Using clickers to improve student understanding

A mini grant projectKaren Helgers and Hope Windle

A BIG thank you to Hope WindleFor encouraging me to do this

For doing a good deal of the applicationFor helping with the research on how to

use clickersFor providing assistance every step of the

way

The Problem

Physical Geography:

The students– Education majors

– Science-phobic

– Will need to teach some science

– Few science class requirements

The Problem, continuedThe Class

– Little participation and engagement

– How to measure understanding BEFORE exam? (this does NOT happen!)

Potential Solution• Individual Student Response Devices

• “CLICKERS”

How it Works

What’s the primary way you’d measure student understanding while lecturing?

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0% 1. Waiting for questions2. Searching for puzzled looks3. Pop Quiz4. “Show of hands” poll5. Other6. All of the above

In college, if a teacher took a poll, did you raise your hand?

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0% 1. Always2. Only if I was very sure of the answer3. Sometimes4. Rarely5. Never

If you didn’t answer “always,” why not?

1 2 3

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1. I was asleep2. I was busy talking to

my friends and resented the interruption

3. I was unsure of the answer and would be embarrassed if I was wrong

My Plan

• Get 100% participation

• Use to measure student understanding

• Revise teaching accordingly

My Hope

From this

To this

Research

• What do other professors do?– Individual answers– Group interaction– Students helping students

• Used by other Science classes

• Testing helps learning

What types of questions work best?My Findings:

• Questions to figure things out

• Review questions

• Breaking a concept down into smaller steps

Air that decreases in temperature will

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0%1. Increase in volume

2. Decrease in volume

My Findings

• Students LOVE clickers!• 100% participation

• Students willing to share their reasoning with class, WRONG or RIGHT– Wrong reasoning and misconceptions revealed

and corrected

• ASTOUNDING findings of understanding!!

Future Possibilities

• More questions in the PowerPoints

• Incorporate this into group work and other activities

• Use for quizzes

• Track individual progress (not anonymous)