Effective Uses ofClassroom Response Systems: Effective Uses of Classroom Response Systems “Creating an interactive learning environment with technology” Vann M. Lassiter


“Imagine if you could view your students’ thinking, like peeking inside a pot of cooking stew to see if it is done. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could know what your students were learning, while you were teaching them?” You can…with a Classroom Response System!~ David Johnson & Scott McLeod Authors, “Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students' Thinking”: “Imagine if you could view your students’ thinking, like peeking inside a pot of cooking stew to see if it is done. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could know what your students were learning, while you were teaching them?” You can…with a Classroom Response System! ~ David Johnson & Scott McLeod Authors, “Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students' Thinking”


What is a Classroom Response System?: What is a Classroom Response System? A Classroom Response System (CRS) is sometimes referred to as a Student Response System, Clickers, Personal Response System or Audience Response System. It’s a combination of hardware and software that facilitates interactive teaching and activities. Teachers can conduct electronic testing, formative assessments, surveys, opinion polls, take attendance and play games.


How does it work?: How does it work? A teacher poses a multiple-choice question to his or her students via an overhead or computer projector, perhaps using PowerPoint. Each student selects his or her answer using a handheld transmitter – sometimes called a response card, clicker or keypad – that beams an infrared or radio-frequency signal to a receiver attached to the teacher’s computer. Receivers can be mounted permanently in the classroom or be portable. Software on the teacher’s computer collects the data and produces a histogram showing how many students chose each answer. Responses are collected and appear immediately; responses can also be seen as graphical data (i.e. pie charts and bar charts). Although the teacher may use PowerPoint, he or she can use other Office software plug-ins.


How does it work?: How does it work? Students respond (using their clickers) to questions posed by the teacher. Responses are transmitted to the teacher’s receiver. Student results are immediately recorded and displayed on the screen. Responses can be depicted in a graphical depiction.


What do I need to get started in my classroom?: What do I need to get started in my classroom? Hardware Student Keypads or Response Units Instructor Receiver(s) – mounted permanently or portable Overhead or LCD Projector connected to the receiving computer for projection Software A Computer and Software Package (i.e. PowerPoint or another Office Software Plug-In)


What are the benefits?: What are the benefits? Maintain students’ attention during a lecture Students become engaged in learning (i.e. active participants) Improves student class participation – every student can participate Saves time by substituting for a paper test or quiz Stimulates classroom community Encourage student preparation prior to class (i.e. reading of class material/studying) Improves the teachers understanding of students’ comprehension of material Provides teachers instant feedback of students’ understanding of concepts and content knowledge


What are the benefits?: What are the benefits? Create a safe space for shy and unsure students to participate in class Track student progress toward academic standards Provide teachers the ability to customize instruction based on student responses Save time taking attendance Provide practice reading and writing Teach in a way that adapts to the immediate learning needs of his or her students Provide students with answer choices that require critical thinking and encourages synthesis of knowledge Teachers can use analysis of student responses as basis for class discussion.


What are the benefits?: What are the benefits? Provides students instant feedback about the accuracy of their understanding Promotes discussion and collaboration among students during class Quickly determine whether homework or reading assignments have been completed before class Promotes communication for students afraid to speak in class


Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom…: Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom… Ice Breakers or Warm-Up Activities: Questions or polls can be posted at the beginning of class to introduce a lesson or review a lesson from the pervious day. Students can respond, providing the teacher with their level of understanding. This could also help in taking attendance at the start of class. Check Tests, Quizzes, and Poll Questions: Assessments can be taken by students to provide quick and immediate feedback of whether a concept is mastered or needs to be readdressed. Questions can be incorporated into lessons or in the middle of PowerPoint Presentations (as transitions) to actively engage students in the learning process. Answers from questions can prompt further classroom discussions. Questions can include true-false or multiple-choice.


Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom…: Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom… Data Gathering: CRS can be used to quickly gather demographic, opinion, or other data from the class. It is often helpful in social science classes that utilize social or economic experiments or in business – computer classes when taking surveys for spreadsheet lessons. Peer Instruction & Grading Opportunities: The teacher can pose a question and students ponder the question silently and transmit their individual answers. The teacher checks responses and if a significant number of students chose the wrong answer, the students can discuss the questions in groups or with a neighbor to come to a consciences. Students can also grade peer presentations, providing instant feedback to the student.


Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom…: Effective Ways to Use CRS in the Classroom… Interactive Demonstrations: In science classes, students can be asked to predict the outcome of an experiment prior to being shown the experiment. This gives the teacher a sense of the students’ preconceptions. Moderate Class Debates & Discussions: The teacher can facilitate debate sessions by providing group opinions or consensus data. Questions can be intermixed with lecture content to allow instructors to gauge student understanding and adjust lectures accordingly. Games: At the end of a unit, students can use this technology to play games such as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire or Jeopardy (i.e. audience Lifeline activity) to reinforce learning.


Effective Questions: Effective Questions Good questions should address specific goals and skills. Questions can Assess students’ background knowledge Make students aware of others’ views Locate misconceptions Distinguish between related ideas Show parallels Explore ideas Some examples of questions include: Given a term, identify the correct definition from a list Given a graph, match it with the best description Questions linking general to the specific Questions students cannot answer lead to discussion/curiosity Questions that list steps and ask “Which one is wrong?” The above tips were taken from Jane E. Caldwell’s article entitled “Clickers in the Large Classroom: Current Research & Best Practice.” See the reference for full citation information!


More Questioning Techniques One Can Use Include…: More Questioning Techniques One Can Use Include… Factual Questions: These questions might be used to see if students did the reading, remember important points, or have memorized key facts. Conceptional Questions: Teachers can write multiple-choice questions or true-false questions that demonstrate whether (or not) students understand a concept. One-Best Answer Questions: Questions include multiple choice questions, more than one of which could be argued as correct. Students are asked to select the one best answer from the choices – promoting class discussion. Opinion Questions: Evaluate what students think. Can be helpful when discussing ethical, legal or moral issues.


More Questioning Techniques One Can Use Include…: More Questioning Techniques One Can Use Include… Questions Asking for Predictions: Helpful in science classes. Students can be asked to predict the outcome of an experiment. Questions for Games: Can be used to help facilitate data-gathering in games in social science classes, particularly economics.


What type of data will a CRS provide?: What type of data will a CRS provide? YES! The following are examples of reports and data that can printed and seen by students on the screen by some Classroom or Student Response Systems. Options vary depending on the system/software. These examples came from products created and sold by Turing Technologies, LLC (http://www.turningtechnologies.com/). Results by Question Graphical Results by Question


Slide17: Participant Lists Graded Results


Comparing CRS Systems…: Comparing CRS Systems… The chart above compares various brands and prices of Classroom Response Systems. This information has been modified to fit this presentation. Information in its entirety can be found in “Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students’ Thinking” located in the reference.


Challenges & Solutions to Using CRS: Challenges & Solutions to Using CRS As with most technology, technical problems can arise. The teacher should allow time at the beginning of class fro set-up and troubleshooting. Non-CRS back-up activities should be planned in the event the system does not work correctly. Practice writing questions or use well-written questions from other resources. Writing effective multiple-choice questions can be challenging – practice! Time – using a CRS in class takes up class time. A few minutes will be needed to hand out clickers at the start of class. Students need time to transmit their answers and class time to discuss responses. Plan accordingly!


Challenges & Solutions to Using CRS: Challenges & Solutions to Using CRS After completing some questions, teachers may have to adjust their lessons based on responses. Be flexible! Timed Questions – Some students are anxious about the timing on questions (if this function is used). You can alleviate this anxiety by reading the questions and responses aloud before starting the timer.


Classroom Response Systems…“focus on making students’ learning visible to both their teachers and themselves so that instructional strategies can be selected to support an appropriate course for future learning.” ~ David Johnson & Scott McLeodAuthors, “Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students' Thinking”: Classroom Response Systems…“focus on making students’ learning visible to both their teachers and themselves so that instructional strategies can be selected to support an appropriate course for future learning.” ~ David Johnson & Scott McLeod Authors, “Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students' Thinking”


References: References (2005). Audience Response Systems. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from Meridia Audience Response Web site: http://www.audience-response.com/default.htm. Bruff, Derek (2007). Classroom Response Systems/Audience Response Systems. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from Vanderbilt Center for Teaching Web site: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/resources/teaching_resources/technology/crs.htm. Caldwell, Jane E. (2007 September 20). Clickers in the Large Classroom: Current Research and Best-Practice Tips. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from CBE Life Sciences Education Web site: http://www.lifescied.org/cgi/content/full/6/1/9#SEC4. (2007, April 27). CPSrf Student Response System Resources. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from University of Missouri Web site: http://web.missouri.edu/~umcprovostedtech/toolbox/doconline/studentresponsesystemsresources.htm.


References Con.’t: References Con.’t (2007). H-ITT Manual: Introduction. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from Hyper-Interactive Teaching Technology Web site: http://www.h-itt.com/h-itt_manual_1.html. Johnson, Chris (2004). Teaching Ideas: Student Response Systems. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from Wakonse-Arizona Web site: http://clte.asu.edu/wakonse/ENewsletter/studentresponse_idea.htm. Johnson, David (2005). Get Answers: Using Student Response Systems to See Students' Thinking. Learning & Leading with Technology. 32, 19-23. (2007). Student Response System. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from Audience Response Systems: Turning Technologies Web site: http://www.turningtechnologies.com/. (2007). Technology in the Classroom. Retrieved June 1, 2007, from University of Missouri-Rolla: Office of Undergraduate and Graduate Studies Web site: http://www.umr.edu/ugs/CERTI/technology/responsesystems.htm.


This presentation has been created for educational purposes only - as a graduate class project for ECI 511: Computer Applications and Curriculum Integration at North Carolina State University (Raleigh, North Carolina). All material used in the creation of this project has been properly cited and included on the reference page shown previously. If you have any questions, please email vmlassit@ncsu.edu! : This presentation has been created for educational purposes only - as a graduate class project for ECI 511: Computer Applications and Curriculum Integration at North Carolina State University (Raleigh, North Carolina). All material used in the creation of this project has been properly cited and included on the reference page shown previously. If you have any questions, please email vmlassit@ncsu.edu!