Students’ Perspectives on Using Clickers in Classroom Instruction

1. Students’ Perspectives on Using Clickers in Classroom Instruction Liyan Song Cora Roush lsong@towson.edu roushc@sgasd.org Towson University SITE 2010

2. Clickers: Definition and Characteristics • Resemble a TV remote control • Have numbered and lettered buttons that students can push to enter their answers • Questions typically formed in a multiple-choice or true-or-false format (Herreid, 2006)

3. Clickers: Also Known As… • Classroom Response Systems • Student Response Systems • Pupil Response Systems • Personal Response Systems • Audience Response Technology

4. The questions are displayed on the classroom overhead screen, usually within a PowerPoint presentation (Ribbens, 2007). Clickers: How They Work

5. Clickers: How They Work, Continued • The answers are transmitted by either infrared or radio frequency signal and picked up by a receiver which relays them to a classroom computer (Herreid, 2006). • The data can be stored and retrieved later, either as an anonymous record or by identification with a personal ID (Herreid, 2006).

6. Clickers: How They Work, continued • Immediately, the results can be displayed in the form of a chart on the computer screen and then projected for the class. • Rapid presentation of descriptive statistics (Cleary, 2008)

7. Research on Clickers • Most research • has been conducted in higher education settings • attendance • make lectures more active and interesting • formative & summative assessments (Gauci, et. al, 2009) • compares the use of Clickers with traditional lectures (Stowell & Nelson, 2007)

8. Our Study • 6 high school Spanish classes • 87 out of 120 students completed the survey (MacGeorge, et. al, 2008) and 57 participated in the follow-up blog interview • Investigated the impact of Clickers on: • Students’ preparation prior to class • Students’ learning of the class materials • Students’ participation in class activities • The ease of using Clickers

9. Participants • Gender • 72% female; 27% male • Grade • 20.7% freshmen • 13.8% sophomores • 32.2% juniors • 33.3% seniors • Prior experience • 80% no; 20% yes • Ethnicity 1.1% Missing 4.6% Hispanic 3.4% African American 2.3% Other 1.1% Asian 87.24% Caucasian

10. Survey Instrument • MacGeorge, et. al. (2008) (with modifications) • Likert scale questions (strongly agree to strongly disagree) • Main categories: • preparation • learning • participation • use of Clickers

11. Interview • Used a password-protected, anonymous blog for the interview • Interview Questions: • What usages of Clickers in the classroom did you find helpful?   • Do you feel that using Clickers in class helped you understand class material? Please explain. • Do you feel using Clickers in class helped you succeed in class? Please explain. • Do you feel using Clickers in class helped you better prepare for exams, quizzes, or assignments? Please explain. • Do you feel that you did more preparation prior to class because of the use of Clickers? Please explain. • Do you feel that using Clickers in class helped motivate you to study for the class? Please explain. • Do you feel the time spent on Clickers in class was well spent? Please explain. • Do you feel that it was easy to use Clickers?

12. 1. Findings: Preparation • The use of Clickers did not seem to help motivate students to prepare more before class. • “The clickers did not motivate me to study for the class any more than I have been. For me, it was simply a check on if I am keeping up with my studies or not.”

13. 2. Findings: Learning • Students generally perceived that the use of Clickers helped them become aware of… • whether they understood the class materials well • areas where they needed to work more • “It showed me what I needed to go over in my spare time. It also showed me what I had forgotten over the year.” • The majority (96%) of the participants agreed (43%) or strongly agreed (53%) that the use of Clickers made it easier for them to tell whether they were mastering class material.

14. Findings: Learning, continued Clickers helps me learn class material better. My knowledge of class material is improved by using Clickers. I understand more in class because we use Clickers. 10.3% Disagree 6.9% Disagree 1.1% N/A 1.1% N/A 5.7% Disagree 26.4% Strongly Agree 32.2% Strongly Agree 18.4% Neutral 31% Strongly Agree 19.5% Neutral 25.3% Neutral 40.2% Agree 44.8% Agree 36.8% Agree

15. 3. Findings: Participation • The use of Clickers did not have a strong positive impact on students’ attendance in class. • However, when asked if the use of Clickers helped them engage more in class, most students agreed or strongly agreed. • 69% of the participants agreed (45%) or strongly agreed (24%) that using Clickers made them more attentive during lecture or other class activities. • 87% of participants agreed (53%) or strongly agreed (34%) that using Clickers helped them focus on the subject matter during class.

16. Findings: Participation, Continued 1.1% Disagree 4.6%Disagree 1.1% Missing 5.7% Disagree 11.5% Neutral 11.5% Neutral 24.1% Strongly Agree 31% Strongly Agree 39.1% Strongly Agree 26.4% Neutral 44.8% Agree 56.3% Agree 42.5% Agree 87% 84% 67%

17. 4. Findings: Use of Clickers • Students did not seem to be concerned about whether their classmates would know how they answered questions using Clickers.

18. Findings: Use of Clickers, continued • This study also asked if students enjoy using Clickers. • 93% strongly agreed (55.2%) or agreed (37.9%) that using the Clickers is fun. • 89% strongly agreed (47.1%) or agreed (41.4%) that it is exciting to answer questions using Clickers technology.

19. Findings: Use of Clickers, continued Using Clickers is easy. Using Clickers is pretty hard. 3.4% Neutral 2.3% Missing 1.1% Neutral 16.1%Disagree 20.7%Disagree 80.5% Strongly Disagree 75.9% Strongly Agree

20. Findings: Use of Clickers, continued I wish we spent less time using Clickers. Time spent using Clickers is time well spent. 1.1% 1.1% Disagree Missing 4.6% Agree 8% Neutral 10.3% Neutral 34.5% Strongly Agree 41.4% Strongly Disagree 43.7% Disagree 55.2% Agree 90% 85%

21. Conclusion

22. Discussion • Future research: • impact on teachers’ instructional practice • best practices on the use of Clickers in classroom instruction