Clickers:
What are Calvin faculty saying?
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"Oh clickers... how I love thee--let me count the ways: immediate feedback on what the students do...and do not know; students entering into conversation to defend their answers--rather than waiting for test results then fuming in private; a more organic and engaging lecture--rather than that boring re-reading of what they should have read... oh, how I could go on--but won't."
Todd Farley
Communications, Arts and Sciences
"Many thanks, to Computer Technology Department, for shedding new light on an ancient practice. You have truly brought test taking into the postmodern era."
Diane Wright
Art
"In chemistry, we regularly use clickers in the classroom. It's a great way to keep students engaged and ascertain if they are learning a recently taught topic. Technologically speaking, they are simple and effective."
Douglas Vander Griend
Chemistry
"Clickers have greatly facilitated collaborative learning in Biology 141. Through the reporting features of the clicker software, student teams are able to compare answers to questions on formative quizzes, turning their attention to the rationale of different responses instead of simply obsessing about 'right answers.' Improvements in individual preparedness, critical thinking, and classroom engagement are three noteworthy benefits of our use of clicker technology."
David Koetje
Biology
"The use of clickers helps me engage students in ways that foster discussion. Clickers provide a 'voice' for those who may not feel comfortable talking in class while providing discussion points for those who are more willing to share their opinions."
Randy Buursma
Education
"I really liked using clickers during class because I could put up a practice test question, have everyone answer, and talk through their answers (right and wrong) immediately. Some of my students who were quite competitive and high-achieving loved seeing instantaneously that they had thought through the options correctly (or not). The students who weren't getting the answers correct also could see what they should have answered and we could talk as a class about what distractors were in the wrong answers and how to avoid being led astray in the real tests. One student told me that when she kept getting the answers wrong on the clicker questions and the majority of the class was getting them right, she realized she needed to improve her study habits for the class."
Karen Vander Laan
Nursing
"Clickers are great. [They] save the students and the instructors a lot of time...You can also see the results really quickly, so you can give the students feedback right away."
Anding Shen
Biology