Crowdmark enables instructors to mark exams the way it’s supposed to be done, even with classes of 800 students. The instructor can easily change the grading scheme during the grading process. You also save a lot of time because you don’t have to deal with all the manual steps of shuffling paper, alphabetizing, and entering grades on a spreadsheet. The students like receiving their tests back earlier and don’t have to come to office hours to get their results. And they can even use pencil on a final exam without concerns of academic integrity.” said Bernardo Galvao-Sousa, an instructor in the Department of Mathematics at U of T.
“Ever since we tried Crowdmark for our course, I no longer have to worry about collecting assignments in a timely manner. Students can now simply take a picture or scan their assignment, and upload it on Crowdmark before the deadline. Grading is seamless and fast as the Crowdmark’s interface is very friendly and has almost no learning curve.” said Shefali Kulkarni-Thaker, a graduate student teaching assistant in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at U of T.
For more information, please see: https://portalinfo.utoronto.ca/content/crowdmark
About Crowdmark: Crowdmark is an online grading and analytics platform that enables educators to evaluate assessments more effectively than ever before. The company was established by Professor James Colliander and graduate student Martin Muñoz, then in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Toronto, in response to the “logistical nightmare” of grading over 5,000 mathematics exams with a team of 100 graders. Crowdmark enables educators to grade a variety of assessment types, including handwritten assessments, securely in a web browser. The platform cuts grading time by more than 50% and assessments can be returned to students, with rich feedback, within hours. This significantly improves the student feedback loop and provides new insights into the learning experience through analytics.
About the University of Toronto: Established in 1827, the University of Toronto in Ontario, Canada serves more than 85,000 students across three campuses. It offers more than 700 undergraduate, 215 graduate, and 63 professional programs.
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Crowdmark Contact: Michelle Caers, CMO, michelle@crowdmark.com
University of Toronto Contact: Tamara Adizes, Portfolio Communications, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Planning, Governance, Assessment and Communications