Article pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Creating a Positive Learning Environment with the Use of Clickers in a High School Chemistry Classroom Fred Vital* Fairfield Ludlowe High School, Fairfield, Connecticut 06824, United States ABSTRACT: Although the effectiveness of student response systems in improving student learning is inconclusive, clickers can be used to create a positive learning environment in the classroom, which can help increase student achievement. With the use of clickers, students showed modest improvements in their performance in conceptual summative assessments. Clickers created a learning environment where all students could participate and be engaged. Students reported that the clickers helped them improve their learning. The clickers allowed for instant feedback and a means to assess student knowledge without penalty. These formative assessments had a positive impact on student beliefs and allowed the teacher to reflect on instructional strategies.
KEYWORDS: First-Year Undergraduate/General, High School/Introductory Chemistry, Curriculum, Physical Chemistry, Multimedia-Based Learning, Student-Centered Learning tudent response systems, often called “clickers”, are small hand-held devices that allow students to respond to questions posed during class remotely.1 Their use has been typically at the university level and limited in high school classrooms. Their effectiveness has been inconclusive in the large lecture settings of the university.2 Evidence exists to indicate modest increases in retention and performance with the use of clickers in the classroom.3 Nonetheless, clickers are valuable to evaluate instruction and student learning. Clickers can transform a student’s perception of the class. They can be effective in the high school classroom to identify weaker students and for assessments. In response to the JCE high school editor’s request for high school instructors to share classroom technology,4 this is the experience from my classroom.
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Students were administered exams in a 90 min time span. The exams ranged from 40 to 70 questions and were constructed with approximately 50% multiple-choice questions, 35% written-response questions, and 15% graphical-analysis questions. The questions were an even distribution in terms of level of difficulty. Identical exams were administered in subsequent years to all classes during the study. Classes were all instructed in a similar fashion, and students had access to notes, worksheets, and resources via the school’s Web site. Instruction was also consistent varying daily between traditional lecture, small group discussion and sharing, and discoverylearning activities. Prior to clickers, the review was a worksheet with students answering questions either aloud or at the board. Every effort was made to have each student answer at least one question for the class. Use of Clickers
DATA GATHERING
The use of clickers as a formative assessment allowed students to monitor their learning and compare themselves to the rest of the class. Discussion between students of possible answers further facilitated the understanding of the content. In this class, clickers were used in the following manner. Each student was assigned a numbered clicker known only to him or her. The questions were presented to the class as multiple choice. When a student submitted an answer, the clicker display changed color to alert the instructor of which students responded. When a student decided to change a response,
Classroom Environment
The use of clickers in a high school classroom and their effectiveness on student performance on unit assessments were tracked over several years. The students with access to clickers were compared to the previous years’ nonclicker students. The students attended a public high school in a suburban, uppermiddle class town. The classes participating in the study were first-year, honors, college-preparatory chemistry classes. The students were a mixture of second- and third-year students and had no previous chemistry courses. Each section had 22−24 students with a relatively even distribution of males and females. © 2011 American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
Published: December 21, 2011 470
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Table 1. Exam Averages of Honors Chemistry Courses with and without Clickers Avg Score (range) Nonclicker Chapter
2008
(1) Introduction to chemistry, scientific method; (2) Measurement, significant figures, density calculations (3) Properties of matter, energy calculations, calorimetry (4) Atomic structure, elements atoms and ions, modern atomic theory (5) Nomenclature of ionic, covalent and acid compounds (6/7) Balancing equations, reaction writing, reaction types (8) Mole conversions (9) Stoichiometry (10) Electron configuration, electromagnetic spectrum (12) Gases, kinetic molecular theory, ideal gas law (13) Liquids and solids, molecular structure, intermolecular forces (14) Solution calculations, solution stoichiometry (15) Acid base chemistry, pH calculations, neutralization reactions (16) Equilibrium concept, calculations of equilibrium constants a
a
Clicker b
2009
2010c
88.7 (100−70)
83.3 (97−61)
84 (96−66)
82.5 83.6 83.6 90.5 91.4 90.8 90.1 88.6 80.2 83.2 88.4 81.3
85.2 (95−72) 92.1 (100−76) 88.7 (99−62) 83.4 (100−52) 82.2 (98−60) 87.9 (100−68) 91.4 (96−73) 78 (95−60) 80.1 (96−60) 86.1 (100−61) 85.9 (97−67) 82.4 (98−59)
85.3 (96−67) 86.4 (98−68) 83.1 (100−50) 80.6 (95−64) 84.5 (100−60) 84.3 (100−55) 77.9 (96−56) 83.1 (95−59) 82.7 (95−65) 80 (98−66) 78.5 (95−67) 83.1 (99−60)
(96−65) (99−59) (99−59) (100−70) (100−72) (100−60) (100−63) (100−50) (96−62) (97−68) (100−60) (100−60)
N = 43. bN = 66. cN = 45.
discussions.5 The use of clickers allowed every student to participate in every question and provided the teacher with data for each student. The exam results showed some improvement in student scores with the use of clickers on three conceptual units: matter and energy (Chapter 3), atomic structure (Chapter 4), and nomenclature (Chapter 5), when compared to nonclicker year scores (Table 1). It is possible that the conceptual units allowed for more questions to be asked of students using clickers because the response times were less than for a calculation question, and thus the students gained additional practice and confidence. After discussion of incorrect responses to questions, students would then typically answer subsequent questions on the same concept correctly reinforcing the correct understanding. Additionally, students gained a better sense of the depth of understanding that would be asked on the summative assessment with the use of the clicker reviews. The use of clickers in this study had minimal or no effect on improving student scores on mathematical concepts, such as measurement and calculations (Chapter 2), solutions (Chapter 14), and balancing equations (Chapters 6/7), when compared to the nonclicker scores. The use of the clickers with calculations involves more time and therefore reduces the number of questions that can be asked during the clicker session. Also, many high school students in first-year chemistry have difficulty with algebra concepts. Students’ struggles with mastery of math skills are not overcome solely with the use of clickers. The advantage of the clickers with calculations is that if questions are constructed well, they can offer insight as to where the student error is occurring. If the incorrect answer choices are different errors a student can make in the calculation, this can be explained to the identified group of students. An example might be, “Calculate the energy of a wave of wavelength 550 nm.” Choices could include: the correct answer, 3.6 × 10−19; 3.6 × 10−28, not converting nanometers to meters; 1.1 × 10−31, multiplying rather than dividing by the wavelength; and 5.5 × 1014, calculating only the frequency and not the energy. Even with these discussions of common errors, students did not improve with statistical significance as compared to the nonclicker class. Nonetheless students were able to identify their errors and correct them.
the clicker display changed to another color to inform the instructor of the students changing their responses. Once all students responded, the percentage of students selecting each response was displayed as a bar graph. Discussion of the choices based on student responses subsequently occurred. The correct answer was then displayed. Upon completion of the activity, the instructor was provided data for each individual student’s performance. The data included the percentage of correct answers as well as the incorrect choice selected by the student. Several days prior to exams, a review of the major concepts was discussed. A fifteen to twenty question clicker review session was administered. Reviews with clickers included multiple-choice questions that mirrored the style of the assessment questions. The topics covered the breadth and depth that would be assessed on the exam. The number of questions on subtopics was similar to the percentage on the exam. The questions contained a single best-answer choice for students. The clicker questions were grouped so that students were asked several questions on the same content. A sample clicker question might be, “What is the maximum number of electrons that can exist in each p orbital of an atom?” Answer choices included 2, 6, 10, 14. The corresponding assessment question would be, “What is the maximum number of electrons that can exist in 3pz?” Answer choices were 2, 6, 10, 14.
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RESULTS
Clicker Usage
Students' responses to clicker questions were used to identify struggling students and allowed the instructor to intervene prior to the summative assessment. The instructor gained evidence of student knowledge and could choose to continue the unit or reteach misunderstood concepts. For example, the common student response to the sample question discussed previously was often 6 in response to the maximum number of electrons in the p sublevel, but when looking at each orbital the correct answer was 2. Students misread the question or instinctively connected 6 to the p sublevel. These data could validate that the class was prepared for the summative assessment. The clickers allowed for the instructor to uncover misunderstandings that might never have come to light, as struggling students were the least likely to participate in class 471
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Table 2. Survey Results from the 2009 Classes That Used Clickers
a
The Use of the Clickers:
Strongly Agreea
Agreea
Neutrala
Disagreea
Strongly Disagreea
1. Allowed me to assess my own learning 2. Allowed me to better prepare for the unit exam 3. Allowed me get a better grade than without their use 4. Allowed me to know where I stand in comparison to other students 5. Allowed me to be more engaged in class 6. Made the class more enjoyable 7. Should be used in all classrooms 8. Made me feel intimidated by my peers 9. Allowed my teacher to know what topics needed to be reviewed 10. Allowed my teacher to know if I was struggling 11. What I like best about using clicker is...
55% 59% 31% 45% 45% 65% 61% 4% 33% 18%
37% 29% 39% 47% 39% 29% 24% 2% 49% 47%
8% 14% 27% 6% 10% 2% 12% 8% 14% 27%
0% 0% 0% 2% 4% 2% 2% 35% 0% 4%
0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 51% 0% 4%
N = 51.
Student Response to Clickers
discovered where they stand among their peers in the class (question 4). In a high school setting, this can create a strong positive motivation. Discovering that everyone understood something except for you penetrates your self-esteem.7 The positive learning environment created by the use of clickers allowed students to be more active in their learning by participating in discussions through their clicker (question 6). Student responses to what they liked best about clickers offered some insight into their benefits in the classroom (question 11). Forty-one percent thought it was fun and created an active learning environment that they looked forward to and enjoyed. Individual students felt that they could answer every question in the discussion or review. In other classes only one student would get the opportunity to answer a question posed to the class. Because students had to answer all the questions, they felt more engaged in the class. They could still participate orally because the instructor could call on them to explain their response. Another student loved the anonymity of the clicker responses. “I don’t have to worry about being made fun of if I choose an answer that doesn’t make sense.” They could answer to the best of their abilities without fear of penalty.
Student surveys showed that clickers can create a positive learning environment and improve student attitudes toward high school chemistry. Students shared, “The clicker game forces me to answer every question, rather than zone out when the teacher is calling on other students” or “The clicker game makes the review more fun.” Students were more engaged with the clickers and looked forward to this type of instruction. Additionally, students gained a better sense of the depth of understanding of what would be asked on the summative assessment. This was noted during student dialogue prior to the exam and student interviews. Students shared that they felt they knew what was expected of them on the exam through the clicker reviews. The knowledge of the types of questions on the exam and expectations of content knowledge prepares the student for the assessment. Some complaints from students for the use of clickers included the pressure to answer in the allotted time or in relation to peers. During some mathematical questions, students who were the last to enter their answers slowed the review. Other students would input any response in order to not be the one holding up the class. Although this was with only one or two students, these responses skewed the results. These students were easily identified by their poor scores, but their experience was not the same as the rest of the class with the clickers. Survey results of the 2009 classes (Table 2) show that 88% of students felt that the use of clickers allowed them to better prepare for a summative assessment (question 2). Ninety-two percent of students felt the use of clickers allowed them to know where they stood in the class in terms of understanding the content (question 4), and additionally what they still needed to learn to be successful on the summative assessment (question 1). Eighty-two percent agreed that the instructor gained knowledge of what topics needed to be reviewed or retaught based on clicker responses (question 9). These data were consistent with other studies of clicker use in college classrooms, where students felt that clickers improved student involvement, made students more attentive, and made the class more interactive.6 Although the scores did not always improve with the use of clickers, 70% of students believed their scores improved because of the use of clickers (question 3). Eightyfour percent agreed that with the use of clickers they were more engaged and focused in their learning (question 5). This is consistent with the fact that students become more focused in their learning when they expect to be assessed. Eighty-five percent of students agreed that clickers should be used in all their classes to improve their learning (question 7). Students
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DISCUSSION
Benefits of Clicker Usage
The use of clickers allows students to have formative assessments of their learning without penalty to their grade. This creates a safe environment where students can make errors with no negative effect on their grade or ridicule by their classmates. These formative assessments, similar to homework questions, allow students to assess themselves. The instructor can explain wrong choices selected by students thereby clarifying student misconceptions. Those students who chose incorrectly are never identified publically or need to ask, “Why is choice b incorrect?” These clicker sessions change the student’s view of assessments. The students obtain a clear reflection of the desired outcomes of the unit, and this increases their potential to take ownership of their learning.5 The use of clickers can be expanded with well-crafted questions to stimulate discussion and student learning. Because instructors have to create good clicker questions, they reflect more on their instruction.8 However, designing and creating effective clicker questions at the highest levels of Bloom’s taxonomy requires significant creativity and time.9 When questions have multiple correct answers given or no correct answer, students grapple with their understanding of the content. Student defense of their answer choice to the class 472
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allows the students to share with each other their constructed knowledge. The instructor can then interject to correct any misconceptions and can facilitate discussion or challenge student understanding. In asking students to defend their answer orally before revealing the correct answer, the instructor can gain insight on student thinking.8 This type of discourse can improve student learning of the content and bridge several concepts. Although there were modest increases in student achievement, the use of clickers is still beneficial for instructors to reflect on their teaching. The student responses are reflective of instructional strategies used in the classroom. Identifying misconceptions and struggling students will help direct instruction and assessment. Clickers are used in university lecture courses for attendance and for monitoring students, but they are also useful in a smaller classroom setting, as found in most high schools, and can help improve student learning. In this assessment, students showed modest improvements in units that were predominately conceptual content knowledge. Students were more engaged and excited about coming to class and learning when clickers were used regularly. Students felt their learning was improved with the use of clickers even though this was not always the case. The safe and engaging learning environment created by the use of a clicker improves student beliefs of the course at the high school level.
Article
REFERENCES
(1) Duncan, D. Clickers in the Classroom: How to Enhance Science Teaching Using Classroom Response Systems; Pearson/Addison Wesley: San Francisco, CA, 2005. (2) Woelk, K. J. Chem. Educ. 2008, 85 (10), 1400−1405. (3) Kennedy, G. E.; Cutts, Q. I. J. Comput. Assisted Learn. 2005, 21, 260−268. (4) Slocum, L. J. Chem. Educ. 2008, 85 (12), 1597. (5) Crumrine, T.; Demers, C. Sci. Teach. 2007, 74.6, 64. (6) Fies, C.; Marshall, J. J. Sci. Educ. Technol. 2006, 15 (1), 101−109. (7) Ribbens, E. J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 2007, 37.2, 60. (8) Koenig, K. J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 2010, 39.3, 46. (9) Herreid, C. F. J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 2006, 36.2, 43−47.
Challenges of Clicker Usage
Limitations to clickers include cost, equity, and durability. Clicker costs consume a significant part of a typical high school science class budget because they can cost nearly $700 for a class set. Pressures to create assured experiences among classrooms lead to equity arguments. Classes without clickers are at a disadvantage, and therefore all teachers of a grade level or discipline need access to clickers. The individual remotes are fragile and need to be replaced periodically. At the university, some of these drawbacks are overcome by the student’s responsibility to purchase their clicker. Cell phone polling has become available to reduce the cost, but the use of cell phones in high school is still often restricted. One of the challenges to clicker usage is the construction of the clicker questions. Polling with recall questions has limited benefits. Constructing questions that create discourse helps students better understand the concept. When students explain their ideas aloud to their peers, they gain confidence in their knowledge. Questions with subtleties or no definite answer choice work well to challenge students. When questions create discussion, instructors are able to assess student learning and adjust their unit planning appropriately, or justify the students’ preparedness for the unit assessment.
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CONCLUSION Clickers are another tool that instructors can use to improve their classroom instruction and assessments. When teachers have a clear idea of student knowledge and ability, they can plan appropriate activities and be confident that assessments are timely. Although the cost of clickers is expensive for a high school budget, their use can transform a classroom into a positive learning environment. The student response system used in this report is a product of Turning Technologies.
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail:
[email protected]. 473
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