Clicking Our Way To Class Discussion

Abstract

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0.5in 0pt;"><span style="color: #0d0d0d; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">The goal of this research project is to investigate whether the use of a personal response system (“clickers”) in the classroom increases student participation and discussion and its impact on the quality of the discussion in undergraduate accounting courses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>While many studies conducted regarding the use of clickers rely on student surveys to determine the effectiveness of using clickers, this study will add to the literature by providing evidence of actual student behavior as it relates to participation when clicker technology is used in the classroom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Our study includes collecting data on student classroom behavior by observing and measuring the level of participation in both clicker and non-clicker classes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>We discuss the observed impact of clickers on class participation and contrast it with prior work on the perceived impact, the use of clicker technology versus a clicker question, and the impact of the clickers on the faculty participating in this project.</span></span></p>

A review of literature on the use of clickers in the business and management discipline

“…Instead of finding improvement in participation, some research (i.e., Carnaghan and Webb, 2007), in fact, found that student participation actually decreased, particularly when most students answer the questions correctly. A similar finding was noted by other researchers (Morse et al, 2010), where either a modest increase or no enhancement in participation was found when an SRS was used to ask a discussion question at the start of each lecture.…”

“…However, the clickers cannot be proved equally advantageous for all the students in the class. Bain and Przybyla (2009) [2] Carnaghan and Webb (2007); Morse et al (2010) Learning Experience Enhances student learning experience Humphries and Whelan (2009); Nelson and Hauck (2008); Sprague and Dahl (2010); Stagg and Lane (2010) The use of clickers alone cannot work as a panacea for improved learning Bain and Przybyla (2009); Koppel and Berenson (2008) Performance Enhanced student performance Bain and Przybyla (2009); Hedgcock and Rouwenhorst (2014); Hoanca (2013) The use of clickers alone does not increase performance Blasco-Arcas et al (2013); Marshall and Varnon (2012) Feedback Clicker use allows the learners to get instant feedback Hedgcock and Rouwenhorst (2014); Koppel and Berenson (2008); Lincoln (2007); Nelson and Hauck (2008); Thoms and Williams (2010) Not of much use to those who [1] tend to get everything right all the time or [2] are not interested in responding to questions or perform worst every time Lincoln (2007)…”

Evidence-Based Clicker Use

“…The literature is split as to whether or not the use of ARS substantially improves student grades. Pre-lecture and post-test scores may correlate more to question writing skills than to the actual use of clicker questions (Filer, 2010;Lantz, 2010;Morse, Ruggieri, & Whelan-Berry, 2010;Nightingale, 2010;Porter & Tousman, 2010;Smith & Rosenkoetter, 2009;Zurmehly & Leadingham, 2008). Cunningham (2008) used ARS to follow the progress of 840 students.…”

Clickers in EFL Classrooms: Evidence from Two Different Uses

“…In this sense, many efforts are ongoing on clicker use in higher education settings (Carnaghan & Webb, 2007;Nelson & Hauck, 2008;Morse et al, 2010;Carla, Thomas, Thomas, & Philip, 2011). However, in regard to educational levels, Mun et al (2009) suggested that more research would facilitate better understanding concerning how clickers affect student participation in K-12 levels; hence, the period of clicker use may also provide crucial hints for their efficacy in EFL courses.…”