I enjoyed this quote from Professor Caron's post...
"I had anticipated that the clickers would be popular with students near the top of the class (by giving them another opportunity to demonstrate their prowess), but after reading over 1,000 student evaluations I am gratified that all students, especially those near the bottom of the class, appreciate the daily feedback that the clickers provide."That is one of the great benefits of clickers. In a classroom without clickers, there seems to be a typical makeup of a class that contains a few kids that know all the answers, a couple of kids that don't know the answers but are always grabbing the teacher's attention in some fashion (good or bad), the few kids that are paying attention to the best of their ability, and the few with their heads on their desk, braiding their hair, doodling on their notebook, wishing they were anywhere but at school. In fact, it is that last group of kids that thinks, "Why bother, when they (the kids that know all the answers and aren't afraid to let everyone know it) are answering all of the teachers questions anyway?"
I remember a set of twins I had in class my first year of teaching. They were both incredibly quiet, and I remember one for his ability to do more with that simple Paint program on the computer than I could have done with all of the best art tools. He was a truly gifted artist, but he didn't say much and school just really wasn't his thing.
I recently reconnected with him and found out his interests were art, books, philosophy, tattoos, music, human rights, pacifism, animal rights, films, traveling, and learning about everything...
I was surprised by his favorite books, which included titles that made what I read seem like an introduction to chapter books, and his vocabulary, which was both varied and extensive. Who knew that all of this was contained in that quiet kid that never said much, and I considered myself a teacher that interacted extensively with her students!
I often wonder what more would I have gotten from my quiet students with clickers in my classroom. Clickers provide an outlet for them to express themselves without the pressure of attention, and for many of those students that are labeled as "the bottom half," that is something important.
Using clickers during discussion or lecture time engages every student, and many times the students that are the hardest to reach will be the ones that enjoy clickers the most. You might find that the student you have had no luck reaching for the first 6 months of the semester sits a little straighter in his seat when you pull out the clickers and for the first time seems to be paying some attention.
Do you have a story to share about how clickers have engaged not only the top half of your class, but the bottom half too? We'd love to hear it!
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