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What are clickers?
“Clickers” are handheld devices which encourage active student participation by allowing a presenter to poll an audience and receive real-time answers in aggregate form. Student response systems like this enhance the classroom experience by making it easy for students and faculty to receive immediate feedback from one another. Using clickers, faculty can conduct review sessions, encourage student discussions, and keep track of student participation. While clicker use has dropped substantially from its prominence in the years before the Covid pandemic, some faculty members still appreciate their simplicity. Because clickers are a stand-alone tool, students are not distracted as they might be with computers, phones, and other multipurpose devices which provide similar functionality.
For more information on the pedagogical benefits of using clickers, see ELI’s “7 Things You Should Know about Clickers.”
Clickers at Haverford
Haverford has a number of Echo Poll clickers available for semester loan, free of charge. Faculty interested in using clickers should contact hc-techlearn@haverford.edu.
IDTS staff will create a clicker packet containing everything you need to use clickers in your course. You will have students fill out a Clicker Responsibility Form and distribute the clickers to students for use throughout the semester. You are responsible for distributing the clickers at the start of the semester and collecting them before finals.
Should a clicker malfunction during the semester, students can contact the IT Service Desk in Stokes 204. We will provide a new battery for their device, or need to replace a broken clicker, free of charge. If students lose a clicker, will replace it for a $25 fee.
Faculty are responsible for collecting clickers at the end of the semester and returning the clicker packet to Stokes 204.
How do I use clickers?
If you decide clickers are right for your class, first reach out to hc-techlearn@haverford.edu with the name of course(s) where you want to use the devices. Please include the estimated number of students in the class. IDTS will get a set of clickers ready for you. We will provide instruction on how to issue the clickers to students and how to use them in your course. We will also supply the software and password needed to use the system.
Note that all clicker responses are anonymous. If you want to use clickers to match students to their specific responses, you will need to fund the required licensing.
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