Audience Response Systems and Their Effect on the ClassroomAdrian Readmond Mietus, Siti Kamarudin, Steven Lee

What is a Clicker?A clicker is a small gadget that acts as a transmitter. It is usually used to

gather responses from a large audience or groups of people.In the U.S. this technology is called as either ‘clickers’ or ‘keypads’, but in the UK they are called ‘zappers’ and handsets. Despite the differences in names, they generally work using the same principle.

Clickers in the Education SceneImitating the popular game show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”, the

handheld gadget is used by instructors nationwide as a ‘classroom response system’. The way this system works is that the instructors will pop an average of 2 – 5 questions in-between their 50-minute lecture, and the students will then respond by ‘clicking in’ their answers using their own clickers. The software used along with the clickers generally need only intermediate level of computer skill, so educators can focus more on teaching rather than the ‘technical stuff’.

AttendanceStudents who used clickers for attendance went to class more

often than students who had to take quizzes for attendance. With clickers, attendance was more uniform and higher.

Figure 1. Purple bars represent attendance taken with quizzes, yellow bars represent attendance taken with clickers

References Caldwell, E., Jane, et al., (2007), Clickers in the Large Classroom: Current Research and Best-Practice Tips Retrieved from

http://www.lifescied.org/content/6/1/9.fullHecht, Silke, et al., (2012), Student Performance and Course Evaluations Before and After Use of the Classroom Performance

SystemTM in a Third-Year Veterinary Radiology Course, Retrieved from http://www.lifescied.org/content/6/1/9.fullPerez, K. E., Strauss, E. A., Downey, N., Galbraith, A., Jeanne, R., & Cooper, S. (2010). Does Displaying the Class Results Affect

Student Discussion during Peer Instruction? CBE Life Sciences Education, 9(2), 133–140. doi:10.1187/cbe.09-11-0080Patterson, Barbara, et al., (December 3rd, 2009), Evidence for Teaching Practice: The Impact of Clickers in a Large Classroom

Environment, Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S026069170900238X

GradesThe class with clickers had higher average scores than the class

without clickers.

Figure 2. 2009-2010 used clickers, 2005-2008 did not use clickersFigure 3. Table which shows grades with and without clickers

ConclusionsClickers have been stated multiple times to be a helpful learning

tool for many types of classes, especially towards science classes. The clickers improve grades, attendance, and improves the class environment through peer discussion. Students tend to pay attention in class in order to correctly answer the clicker questions.

Previewing Answers with ClickersStudents who saw the class answers before discussion were likely

to follow the most popular answer, this can be avoided by hiding the answers.

Figure 4. Displays differences between groups who saw the class responses and groups who did not

Figure 5. Graph of student’s responses to their experiences with clickers

Student’s Responses to ClickersA large majority of the class responded positively towards clickers.

Only a few responded negatively, which implies that clickers allow for a fun and productive learning experience.

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