Interactive Response Systems

There are many new classroom technologies out there that can enhance education and student learning. This is a blog dedicated to my adventures into the world of classroom technology and its many uses with our students.

We are going to begin by looking at the world of interactive student response systems. these tools are not new and are produced by just about every company under the sun, so what should you look for when making a purchase of such a system, and how can they be used to increase student learning?

The first thing I would look at is the usability of the system. The system must be both friendly to the teacher as well as the students. If a system is not easy to use and create questions and assessments it will not be utilized. Likewise, if a system is not user friendly for students, it may become a stumbling block for their learning.

The second thing to look for is the durability of the system. These systems come in all shapes and sizes. They range from small credit card sized units to units nearly the size of a small laptop. Each of these units is designed to hold up to certain kinds of stresses. Some are more appropriate in elementary settings, while others are better designed for older, more responsible, students. I would never recommend purchasing a system without having seen and held the system, and possibly even dropping it.

The third item I would consider is the type of signal the units use. There are currently 3 signals on the market, infrared, radio frequency, and the most recent bluetooth. Each of these signals has its advantages as well as disadvantages.

The infrared units are by far the least expensive units and work well in most classroom situations, the drawback is that the student unit must have a line of sight with the receiver and only one student input can be recieved at a time so waiting may be required. The Radio Frequency units do not need line of sight and allow multiple student inputs simultaneously. These do tend to cost nearly twice as much as the infrared units from the same companies. The bluetooth technology is still very new to these units and is only produced by a limited number of manufacturers. There are still many questions to be answered about this technology but they may be a very viable system as well.

The final factor I would urge you to consider when purchasing interactive student response systems is the cost. The range in price for these units can range from $600 per set to over $4000. This is one situation where price does not always correlate to value and quality. By shopping around it is possible to find the radio frequency units from one company cheaper that the infrared units of another. Take your time and don't fall for the first pitch you hear.

Now at this point, some of you may be wondering why and how you could use these systems in a classroom setting. The first and most obvious way to use these in a classroom is for summative assessment. Rather than having your students take tests in paper and then going through the scoring process, you simply create an assessment using the included software and it gives you instant results. This allows for immediate feedback for students and eliminates hours of teachers time grading tests.

The next, and probably most critical reason and use for interactive responsive systems is conducting formative assessments. We, as educators, are able to gather instant data on what our student have learned and can quickly see what was not understood. This allows us to begin the remediation and reteaching process immediately and cuts down on the time it would normally take to analyze other types of assessments. These tools also allow us to integrate our assessment into our lessons in a seamless manner. It keeps students engaged and on task and provides opportunities for increased interaction.

In short, I believe that every teacher should have an interactive student response systems . These tools can provide real-time data that can lead to increased student improvement and understanding.