20080916

Education research: preliminary feedback on clickers (Cuesta College, Astronomy 210, Fall Semester 2008)

At the start of Fall semester 2008, Cuesta College students taking Astronomy 210 (introductory astronomy) at Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA have begun use of clickers (Classroom Performance System, einstruction.com) to engage in peer-interaction ("think-(pair)-share") discussion questions during lecture.

During the third week of instruction, students were given the opportunity to evaluate the instructional components of the course, and the use of clickers in an online "Learning Resource Survey" hosted by SurveyMonkey.com. Questions from section II are adapted from the Student Assessment of Learning Gains (SALG) survey (developed by Elaine Seymour, Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin-Madison), and questions from section III (III.1, III.3, III.5, and III.7) were adapted from a "Clicker Attitude Survey" (N. W. Reay, Lei Bao, and Pengfei Li, Physics Education Research Group, Ohio State University).

These are the complete survey results. Analysis will be forthcoming after more data has been compiled from future semesters. Values for the mean and standard deviations are given next to the modal response category for each question. Note that the order of questions within sections II and III were randomly scrambled for each student.
Learning Resource Survey
Cuesta College
Astronomy 210 Fall Semester 2008 sections 70158, 70160
(N = 44)

I. In order to receive credit for completing this survey,
first enter your first and last name below:
____


II. How much did each of the following aspects of the class help
your learning?

II.1 Lecture by instructor.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 3 : ***
3. Neutral 9 : *********
4. Agree 18 : ****************** [4.0 +/- 0.9]
5. Strongly agree 14 : **************

II.2 Working in groups on in-class activities.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 2 : **
3. Neutral 3 : ***
4. Agree 23 : *********************** [4.2 +/- 0.8]
5. Strongly agree 16 : ****************

II.3 Using clickers to participate in class.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 1 : *
3. Neutral 6 : ******
4. Agree 21 : ********************* [4.2 +/- 0.7]
5. Strongly agree 16 : ****************

II.4 Reading the textbook.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 7 : *******
3. Neutral 17 : ***************** [3.4 +/- 0.9]
4. Agree 14 : **************
5. Strongly agree 6 : ******

II.5 Demonstrations/videos in class.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 2 : **
3. Neutral 4 : ****
4. Agree 21 : ********************* [4.1 +/- 0.8]
5. Strongly agree 15 : ***************

II.6 Interacting with other students during class.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 1 : *
3. Neutral 5 : *****
4. Agree 24 : ************************ [4.2 +/- 0.7]
5. Strongly agree 14 : **************

II.7 Interacting with other students outside of class.
1. Strongly disagree 3 : ***
2. Disagree 3 : ***
3. Neutral 27 : *************************** [3.1 +/- 0.9]
4. Agree 10 : **********
5. Strongly agree 1 : *

III. Answer the following statements which may or may not describe
your beliefs about the use of clickers in this class.

III.1 I like using clickers.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 0 :
3. Neutral 8 : ********
4. Agree 25 : ************************* [4.1 +/- 0.7]
5. Strongly agree 11 : ***********

III.2 Clickers helped me understand lectures better.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 2 : **
3. Neutral 13 : *************
4. Agree 21 : ********************* [3.8 +/- 0.8]
5. Strongly agree 8 : ********

III.3 I would recommend using clickers in future semesters of this class.
1. Strongly disagree 1 : *
2. Disagree 1 : *
3. Neutral 4 : ****
4. Agree 24 : ************************ [4.1 +/- 0.8]
5. Strongly agree 14 : **************

III.4 I will avoid other classes using clickers in future semesters.
1. Strongly disagree 16 : ****************
2. Disagree 24 : ************************ [1.8 +/- 2.5]
3. Neutral 2 : **
4. Agree 1 : *
5. Strongly agree 1 : *

III.5 Clickers were a positive experience.
1. Strongly disagree 0 :
2. Disagree 0 :
3. Neutral 6 : ******
4. Agree 26 : ************************** [4.1 +/- 0.6]
5. Strongly agree 12 : ************

III.6 Too much time in class was spent using clickers.
1. Strongly disagree 10 : **********
2. Disagree 23 : *********************** [2.1 +/- 1.6]
3. Neutral 9 : *********
4. Agree 2 : **
5. Strongly agree 0 :

III.7 Too many clicker questions were asked.
1. Strongly disagree 8 : ********
2. Disagree 23 : *********************** [2.1 +/- 1.4]
3. Neutral 11 : ***********
4. Agree 1 : *
5. Strongly agree 0 :

III.8 Using clickers was difficult.
1. Strongly disagree 16 : ****************
2. Disagree 22 : ********************** [1.8 +/- 2.5]
3. Neutral 3 : ***
4. Agree 1 : *
5. Strongly agree 1 : *

IV. (Optional.) Please type in any comments you may have regarding
the use of clickers in Astronomy 210.
The following are all of the student responses to this question, verbatim and unedited.
"I think the clickers are a cool idea, and very inventive. I had never heard of them before in real classes, and i like the college exclusive idea."

"I like the use of clickers in class and the group activities in class. I sometimes feel like am way in over my head in astronomy."

"Clickers are new to me, and that may be why I enjoy them so much. But I do like the fact that I can participate and see how I do compared to the rest of the class."

"The concept of using the clickers opens up a whole new approach to getting instant answers from the students to see how we're picking it up.Can this concept be used in other situations? I also think that if the system wants to experiment with this concept, the added cost of the clickers should be absorbed.I don't enough about them to really add more insight."

"I think it's a very organized way to gauge the students' grasps of concepts."

"I feel they let us know how we're doing. How well we understand the material of the day."

"i think the clickers are a good way of interacting with the people around and the clicker questions help me learn and better understand some of the concepts learned in class"

"I think that the questions in this survey are sell suited to an Astronomy class. If I were in English I would not like to use clickers. I think that the visual models really help to understand since the actual objects are very large and impossible to observe well from multiple perspectives/distances."

"Using the clickers in class is one of my favorite activities. It helps me learn what I don't know or I can help others with what I already know. I also like seeing the percentages of people who said different answers. It is an overall great learning experience!"

"I think that the clickers are a very interactive way for us, the students, to better understand the material. Its more visual and its helpful to see what others think the answer was and why the answer wasnt right. I believe the clickers to be very helpful."

"I enjoy using the clickers! I have not had any class use clickers before and i believe they are a postive tool to further learning in the classroom."

"At first it was hard to figure out how to get how the clickers worked, but as soon as i got it working and figured out it has been kind of fun and very helpful. It worries that me sometimes that my clicker doesn't always work and that i won't get credit."

"i like using clickers and talking to other students to find out why they chose the answer that they did. it helps me understand the question better. however, i sometimes get frustrated because my clicker's signal isn't strong enough, so im not always sure that my answer gets inputed and counted for."

"It was hard to get them a; up and running. i dont like how they were cost so much money and it is sometimes hard to get my clicker to connect with the devise that picks up signals!"

"Everything was good but should remind students to make sure that the students look up their number before going to class"

"I find clickers very useful for learning. It is very helpful because it causes inter-action and helps to keep me involved in the material. I especially like discussing the clicker questions with other classmates after the initial answer has been given."

"Once i got my clicker working and knew my number, it is a nice resource."

"I think they are a great way to engage the class but I sometimes take too long to answer. And it seems that a lot of people guess on them. But I think they are fun."

"Clickers are okay but I seem to have difficulty in knowing if it is registering correctly."

"The clickers are a cool, interactive way of learning."

"I like using clickers because they allow me to solve questions by myself. After that, I can discuss the results with other people. This system helps me to understand lectures more. Finally, I can get correct answers more confidently. I strongly recommend this system."

"To a degree, the clickers simulate test, and quiz taking experiences. As a result, this should hopefully boost the confidence of the class during exams, potentially generating higher grades all around. Also, the interaction between classmates during clicker questions creates a better understanding of the material for exam days. I think all clicker questions should have two answering periods, the initial response, and the recalculated response, in order to continue interaction and comprehension."

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