1. © Zold Research Team
Clickers solicits real interactive engagement in education
Aakansha Sharma
Researcher, Zold Research Team
ABSTRACT
Use of the audience response devices known as “clickers” is growing, particularly in large
science courses at the university level, as evidence for the pedagogical value of this technology
continues to accumulate, and competition between manufacturers drives technical
improvements, increasing user-friendliness and decreasing prices. Learner participation and
engagement has proven effective as well as essential across educational settings. Clickers, also
known as classroom response systems (CRS), are widely used across disciplines, and their
effectiveness has been demonstrated in higher education. However, few studies have been
conducted on clicker use in education. The purpose of this article is to examine the literature
on how clickers can best be used to promote learner engagement among students and aims at
improving better classroom education. It also addresses key role of clicker use in education
found in few empirical studies in terms of interactivity and participation; satisfaction and
learning outcomes; and formative assessment and contingent teaching.
Key words
Clickers, Active learning, SRS, engagement, educational technology, attitude, improvement
INTRODUCTION
Audience Response System, is the original name, delivering the highest quality system,
software and services to clients and events since 1984, is such type of interaction which is with
the use of audience response system, creates a well-equipped interaction between a presenter
and the audience. Systems for audiences combine wireless hardware with presentation
software, and systems for remote audiences use telephones or web polls for audiences watching
through a visual medium, say a projector, television or Internet.
Many instructors at both large and small educational institutions have begun to use classroom
technology that allows students to respond and interact via small, hand-held, remote keypads.
This technology, which is referred as an audience response system (AR system or ARS),
resembles the “Ask the Audience” portion of the game show “Who Wants to be A Millionaire,”
and enables instructors to instantaneously collect student responses to a posted question,
generally multiple choice. The answers are immediately tallied and displayed on a classroom
projection screen where both students and instructor can see and discuss them.
In educational settings, such systems are often called "Student Response Systems" or "personal
response systems."

2. © Zold Research Team
LITERATURE REVIEW
(I)What are Clickers?
Fig. 1 Fig. 2
A student handset-Clicker1
Students using clickers in an Interactive
2
session
There is a need in the higher education arena for a system that responds to the need for using
technology in a classroom of tech-savvy students. For a long time, college professors had no
idea whether their lectures were sinking in until exam time, when it became clear that students
either got the lesson or didn’t. But in the last decade, the use of Student Response Systems, or
hand-held, wireless clickers, has enabled educators to promote learning and improve teaching.
The handheld devices used in an ARS—commonly called “clickers” or “key-pads” in the
United States and “handsets” or “zappers” in the United Kingdom (Ray d'Inverno, 2003;
Brown, 2002; Oliver, 2007) are small transmitters about the size of a television remote control.
Students use their clickers to transmit their answers by pressing the clicker buttons. Although
one early example of a clicker had a single response button , (Massen, 1998) modern clickers
usually have a 10-digit numeric keypad and often some accessory buttons including a power
switch, a send button, or function keys that permit text entry. The hand-held remote control that
students use to convey their responses to questions. These systems are especially valuable as a
means of introducing and monitoring peer learning methods in the large lecture classroom. So
that the reader may use clickers effectively in his/her own classroom, a set of guidelines for
writing good questions and a list of best-practice tips have been culled from the literature and
experienced users. (Martyn, 2007).
Although this conglomeration of technological hardware may sound complex, the instructor
typically can ignore all but the software interface during class. This software is used to create
and administer questions, which is usually not much more complicated than creating or
displaying PowerPoint. Uses of this technology vary widely and include spicing up standard
lecture classes with periodic breaks, assessing student opinions or understanding related to
[Image source available at:
1 Fig1. http://theactiveclass.com/files/2012/02/hand-on-clicker.jpg
2
Fig 2. http://www.universitybusiness.com/sites/default/files/field/image/M-Final_TTYSU1461.jpg]

3. © Zold Research Team
lecture, increasing the degree of interactivity in large classrooms, conducting experiments on
human responses (e.g., in psychology courses), and managing cooperative learning activities.
Students and instructors who have used AR systems are generally positive and often
enthusiastic about their effects on the classroom, and many researchers and educators assert
their great potential for improving student learning. (Ian D. Beatty, 2005)
(II) The Role of Clickers in education system
A) Who can use clickers?
Interaction and feedback are particularly challenging in large lecture environments, where class
size limits faculty-student interaction. Faculty across all disciplines use these devices to help
keep their students motivated and engaged in what’s going on in class. Although they are
particularly valuable in large lecture classes, they are also useful in small classes. Some faculty
rely on clickers to bring small group discussions to their large lecture classes. Straightforward
uses include taking attendance and administering in-class quizzes. These methods increase
efficiency, but other uses can dramatically change the classroom dynamic. For instance,
clickers can be used for warming up the class prior to a discussion. Asking students to submit
their answers to a question individually—without talking about it with their neighbour—allows
all students time to think about the question and commit to an answer before a class-wide
discussion. Compared with taking the first hand that is raised after a question is asked, this
approach sets the stage for greater participation and engagement.
In “peer instruction”3
a strategy popularized by Harvard University physics professor (Mazura,
2001) the teacher poses a question, students answer individually, and the bar chart showing
their responses is displayed. If a significant number of students choose the wrong answer,
students are asked to discuss the question with those sitting nearby. After a few minutes of
discussion, the students submit their answers again. Often, but not always, the students
converge on the correct answer as a result of the peer instruction. This technique can lead to a
lecture hall buzzing with hundreds of students discussing the topic (Lambert, 2012).
Clickers also enable what is called “contingent teaching” by (Brown, 2002) and “agile
teaching”4
when clickers can be used to gauge what students do and do not understand during
class, instructors can use the results of clicker questions to change the course of their lessons
“on the fly.5
” (Beatty, 2004; Oliver, 2007) If the results show that most students understand a
concept, then the instructor moves on. If the results indicate that many students are still
confused, then the teacher can spend more time on that topic via lecture, class discussion, or
even another clicker question.
3
Peer instruction is an evidence-based, interactive teaching method developed by Harvard Professor Eric Mazur in the early 1990s.
4 Agile learning is a relatively recent buzzword that can take several meanings. There seems to be quite a confusion between "agile planning
of instruction" (as one may find on commercial e-learning web sites), introducing "agile design methodology" in the project-oriented and/or
reflective classroom and finally introducing "agile thinking" in a given population (e.g. a company).
5
On the fly while in motion or progress.

4. © Zold Research Team
B. The follow up (PROCESS)
Fig.3 States the process of Classroom Instruction Model, conducting lectures and teaches
students through polling system- Interactive Peer Classes.
 A teacher poses a multiple-choice question to the students via an overhead or computer
projector. Each student submits an answer to the question using a hand held transmitter
(a “clicker”) that beams a radio-frequency signal to a receiver attached to the teacher’s
computer.
 Software on the teacher’s computer collects the students’ answers and produces a bar
chart showing how many students chose each of the answer choices.
 The teacher makes “on the fly” instructional choices in response to the bar chart by, for
example, leading students in a discussion of the merits of each answer choice or asking
students to discuss the question in small groups.
 The follow-up education system with the use of clickers make the learning environment
interactive and engaging, providing for superior assessment of comprehension,
increased performance, automatic grading, and increased productivity.
Only Audience Response Systems can engage today’s learners and instantly provide
feedback for teachers to validate student achievement. The process is studied through
Richard R. Hake’s study (Hake, 2007)
C. Areas of education system where clickers paved its way
Although much of the early research and development of clickers was done by physics
instructors, a creative or willing instructor can apply the technology to virtually any subject.

5. © Zold Research Team
Fig.4 shows data on following researchers have stated the use of clickers in different subjects
of Education.
Specific question design tactics for stimulating cognitive processes in these fields are as varied
as the spectrum of thinking skills they target. The fundamental rule is to ask questions that
cannot be answered without exercising the desired habits of mind and to avoid excess baggage
that might distract students from the need to exercise them. Certain types of problems are
helpful in this regard. Many students are inordinately attached to algebraic representations of
physics concepts, relationships, and situations and do not fully appreciate the utility of
“alternative” representations such as graphs, free body and vector diagrams, and even verbal
descriptions. Questions that require students to interpret representations are useful for
decreasing this attachment and for developing the habit of mind, “seek alternative
representations.”
Clickers represent an easy-to-adopt technology that can enhance the learning experience. For
faculty, clickers are being used extensively to evaluate student mastery of content and to
identify concepts that are proving difficult for students to grasp. For students, they provide a
quick way to validate their own learning, helping them identify areas that need improvement.
Clickers can also be used to gauge student opinion on controversial or sensitive issues. They
are often used to catalyze debate and discussion, turning a passive lecture into an interactive
exchange. And, significantly, students say they are fun! Clickers are easy to use and
inexpensive to acquire and can be used for more than one class.
(III) What motivates the use of clickers?
To paraphrase ,Stephen Draper Brown, “technology is only worth using in the classroom when
it addresses a specific instructional deficit (Brown, 2002) Many instructors have adopted
clicker technology to compensate for the passive, one-way communication inherent in lecturing
and the difficulty students experience in maintaining sustained concentration. This is certainly

6. © Zold Research Team
a case where “simple” technology can be enough to “overcome crucial problems in the
traditional delivery” (Brown, 2002).Some institutions have adopted clickers solely for this
reason, in the hope of addressing high attrition rates in the sciences by making lecture classes
less passive and impersonal (R. A. Burnstein, 2001)
Although Interactive systems are becoming increasingly popular in higher education, most
research has targeted their affective benefits, which include greater student engagement,
increased student interest, and heightened discussion and interactivity. According to
(Draper,2002),past studies on learning outcomes suggest that better learning outcomes result
from changes in pedagogical6
focus—from passive to active learning—and not from use of a
specific technology or technique.
A relatively new technology, clickers offer one approach to employing active learning in the
classroom. They are more formally denoted as student response systems (SRS), audience
response systems (ARS), or personal response systems (PRS)
Clickers can provide added value, however, when compared to some active learning methods
such as class discussion. In a normal class discussion situation, only one or two students have
the opportunity to answer a question. Even if the answer is correct, the instructor has no way
to gauge if the other students knew the correct answer. A student who is unsure of the correct
answer may be unwilling to take the public risk of being incorrect. One of the best features of
an SRS is that it allows students to provide input without fear of public humiliation and without
having to worry about more vocal students dominating the discussion. Even in small-enrolment
classes, many students are reluctant to respond to faculty questions; the anonymity of
responding with a clicker guarantees near or total participation.
First, many students are hesitant to respond to an answer until they know how others will
respond. We have all observed students glancing around the room when a question is asked,
gauging the number of hands that have been raised until a "safe" number are in the air for them
to add their own. Therefore, the anonymity that an electronic system provides allows students
to respond in a safe manner, which encourages them to take risks with their responses. Second,
it is difficult, if not impossible to ask multi-answer questions with a simple show.
6 Pedagogical focus is a term widely used in educational writing but all too often its meaning is assumed to be self-evident. An examination
of how the term is used and the implicit assumptions about teaching and education that underlie its use is a valuable way of
understanding how the education process is perceived.

7. © Zold Research Team
(IV) An Improvement tool to the Education system
Fig5. The benefits availed through the use of Clickers
A) Benefits of Clickers
The benefits of active learning are widely acclaimed in higher education. According to Chandra
Turpen, Research associate, Colorado University) modern students are primarily active
learners, and lecture courses may be increasingly out of touch with how students engage their
world. The proponents of active learning designated "encourages active learning" as one of
seven principles of good practice in higher education. Current research describes the benefits
of active learning approaches. Clickers, or student response systems, as a technology used to
promote active learning. Most research on the benefits of using clickers in the classroom has
shown that students become engaged and enjoy using them. However, research on learning
outcomes has only compared the use of clickers to traditional lecture methods.
a. Measure what students know before a teacher start to teach them (pre-assessment)
b. Measure student attitudes
c. Finds out if the students have done the reading
d. Get students to confront common misconceptions
e. Transform the way of doing any demonstrations
f. Increase students’ retention of what the teacher teach
g. Test students’ understanding
h. Make some kinds of grading and assessment easier
i. Facilitate testing of conceptual understanding
j. Facilitate discussion and peer instruction
k. Increase class attendance
Learning to operate the technology is the easiest part of becoming facile with CRS-based
instruction. More difficult challenges include creating and adapting suitable questions,

8. © Zold Research Team
cultivating productive classroom discourse, and integrating CRS use with the rest of the course,
with curricular materials, and with external constraints.
B) Interactive clicker sessions are Inspiring minds and attitudes
The Fig.67
States the change in the attitude and progess of the students through Interactive
lectures by voting through clickers, thereby establishing an evidence to the matter.
Engaged students are successful students. They earn better grades; they have lower rates of
attrition and help their peers learn effectively. Current research describes the benefits of active
learning approaches. Clickers, or student response systems, as a technology used to promote
active learning. (Brown, 2002). Most research on the benefits of using clickers in the classroom
has shown that students become engaged and enjoy using them. However, research on learning
outcomes has compared the use of clickers to traditional lecture methods. Uses of this
technology vary widely and include spicing up standard lecture classes with periodic breaks,
assessing student opinions or understanding related to lecture, increasing the degree of
interactivity in large classrooms, conducting experiments on human responses and managing
cooperative learning activities. Students and instructors who have used SR systems are
generally positive and often enthusiastic about their effects on the classroom, and many
researchers and educators assert their great potential for improving student learning. (Ian D.
Beatty, 2005).
7
Image source available at Fig 6 http://cdn.iopscience.com/images/00319120/48/3/378/Full/ped451192f3_online.jpg

9. © Zold Research Team
CONCLUSION
The Literature Review demonstrate that the application of SRS and CRS in the lecture theatre
with the use of an effective tool like Clicker has been of significant use in the students learning
process; both increasing the mean pass rate of individuals exposed to it and reducing the
variability between the achievements of different students. These are being tentatively ascribed
to few effects, which are, in order of decreasing importance: the removal of the "house of cards"
effect, the negation of the inherent passivity of students in lectures, student-student teaching.
In a traditional lecture it can be extremely difficult to measure the students’ comprehension of
a topic. This can lead to a house of cards effect8
, where the lecturer is explaining a subject to
students who have yet to understand its precursor and vice versa .CRS allows the lecturer to
ensure that the majority of the student body has understood the material before moving on.
In addition to this, the students are given a role in the lecture, and play an active part in it. This
increases their cognitive engagement and so material taught to them is considered more closely.
The students also spend some time discussing each problem; during this period there is some
element of student-student teaching, or consolidation of material presented by the lecturer
between students.
Finally the students are presented with a situation in which the lecturer has prepared a clear set,
where they are given the special attention of the handsets. This cannot be completely
discounted as an explanation until far larger longitudinal studies are undertaken. With the
results of other independent studies involving student feedback also showing promise, further
exploration of the efficacy of lecture feedback will be conducted, with the aim of improving
this teaching form. Hence Clickers have not only taken away the core issues related to student
with their knowledge, but have also made a powerful impact on students-teacher relationship
adding value to the education system.
8
House of cards effect- a structure, situation, or institution that is insubstantial, shaky, or in constant danger of collapse

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxKHXyVtVIA&list=LLePCHw2BksbwHS13jrPNZW
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