About QR Codes
Quick response (QR) codes are easy to create and have many uses in the classroom. With the posting of a QR code, you can lead students to information by just using their computer's or mobile device's camera. This page provides links to QR code readers and creators and tons of ideas for their use in the classroom! There are good and bad uses for QR codes. How do you know the difference? Here are some questions to ask yourself:
The websites: qrstuff.com and visualead.com are two of the many VERY nice sites for making QR codes. You can also make QR code that are read aloud when scanned qrvoice.net is a great site for these types of QR codes.
There are many different readers you can use to scan the QR codes.
Mobile device readers
How to use QR Codes in the Classroom
"Hands down my favorite use of a QR code in the classroom is to give the students the answers to their homework. In many of my classes I give the students a handout that has extra activities for in class on the front and a homework assignment on the back. Of course, with hundreds of students each week, I couldn’t be checking each assignment myself and I didn’t want to leave the students in the dark. I was tempted to give the students another handout with the answers, but that just seemed like a waste of paper. I also thought about writing the answers on the board, but that seemed like a huge waste of class time and I don’t think my arm would be up to writing the same answers again and again for each section I was teaching. Instead, I create a QR with the answers embedded right in the code and put it on the top of the next week’s homework assignment. Students can scan the code with their cell phones and check their answers at their leisure." - The Osaka Chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT), a registered NPO.
Quick response (QR) codes are easy to create and have many uses in the classroom. With the posting of a QR code, you can lead students to information by just using their computer's or mobile device's camera. This page provides links to QR code readers and creators and tons of ideas for their use in the classroom! There are good and bad uses for QR codes. How do you know the difference? Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Does this QR Code simply replace a hyperlink that can be hard to type?
- Does the QR code simplify a process?
- Do you need to give your students quick easy access to a website, YouTube video, document, or picture?
- Can it be used to give instructions without Internet access?
The websites: qrstuff.com and visualead.com are two of the many VERY nice sites for making QR codes. You can also make QR code that are read aloud when scanned qrvoice.net is a great site for these types of QR codes.
There are many different readers you can use to scan the QR codes.
Mobile device readers
- Qrafter QR Code Reader (optimized for iPad)
- i-nigma reader (all mobile OS) -Very quick response time!
- Barcode Reader (Android OS)
- QRDroid (Android)
- QR Scanner (iOS)
- QRReader (iOS)
- i-nigma (iOS, Android, Blackberry)
- QR Code Reader (Android)
How to use QR Codes in the Classroom
- Use QR codes for Classroom Incentives- Create a bunch of different QR codes, print them off laminate them and place then in a folder for the students to draw out of for their reward such as a homework pass, bathroom pass, bonus points, ect.
- Vocabulary/Word Wall- Post the vocabulary word up or your math equation and students can scan the QR code to find the information you want them to learn.
- Creating Surveys, Assessments or Exit Slips- Create a QR code for your students to scan that will take them to a Google Form you created. They can then fill the form out for a quick assessment or exit slip.
- QR Scavenger Hunts- Go to Classtools.com and use the QR scavenger hunt tool to create quizzes or fun games.
- Make Wall Displays more interactive- Place QR codes on your wall displays to allow students and visitors a way to learn more on the topic displayed. Great for hanging next to a student's art work. You can have it link to a document the student wrote about that piece or you can link it to a voice recording about the work.
- Differentiation- You can use QR code as a good way to differentiate different levels of work for the students.
- Book Talks-You can create QR codes with information about different authors or books to stimulate interest in reading.
- QR Codes around the school building-This is a great way for students who are new to a district or students who are moving up a grade level to get acquainted with the teachers and staff in the building. You can post QR codes outside each teachers door with a brief description of that teacher and what they teach. You can also place them outside offices to explain who all work in the office and what they do for the school.
"Hands down my favorite use of a QR code in the classroom is to give the students the answers to their homework. In many of my classes I give the students a handout that has extra activities for in class on the front and a homework assignment on the back. Of course, with hundreds of students each week, I couldn’t be checking each assignment myself and I didn’t want to leave the students in the dark. I was tempted to give the students another handout with the answers, but that just seemed like a waste of paper. I also thought about writing the answers on the board, but that seemed like a huge waste of class time and I don’t think my arm would be up to writing the same answers again and again for each section I was teaching. Instead, I create a QR with the answers embedded right in the code and put it on the top of the next week’s homework assignment. Students can scan the code with their cell phones and check their answers at their leisure." - The Osaka Chapter of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT), a registered NPO.