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Website review by Erin Brereton, Common Sense Education | Updated May 2013
Grockit

Grockit

Alleviate test prep pain with ultra-detailed, responsive study aid

Learning rating
Editorial review by Common Sense Education
Community rating
Based on 2 reviews
Privacy rating
Not yet rated Expert evaluation by Common Sense
Grades
9–12 This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.
Subjects & Skills
Communication & Collaboration, Character & SEL, Critical Thinking, College & Career Prep
Platforms:  Website
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4 images

Pros: Feedback on responses, right or wrong, helps kids easily identify subject areas that need more work.

Cons: It's pricey, and the group learning aspect is a neat idea in theory but isn't easy to figure out.

Bottom Line: Grockit is an outstanding tool to help teens study for standardized tests -- but they'll need to shell out a chunk of cash.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

While it's a great resource for students, finding a way for educators to use the site is more difficult. Grockit subscribers work on customized study plans and can discuss the results in groups. However, while the detailed instruction and interactive activities are great, Grockit involves a monthly expense. If students print out their user data, you may be able to provide additional instruction to help strengthen any academically weak areas. If your school is willing to fund individual subscriptions, teachers may be able to participate alongside students and provide additional input during quiz exercises. 

But the system doesn't really provide an easy way for teachers to guide or help students who use it, which is why Grockit seems to be a better fit for students to use outside of the classroom. 

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Standards:

Editor's Note: On September 30, 2016, Grockit retired and is no longer available.

Grockit is an online study resource that lets students practice skills individually or in groups. Founded in 2007 by a former Princeton Review Teacher of the Year, it's a place teens can go to study for college admission exams like the SAT and ACT, Advanced Placement calculus or U.S. history course tests, or curricula that tie into state and national English language arts and math standards for grades 7-12. (Study help for higher ed GMAT, LSAT, and other courses is also available.) Students can take diagnostic tests or, for the junior high- to high school-level Academy section, select a grade level and identify the type of math they’re learning. The system then generates study plans users can complete in segments.  

Students read passages and assess tone, character relationships, and other elements; work out math problems; or answer questions about historical figures and events. They'll see the correct response for each question, whether they get it wrong or right, with a brief explanation and information on why the other answers are incorrect.

Students can use Grockit's exercises to prepare for standardized tests and learn more about subjects they're covering in class. ACT and SAT students can also compare their performance to average college test scores. Grockit's explanations aren't excessively supportive, but they're detailed; a wrong answer is followed by "although this is a true statement, it is not the complete answer." Some sections also repeat passages in more than one question, which can help kids better understand meaning, tone, and other aspects. 

Most of Grockit's materials are quite good. The site breaks information down into palatable chunks, and it also tracks users' overall progress. Students can review incorrect responses, or see all answers when they’re done with a section and try it again to improve their score. Grockit also provides a detailed breakdown of the average time it took the user to respond in a section, illustrating which academic skills they find challenging and which areas students need to focus on.

 

Overall Rating
Engagement Would it motivate students and hold their interest? Is it visually appealing? Would it inspire teachers to try something new or change their instruction?

Interactive structure holds kids' interest. They can host online study groups to answer questions and discuss responses, which provides additional learning resources and an incentive to entice friends to use the site.

Pedagogy Does the tool help teachers promote a more student-centered experience? Will students gain conceptual understanding or think critically? Does it deepen teachers’ pedagogical thinking?

Kids get to see a helpful rationale for why each response was right or wrong. The site's tone can feel a bit clinical, but completed goals are acknowledged with achievement badges, and the feedback is invaluable.

Support Can students and teachers get assistance when they need it? Is it created with people of different abilities and backgrounds in mind? Is learning reinforced and extended beyond the digital experience?

Private tutoring sessions offered through the site cost extra. However, students can continue learning after their tests are done with Learnist, a cool Pinterest-type education site Grockit launched in 2012.

Common Sense reviewer
Erin Brereton
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Key Standards Supported

Interpreting Functions

  • HSF.IF.8.a

    Use the process of factoring and completing the square in a quadratic function to show zeros, extreme values, and symmetry of the graph, and interpret these in terms of a context.

Quantities

  • HSN.Q .1

    Use units as a way to understand problems and to guide the solution of multi-step problems; choose and interpret units consistently in formulas; choose and interpret the scale and the origin in graphs and data displays.

Reasoning With Equations And Inequalities

  • HSA.REI.1

    Explain each step in solving a simple equation as following from the equality of numbers asserted at the previous step, starting from the assumption that the original equation has a solution. Construct a viable argument to justify a solution method.

The Complex Number System

  • HSN.CN.8

    (+) Extend polynomial identities to the complex numbers. For example, rewrite x2 + 4 as (x + 2i)(x – 2i).

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Key Standards Supported

Language

  • L.9-10.3

    Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.

  • L.11-12.4a

    Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word’s position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.

Reading History/Social Studies

  • RH.11-12.10

    By the end of grade 12, read and comprehend history/social studies texts in the grades 11–CCR text complexity band independently and proficiently.

Reading Informational Text

  • RI.9-10.4

    Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper).

  • RI.9-10.5

    Analyze in detail how an author’s ideas or claims are developed and refined by particular sentences, paragraphs, or larger portions of a text (e.g., a section or chapter).

  • RI.11-12.4

    Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze how an author uses and refines the meaning of a key term or terms over the course of a text (e.g., how Madison defines faction in Federalist No. 10).

Reading Literature

  • RL.9-10.4

    Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

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Community Rating

(See all 2 reviews) (2 reviews)
Featured review by
Barb M. , Classroom teacher
Classroom teacher
I have recommended this to students studying for the ACT
This is a great study aid for standardized test prep. I like the group study sessions. Students receive instant feedback about problems. There isn't a lot of content delivery, mainly just assessment, as expected. I sometimes log in to the group study sessions as a teacher just to help students who happen to be logged in - even though they aren't "my" students. There is a chat feature, and when they get stuck I give them hints about the problems. I think of it as community service, and it's actually quit ...
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