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Classroom Response Systems (Clickers)

Why use Clickers?

Instructors can enhance their classes and promote active learning with a classroom response system. The technology allows faculty to know immediately whether students understand course materials and grasp complex concepts. Students receive immediate feedback by viewing the responses they submit with wireless remote devices which are often referred to as clickers. Simply put, clickers allow instructors to ask questions and gather students' responses during a lecture.

Properly used, a response system will engage students in active learning, promote student-student discussion, provide formative assessment data to the instructor, uncover student misconceptions, provide positive, immediate feedback, and encourage critical thinking. Educational research affirms the efficacy of response systems and supports the notion that interactive engagement contributes to higher-level cognitive outcomes.

Three different products are currently used on the University campus. Approximately fifty instructors and nine thousand students currently use clickers in their classes each semester.

iClicker, a system designed for higher education by University of Illinois professor Tim Stelzer, is the system with the most users on campus. It is the easiest system to use and meets the needs of most UT faculty. It has increasingly been requested by faculty as their preferred classroom response system.

CPS, created by eInstruction in Denton, Texas and Turning Point, developed by Turning Technologies, have more advanced features. CPS was the first system widely implemented at the University. Turning Point is currently used in the College of Pharmacy and the School of Law.

Training Opportunities

DIIA offers a variety of training opportunities for instructors interested in learning about active learning and clickers.

• Engaging Students with Classroom Response Systems covers pedagogical training on how to effectively use clickers regardless of product. (UT EID required)
• The Getting Started with Clickers workshop is a hand-on session designed to help faculty begin using a response system. The session will focus on iClicker to address the needs and preferences of our primary audience. (UT EID required)
• Classroom Response Systems: Beyond the Basics offers instruction on data slicing, giving multiple versions of high-stakes tests, creating reports, and weighting grades. (UT EID required)

Classroom Response System Implementation at UT

Many UT faculty use clickers to provide exemplary instruction. The single best resource on the rationale for and effective use of clickers is a video of UT biology instructor Dee Silverthorn. Clicker vendors and developers alike use her discussion and demonstration to exhibit the power of the technology. Articles and presentations by UT Faculty using response systems describe how response systems are used in various colleges and departments on campus.

DIIA encourages faculty to work with departmental representatives and technology deans for the most appropriate solution for classroom response system needs. DIIA staff are available to train departmental representatives and technology deans on response system implementation.

Getting Started

Check our Frequently Asked Questions for vendor and classroom support contacts and for tutorials and other training opportunities.

Additional Information

Contact Morrie Schulman for further information about classroom response systems.