Re: Clickers (Automatic Response Systems)

Dear Jose,

I used clickers last year in several classes and will continue to use them this coming year in several classes. I think they are the best educational technology to come along in a long time, and my students were very positive about using them.

I used the Turning Point system in Principles of Macro and Micro and the CPS System in Public Finance. This coming year I will use CPS in both Intermediate Micro and both Principles of Macro and Micro. My switch in Principles was because I changed textbooks from Mankiw to Frank and Bernanke.

I am surprised to read the $50 figure. Last year the Turning Point clickers added about $15 when purchased with the textbook and cost $35 when purchased separately. Yes, they are an added expense but once they purchase the clicker they can use it in any course that uses that clicker without additional expense. The CPS system works a bit differently. I think the clicker is about $18 but then students must pay a registration fee per course. They pay about $6 per course with a maximum of $15 per semester. Regardless, I think the marginal benefits exceed the marginal cost.

To get the most out of them, you should ask several questions in every class. From the standpoint of grading, here is what I do. I end each class by giving them a graded quiz question that they answer with their clicker. (So in every class they answer several non-graded questions and then one graded question all using their clicker.) The question is always something important from that day's lecture. If they answer it right they get 100, if they answer it wrong they get 75, and if they cut class that day, they get a 0. The average of the quiz grades counts 10% of their final grade. Since there are about 35 classes in which I ask quiz questions, each individual quiz does not count too much so missing one class is not a disaster. Since I give 75 for a wrong answer, they do not stress out. Also I let them use their notes and consult with each other. The bottomline is that it is a good method for ensuring classroom attendance. Despite the fact that each quiz is almost worthless, students hate missing them. My policy is predicated on student irrationality.

If students forget their clicker I have allowed them to submit the answer on a piece of paper. I may discontinue that practice in the future.

I had one problem with Turning Point. An excessive number of clickers stopped working at one time or another during the semester and it wasn't because of dead batteries. My bookstore would exchange the clickers but it was frustrating for me and the students (and the bookstore). I used the infra-red version last year. I don't know if that was why they give such trouble. The newer clickers are radio-frequency and that may make a difference. In three semesters using the CPS system (radio-frequency) I have never had a single problem with clickers not working. And the new CPS clickers come with LED panels so students can check which answer was recorded.

That was one of the reasons why I let students submit answers on paper--so many Turning Point clickers failed. Since CPS is so reliable I am not anticipating problems.

My classes are relatively small, 20 - 35. I think the technology would be a great addition to a large class.

Good luck.



Robert S Rycroft
Professor of Economics
Department of Economics
University of Mary Washington
Fredericksburg, VA 22401
rrycroft_at_umw.edu
540-654-1500

>>> "Jose J. Vazquez" <vazquezj_at_uiuc.edu> 08/17/06 12:08 PM >>>

Hi,

Has anyone on the list ever used automatic response systems (clickers) in their lectures/courses? This technology allows students to respond in an interactive way during lectures by using individual "keypads". The summary of their answers can be presented to them in real time and integrated in the Power Point presentations. I’m using them for the first time this semester in a course with 300 students (I’m using a software called: Turning-point, which is distributed by Thomson).

My main concern is about how to structure the credit for this part of the course. On the one hand, since students have to pay almost $50 for the “clickers”, I’m inclined to have them as a small part of the grade requirement (perhaps 10% of the total grade). On the other hand, I am concerned that if I make them part of the total grade students might become too stress out during the lectures; which would defeat the purpose of the technology. I’m also concerned about cheating, and spending too much time handling student’s complaints (e.g. my keypad wasn’t working), a potential outcome of making them a large part of the total grade.

I would love to hear your feedback regarding this technology as it pertains to this grading issue, or about the use of clickers in your classes in general.

Thanks
Jose J. Vazquez-Cognet, PhD
Department of Economics
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Urbana, IL 61821
(217) 265-0682
Received on Thu Aug 17 2006 - 12:43:31 EDT