how live polling can enhance student learning: applications for general and research classes

Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., 2005 1

How live polling can enhance student learning: Applications for

general and research classes

Teaching, Learning, Mentoring Conference, Springfield, MO.

Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., November 5, 2005


Presentation Outline

Part 1: General Interest1. Overview of live polling

2. Examples of live polling

3. Live polling software


Presentation Outline

Part 2: Details of the application1. WebCT approach

2. Getting data into Excel and SPSS


What Is Live Polling?

Live polling is a method for getting responses from a group of people and displaying their responses in realtime.

In the context of teaching, realtime means the current classroom time frame.


Why Live Polling?

Our rationale for live polling may derive from several sources

• Authority• Affiliation• Geek savoir faire• Financial• Theoretical• Empirical


Authority & Live Polling?

National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council

Educators should provide “active learning environments for all students, even in large sections, lecture-dominated courses (p. 39).”


Affiliation & Live Polling?

Active learning, like many ideas in the history of education, is a buzzword. Live polling is a strategy to encourage active learning.

Affiliation is a human need. If you feel the need to belong, join the crowd. Buzz a few words, do some polls, then follow the wave to the next hot item. You will feel better and students may feel good even if they do not learn any more.


Geek savoir faire & Live Polling?

In a period of Geek revivalism, such as we now experience, it is useful to display a knowledge of all things Geek. Live polling is one of those things.

p.s. googling savoir faire will give you a french lexicon, which is not useful.


Financial Considerations& Live Polling

There is funding for technology and research related to the use of technology to promote student learning.

Finances can be a reason to obtain the technology and determine its value in active learning. Add live polling software as a part of your purchase and research plans.


Theoretical Reasons for Live Polling: Schemas

Students enter courses with various cognitive schemas.

An accurate schema of the concepts presented in the course may require a modification of their existing schemas (most likely).



As an educator, live polling provides you with

-An understanding of a student’s pre-existing schema.

-An understanding of how they have changed as a result of the learning activities.

-An understanding of how many students “get it” as a result of the learning activities.



As a student, live polling provides

-Knowledge of how well they already understand course concept.

-Knowledge of how well they have understood a newly presented concept.

-Knowledge of how they are doing compared to others.


Theoretical Reasons for Live Polling: Feedback

Feedback, or knowledge of results, promotes learning when it is immediate.

So much feedback in education is delayed feedback.

Live polling can provide immediate feedback


Theoretical Reasons for Live Polling: Attention

Theoretically, students need to attend to a stimulus in order to learn.

Live polling may increase the attention of more students if it is a

>novel stimulus

>relevant stimulus (e.g., net polling)

>discriminative stimulus ( learning cue)


Empirical Reasons for Live Polling

Attention span for students ~ 15 minutes

(Prince, 2004)



Recall- for the first 10 minutes of lecture ~ 70%

Recall- for the last 10 minutes of lecture ~ 20%

(Prince, 2004)



Common lecture rate ~ 120-140 wpm

Student notetaking rate as low as 20 wpm


Examples of Live Polling

WarmUps (Cox & Junkin, 2005)

• Ask 3 questions about the assigned reading before class begins.

• Use results for Just-in Time Teaching-- tailor your presentation to the customer.

• [Software can set a timer to end availability of questions to end when class begins.]



Learning Consolidation & Mid-lecture Polls

Engage with the material by reviewing their notes and solving a problem.

> Individual work

> Group activity

Respond to the question and get feedback.



Attention & Focus Stimulus

Survey the class on a topic of interest to students and relevant to the course content.

Tattoo

Use of WebCT

Elections



Self-Test

Ungraded questions provided at the end of class to reinforce accurate learning.

Feedback can guide the learners to notes or text pages for the answers or lead them to other resources.



Selected Course Evaluation

Outside of class time, a survey of selected course components can involve the students in feedback about the perceived value of various learning activities used by the instructor.



Specific Use-Testing & Research Classes: Develop skills for:

writing questions & items

web-based research

downloading files

Using Excel

Using SPSS / data analysis software

Live stuff is more fun!


Live Polling Software

• Webforms

• A variety of options including live polling available at no charge from William F. Junkin. [email protected]


Live Polling Software

• WebCT

• Quizzes and Options Module

• I will illustrate WebCT in the next section


Live Polling: Some Thoughts

• Time to prepare the activity

• Familiarity with the software

• Familiarity with the equipment

• Knowing the limitations– E.g., how to enroll people in a class

End of Part I

Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., 2005 27Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., 2005 1

How live polling can enhance student learning: Applications for

general and research classes

Teaching, Learning, Mentoring Conference, Springfield, MO.

Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., November 5, 2005


Part 2

In this Part of the Presentation I will cover

1. Adding Surveys in WebCT

2. Downloading files to Excel

3. From Excel to SPSS


Surveys in WebCT

Refer to the handout, which is based on the WebCT help guidelines.

Begin by adding surveys from the control panel Add Tool feature.

Complete the options information- including choice of an icon

Click to add the tool and the features.


Control Panel--- Surveys


Create the Survey in WebCT

• Course Menu- select survey

• Select Create

• Add title and create

• You have set up the Survey but need to add questions


Add Questions to the Survey

• Select Survey

• Edit

• Add questions/ items

• Create


Add Questions


Add Questions to the Survey

• Type the item

• Type responses e.g., Agree…

• Save and Add


Enter New Questions

Answers


Schedule the Survey

• Select the settings

• For example - for the class period

• Update

• That is it!


Survey Settings


Examining the Data

• Select detail to see results

• Update table

• Click summary to see item responses

39Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D., 2005

Survey Detail


Examining the Data

• Click detailed statistics to see basic stats

• That is usually enough for the live class polling

• Have a discussion or move on…


WebCT Live


Downloading

• From the survey/detail page, select export to disk

• Select where to download

• Open Excel

• Open file from download

• Select comma delimited

• Accept defaults and finish


Downloading

• From the survey/detail page, select export to disk

• Select where to download


Export & Download


In Excel

• “Clean up” data

• Do statistics or,

• Save the file as an Excel file

• See the examples


Excel View

No attractive embarrassedexpressionget tattoo religious be...25

1419212430 3 4 4 434 3 1 23523 2 1 2 1 28 2 4 4 4

31 2 2 2 2 21 3 3 3 2 3

Missing data


Excel “Cleaned”

No attractive embarrassedexpressionget tattoo religious be...23 2 1 2 1 28 2 4 4 4

31 2 2 2 2 21 3 3 3 2 37 4 3 4 2 43 4 4 4 5 54 3 4 4 39 1 4 4 2 3

10 3 4 2 3 312 2 4 2 2 513 2 4 3 2 415 4 4 5 4


In SPSS

• Open SPSS

• Open a new file

• Select the excel file you created

• Begin data analysis


The End

Please refer to the handout available on line for a list of procedures and references.

Please send corrections to [email protected]

Thank you.

how live polling can enhance student learning: applications for general and research classes

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