interact
Audience response systems
Easy interactivity with large groups
Quality
Audience response systems, or “clickers”, are tools you can use inside the classroom, to quickly and easily get feedback on how the lesson is being received and understood, and immediately make adjustments that improve teaching and learning.
Response systems allow participants to actively engage in lessons, by answering questions using a hand-held device (the clicker). Trainers can include multiple-choice or open-ended questions in PowerPoint presentations, and invite participants to respond. The answers are then immediately generated in the form of a PowerPoint slide, chart or graph, which can be shared as part of the lesson.
Response systems are ideal for checking for participants' prior knowledge, gauging opinions on controversial issues, validating understanding of concepts, stimulating debate, identifying misconceptions, and conducting formative assessments. They are a way to engage all participants, including people who might not normally contribute to group discussions.
There are many different software and hardware combinations to implement audience response systems. ITC-ILO use EdiVote software and creates question and answer slides in PowerPoint. In the past, we have also used polleverywhere.com and mentimeter.com. When internet connection is not an option, we use powervote.com.
Relevance
Clickers are a face-to-face learning tool, which transform the traditional learning experience. They offer inclusion of all members of a group in a non-threatening way, and energize and engage participants at strategic moments during long presentations.
Audience response systems recognise that face-to-face training methods can often be top-down, or require attention for an extended period of time. Clickers help to introduce bottom-up learning into the classroom, while minimising participants' fears of giving a wrong answer in front of peers, or of expressing unpopular opinions.
Clickers also offer trainers a way to continually improve their teaching and courses, by offering immediate feedback on what participants have easily understood, or which topics are more likely to stimulate interaction, engagement and interest.
ITC-ILO tested audience response systems at the first Turin Learning Link event.
Audience response systems recognise that face-to-face training methods can often be top-down, or require attention for an extended period of time. Clickers help to introduce bottom-up learning into the classroom, while minimising participants' fears of giving a wrong answer in front of peers, or of expressing unpopular opinions.
Clickers also offer trainers a way to continually improve their teaching and courses, by offering immediate feedback on what participants have easily understood, or which topics are more likely to stimulate interaction, engagement and interest.
ITC-ILO tested audience response systems at the first Turin Learning Link event.
Impact
1. Introducing clickers in Madagascar
We used clickers in Madagascar to create an interactive learning experience, over the course of a multi-day workshop.
Democracy: Participants used clickers to select projects to use as workshop case studies, instead of automatically imposing the trainers’ choice on the group.
Engagement: The trainers also used the clickers to intersperse questions throughout their lectures, to recapture attention and engage participants in the theoretical parts of the coursework.
Evaluation: Each team presented its plan to carry out an impact evaluation. After those presentations the other group members used the clickers to respond to questions about the validity of the evaluation model proposed.
2. Mobile audience response systems in the Social Economy Academy in Agadir
More than 85 participants attended the third Social and Solidarity Economy in Agadir (Morocco). In order to increase the interactivity and participation among participants the mobile clickers of the Centre were used in several activities.
Testing knowledge: Trainers used clickers to test the knowledge of the entire group about the social and solidarity economy. The exercise was excellent to measure the collective intelligence available in the classroom.
Stimulating debate: Trainers used clickers to introduce statements such as "Is there consensus in your country about what organizations qualify as social and solidarity economy?” With more than 27 different countries in the room it was interesting to see the division in answers. Each time the results of the voting were used to discuss the issue in two different camps.
Simply voting and knowing that everybody can participate creates a special atmosphere in the room. Audience response systems provide a simple learning technology that allows every individual to participate even large numbers, proving that participatory learning in big groups is possible.
We used clickers in Madagascar to create an interactive learning experience, over the course of a multi-day workshop.
Democracy: Participants used clickers to select projects to use as workshop case studies, instead of automatically imposing the trainers’ choice on the group.
Engagement: The trainers also used the clickers to intersperse questions throughout their lectures, to recapture attention and engage participants in the theoretical parts of the coursework.
Evaluation: Each team presented its plan to carry out an impact evaluation. After those presentations the other group members used the clickers to respond to questions about the validity of the evaluation model proposed.
2. Mobile audience response systems in the Social Economy Academy in Agadir
More than 85 participants attended the third Social and Solidarity Economy in Agadir (Morocco). In order to increase the interactivity and participation among participants the mobile clickers of the Centre were used in several activities.
Testing knowledge: Trainers used clickers to test the knowledge of the entire group about the social and solidarity economy. The exercise was excellent to measure the collective intelligence available in the classroom.
Stimulating debate: Trainers used clickers to introduce statements such as "Is there consensus in your country about what organizations qualify as social and solidarity economy?” With more than 27 different countries in the room it was interesting to see the division in answers. Each time the results of the voting were used to discuss the issue in two different camps.
Simply voting and knowing that everybody can participate creates a special atmosphere in the room. Audience response systems provide a simple learning technology that allows every individual to participate even large numbers, proving that participatory learning in big groups is possible.
More info
- Guillaume Mercierg.mercier@itcilo.org