Teaching with Classroom Response Systems: Creating Active Learning Environments

by Derek Bruff

There is a need in the higher education arena for a book that responds to the need for using technology in a classroom of tech-savvy students. This book is filled with illustrative examples of questions and teaching activities that use classroom response systems from a variety of disciplines (with a discipline index). The book also incorporates results from research on the effectiveness of the technology for teaching. Written for instructional designers and re-designers as well as faculty across disciplines.A must-read for anyone interested in interactive teaching and the use of clickers. This book draws on the experiences of countless instructors across a wide range of disciplines to provide both novice and experienced teachers with practical advice on how to make classes more fun and more effective."--"Eric Mazur," Balkanski Professor of Physics and Applied Physics, Harvard University, and author, "Peer A User's Manual"

"Those who come to this book needing practical advice on using 'clickers' in the classroom will be richly with case studies, a refreshing historical perspective, and much pedagogical ingenuity. Those who seek a deep, thoughtful examination of strategies for active learning will find that here as well--in abundance. Dr. Bruff achieves a marvelous synthesis of the pragmatic and the philosophical that will be useful far beyond the life span of any single technology." --"Gardner Campbell," Director, Academy for Teaching and Learning, and Associate Professor of Literature, Media, and Learning, Honors College, Baylor University

Genres: Teaching, Nonfiction

240 pages, ebook

First published February 17, 2009

Reviews

[George Woodbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although some of the technology has really changed since this book was published, I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who plans to incorporate classroom response systems into their teaching. Bruff clearly lays out the pros and cons of different strategies of incorporation, grading schemes, question types, revealing correct answers, ...
He does a great job introducing Peer Instruction, and I have been using that strategy in my classroom with great success. I feel that more of my students understand more of the material at this point of the semester than in previous semesters. (I am moving on to Mazur's Peer Instruction book to go into greater depth on the strategy.)
I also love the concept of Agile Teaching. I love the uncertainty of not knowing which way the class will go, while remaining confident that I can adapt to what I am seeing from my students. I am teaching the same class back-to-back, and have had to focus on different topics with each class. It's a lot of fun, and it fits in with my belief that we teach our students instead of teaching the material. I now walk into class each day thinking "I Am An Agile Teacher" and I feel so empowered. I should probably put that on a t-shirt.
Note: I am using Learning Catalytics as my classroom response system in my Intro Stats classes, and I am about to start using Plickers in my Elementary Algebra classes.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's really hard to give books about teaching, pedagogy, and technology five starts because they're usually drier than an old door nail. This one isn't. Bruff focuses on the use of Classroom Response Systems (commonly called clickers) in this volume. The book is organized well, allowing for a read-through from cover to cover or a perusal of the chapters a reader finds interesting. Plenty of examples are given, both of actual clicker questions and of the different ways professors have structurally integrated them into their classrooms, and the examples cross a variety of different disciplines (which is often one of the major shortcomings of books like this). Their are also chapters on how to choose a clicker system (e.g. determining what features are available vs. needed) and on how to get students to engage with material. Highly recommended for anyone interested in using clickers in college/university teaching, and should be in every college library and/or instructional center.

[Joe Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have a classroom response system or students with cell phones (use PollEverywhere), this is a great book to read for how to use these devices to spark classroom discussions.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a practical guide to teaching with classroom response systems. Discussions were interesting and relevant; many short case studies made this much easier to read.