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ABSTRACT
Envision a large enrollment, general education, freshman-level course in which student attendance is 100% every day. Now, imagine that every one of these students prepares for and participates in class. Until now, such a scenario was merely the product of wishful thinking. This proposal introduces to this campus, for the first time, an innovative, economical, and proven technology known as the Hyper-Interactive Teaching Technology (H-ITT), which dramatically improves student attendance, preparation, and participation. H-ITT is a revolutionary teaching tool that allows students to uniquely respond to quiz questions on a daily basis via individual remote-control devices, providing a real-time gauge of student comprehension. Best of all, it provides a fully automated and fast method for grading each students understanding.
The benefits of H-ITT are numerous. The instructor receives instantaneous feedback regarding the degree to which the material is understood. Concepts that are unclear, as evidenced by incorrect responses, may then be reviewed. Most importantly, H-ITT strongly encourages students to read the textbook and attempt the homework problems before coming to class, and then rewards them for their efforts. As a result, class time is used much more effectively to reinforce concepts and demonstrate problem-solving techniques.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Finding ways to motivate and engage undergraduate students, especially in large enrollment general education courses, can be difficult. For true learning to take place, an instructor must 1) find ways to make learning difficult subjects more appealing to students and 2) tailor the pace and content of the class to the individual student's skill level.
In response to this need, new learner-centered teaching methods have been developed that have significantly enhanced the engagement process. One such method, which has not yet been implemented on our campus, is the Hyper-Interactive Teaching Technology (H-ITT). H-ITT is a cost-effective, state-of-the-art technology that records student answers, displays them, links them with a student ID number, and converts them to a letter grade. H-ITT requires a receiver at the front of the classroom and hand-held remote control units, which the students purchase at the bookstore as display in Fig. 1.
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Fig. 1. Picture of the H-ITT remote unit showing the standard multiple choice answers A-E plus the multi-function *-key that can be utilized for taking tests.
The H-ITT system displays questions for a daily quiz. The students' responses are collected by firing their answers at the wall mounted receivers as displayed in Fig. 2. |
Fig. 2. Illustration of the Hyper-Interactive Teaching Technology (H-ITT) in operation. A question is projected onto the screen and each student answers the question with their personalized remote control unit by simply pressing their answer while pointing the unit at a receiver mounted on the wall.
The software summarizes the results in the form of a histogram, showing the possible answers and the corresponding number of students who chose each answer, as illustrated in Fig. 3. The histogram provides immediate and accurate feedback on what the students do and do not understand. This information enables the teacher to advance to the next topic or to cover current concepts more thoroughly.
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Fig. 3. Illustration of the outcome of the response collection showing the histogram of results collected |
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During class the instructor answers along with the students. Software recognizes the instructor's remote and uses it as an answer key for the responses. After class, the instructor copies a file containing student responses and the corresponding ID numbers to his or her own computer. Using software provided by the vendor the instructor can assign point values for both correct and incorrect responses. I usually give the students 3 points for a correct response, 1 point for incorrect and zero if they don't register a response (indicating they did not come to class). The grades are then calculated by the software in a matter of seconds. Because the quizzes (two or three per class period) may comprise one-fourth of the entire course grade, the students are highly motivated to attend, participate, and read ahead. In fact, by administering several tests every day, the need for mid-term exams becomes less evident.
By funding this proposal, I believe the Teaching Faculty Support Center (TFSC) is making a commitment to engaging our students in learning. To enable us to enjoy the benefits of H-ITT campus-wide, I would be more than willing to host a "how-to" seminar for other teachers. H-ITT can truly make the educational experience more rewarding for us.
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