Blog 1- Electronic Response System

Electronic response systems have allowed students in large college lecture halls to immediately respond to multiple choice questions posed by the instructor through the use of a clicker.  The total responses given by the students are then displayed, so both the students and the instructor can see the results.  The research shows that there is not a significant academic improvement, but the electronic response systems do increase student discussion and provide more ?interactive engagement.? The system allows the instructor to customize the information for the students.  Students interact by using specific buttons to answer or respond to the instructors questions.  The students responses create a continous graph that immediately informs the instructor of student understanding. This allows the instructor to modify the instruction geared towards the students needs.

One of the key points in the readings, was the data showed that there was no substantial academic improvement. However, it was reported that the students were more engaged and that they displayed a more positive attitude toward the class. In the article,  Judson states that the technology is not the instruction. He makes it very clear that the instruction is most effective when students dialogue in groups and try to respond and answer the questions together. In order for this system to be a success, the questions need to be well thought out and include higher levels of questioning. The Draper and Brown article discussed a study that showed that when the technology is paired with a peer-interactive teaching strategy, then there are significant improvements on standardized test scores. The instructors reported that they enjoyed being able to get a response from an entire class in a short period of time. This helped the instructor to meet the needs of the entire class, oppose to the only ones who participated.

I believe this tool would be an asset to any classroom. It allows each student to be engaged and to take ownership of their own learning. This system will also capture your reluctant learners. Not only can this be used for instruction, but it provides the teacher with a valid assessment, which allows the teacher to gear their instruction according to their students needs. With this tool, the teacher is using both cooperative grouping and independent pracice to enhance student knowledge. Students love to play games, and this system would work well with a Jepordy-type game to test general or specific knowledge. It would be an excellent tool to use at the end of a unit for review. 

 The use of electronic response systems may not directly correlate to student achievement, but if students are actively involved in playing educational games and discussing the content with their classmates, then they are receiving a valuable and educational lesson.  If anything, it is motivating the students and teaching them cooperative skills.  Just like with any instructional tool, it needs to be modified to meet the needs of the students and used in moderation with a variety of other instructional tools.

Posted at 09:09PM Jun 11, 2006 by CANTELUPE, CARICE in General  |  Comments[0]