What can electronic voting systems add to the classroom experience?

Thoughts and tips on the use of electronic voting systems (EVS – or clickers) in class, from the session presented by Penny Wiggins (Blended Learning Unit, University of Hertfordshire) at the UKCLE seminar on e-assessment held on 31 January 2008.

During the session participants used a handset to rate their level of experience using an EVS (at the start of the session) and the extent of its appeal as a teaching tool (at the end).

A range of different electronic voting system (EVS) products – also known as clickers – is on offer, each with different functionality, software needs and ease of use:

• pods can be provided to students to bring with their pencil cases
• they can be fixed in teaching rooms
• or peripatetic – available from a central resource

Why use an EVS?

• it is a quick and easy tool once the basics are understood
• it permits instant feedback to students and tutor regarding level of understanding, however used
• students enjoy it – when asked to rate use of an EVS against podcasts and seminar answers in terms of usefulness, an EVS was the most popular

Range of uses for formative assessment:

• icebreaker at the beginning of a class – maximum of 5 or 6 questions only
• in a lecture, checking understanding of the principles as the lecture progresses
• at the conclusion of a class to check understanding
• in a revision class covering a wide range of material or targeted at more difficult aspects of a topic
• in seminars as an integral activity to check preparation, understanding and application
• in all cases it can be used as the basis of pairs or small group work to allow a group consensus to emerge – useful where group work is being promoted and when there are insufficient handsets for the whole cohort, or with very large groups where distributing handsets is too time consuming
• with identified handsets track individual student progress through the module

Range of uses for summative assessment:

• handsets identifying student to member of staff though not to other students
• multiple choice questions in class – can be timed to limit thinking time
• can form part of assessment strategy over several sessions

Challenges of use:

• familiarity with equipment in a class
• reliability and technical support
• some systems more complex though more functional than others, and most importantly slower for student use
• ensuring use of technology does not interfere with the learning process
• developing suitable questions – sufficient familiarity eases process and becomes an integral part of preparation

Benefits of use:

• student engagement and participation
• allows lecturer to identify common areas of confusion at the time
• promotes discussion in class when students discuss the reasons for an answer
• in group work results in a collaborative approach to learning and great excitement when one group has 100% correct answers
• group work can be used to allow students to develop questions on aspects of the class to test their peers; students can be encouraged to conduct that element, developing oral presentation and explanatory skills

Range of products:

• Promethean – available from Elementary Technology (cost: £1,500 approx for 32 handsets)
• PRS Interwrite – available from Interwrite Learning
• Turning Point – available from Turning Technologies

Last Modified: 30 June 2010