Student Engagement in the Classroom - To Click or Not to Click

I teach a class called Introduction to College Studies.  My students are in Grades 9-12 and are from a variety of sending schools.  One topic I have discussed with them and with my fellow colleagues is student engagement in the classroom. After much discussion, I feel that technology can be a great source to utilize to motivate and engage learning in the classroom.

We talked in class yesterday about Clickers.  I have had fellow instructors ask me if I knew anything about them, or if I had ever used them.  The answer is no.  While researching Clickers I found that there are many free applications available for use in classrooms. One that seemed interesting was Poll Everywhere.  It is a free application and you do not need to purchase any extra equipment.

Poll everywhere is an application that students can use their phones, tablets or personal computers. It works in real time, and as the students answer the questions the results are broadcasted on a web browser in a PowerPoint presentation. All you need for POLL everywhere is a phone, computer, etc.  I could see it becoming a problem if not all students have a phone or a device. In public pk-12 school, this could be the case. In higher education, most students are expected to have computers. I think the option of using phones and laptops, greatly increases student motivation, because most students have a hard time putting their devices down in the first place.  Also, the Poll Everywhere application can be used at home as well as in the classroom, unlike clickers. With Poll Everywhere you can make comments and ask open questions. The best part is the instructor and the student's receive instant audience feedback.

I have a site I use with my students to help engage and motivate them. It’s not a polling site, or a clicker application, but it is very exciting and fun.  It called Jeopardy Labs.  Her is a link to the site: https://jeopardylabs.com/. You can make your own Jeopardy game and pick all your own categories.  My students love it, they get up and out of there seats, and are genuinely having fun and learning at the same time.