Khan Academy Assists with Grammar Concepts

6th Grade ELA

Melissa Onstad & Annamarie Scavarda

Problem Identified: We noticed students making basic mistakes with grammar and writing mechanics.

Hypothesis: If we use Khan Academy to provide students with visual explanations of grammar concepts, their writing mechanics will improve as shown by their writing having fewer mistakes.

Data Collection: We graded their most recent assessment for correct punctuation. Punctuation mistakes were still widespread despite students seeming to do well on the Khan Academy practice and quizzes.

Actionable Step: To use this tool, have students sign up for a free account on Khan Academy. You can then give them a link to a specific video and/or practice.

Overall Findings/Impact: This was unsuccessful for us for two reasons. The first was that students who perform correctly on a grammar exercise do not seem to transfer that knowledge to their own writing automatically. The second was that Khan Academy’s data collection seems geared toward math. When we received student summaries, the summaries focused on math performance and missions.