The use of tests in the classroom is a fundamental tool for lecturers, as they can emphasise the less assimilated knowledge and skills. Also, it allows students to organise themselves better for the end-of-term examination. There are several fundamental aspects related to tests in class. One is the need for them to be fast. Both the students and the lecturer cannot use excessive time to carry them out. A second aspect is the use of the student's smartphone as a means of carrying out the tests. Today's students are very used to handling their own electronic devices, so it is easy for students to use them to take tests with a simple application that can be downloaded in seconds on their smartphones for the first time. Another interesting point is the immediacy of the results. The sooner students know the results, the faster they will assimilate their weaknesses and be able to solve them. Current students belonging to the Z generation appreciate readiness and love to have information available within seconds, with them hardly used to waiting for information. A final key aspect is the cost. The extensive use of a rapid testing application in class through smartphones can only be achieved effectively if the base application (with minimal but effective functions) is free.

All these features are available in several apps such as Socrative, Kahoot, Quizizz, and others. However, Socrative was one of the first apps of this type. It began to be used extensively in 2012, so this tool's influence on teaching can be well studied. In addition, Kahoot, another ubiquitous app widely used in teaching, is applied with a different approach than Socrative. While Socrative is an application mainly used for testing, Kahoot is associated with a technique called gamification. Socrative has a module to carry out team competitions, but its most widespread use is tests. In Higher Education, Kahoot is a good tool for the first years of a degree with a large number of students. In such educational levels, lecturers must capture students’ attention and stimulate them with competitive games. Students value the use of quick test apps in class positively. According to survey results, students indicated that they improved motivation and induced engagement and even believed that their use helped them improve their grades. This aspect is key since the primary goal of using a learning technique is to help students improve their performance, and marks mainly evaluate performance.

Given this background, this work focuses on the influence of quick tests with Socrative on the end-of-term grades of the theory part in a subject related to Chemical Processing Engineering. Six tests were carried out throughout the semester. Each was carried out after several hours of the theoretical lecture and covered different syllabus topics. The theory lectures lasted one or two hours, and the lecturers preferably conducted the tests at the end of the 2-hour. Not all the topics included in the syllabus were evaluated via Socrative. This allowed for addressing the impact of Socrative using the end-of-term examination by comparing students’ performance in questions covered with and without using Socrative. On average, slightly favourable results were achieved when Socrative was used. Although extending and going deeper into the study is necessary, these preliminary results set a starting point for developing new initiatives to improve teaching and learning in Higher Education.

Keywords: Socrative, quick test, grades, smartphones, interactive tools.