Research has shown the benefits of “clickers” (i.e., student response systems).
Whether you are teaching a class or delivering a presentation, learner/audience interaction is key.
Polls are one way to do this. There are a number of different options out there–some are free, other’s allow learners to use cell phones, and so forth. The following are few that I am aware of. I have used PollEveryWhere.com and TwtPoll.com in the past with mixed results.
- http://www.polleverywhere.com/
- http://wiffiti.com/
- http://www.iclicker.com/dnn/Products/webclicker/tabid/156/Default.aspx
- http://www.tophatmonocle.com/
- http://www.turningtechnologies.com/audienceresponseproducts/responseoptions/responseware/
- http://twtpoll.com
What are your experiences? What others have you used?
Hey Patrick, just found you site off of your ‘baseball card” doc that you just sent to me. I have used PollEveryWhere, but do not like that (at least with the free account) I can only have 1 question per poll. Need to look into the upgraded version.
Also, dealing with teens that either do not have cell phone, texting or just forgot them can be a hassle. I have partners text for each other if one does not have a phone. Then there is always the looming question in the back of my head that says, “do the kids without cell phones fill ostracized?”…
I have had good and bad experiences with PollEveryWhere. The first time I used it was for a presentation but nobody (including myself) could get cell coverage in the building I was presenting in. I later had better luck when I allowed users the ability to vote online or via text messaging. This gives users choice and often in my experience with my learners at least, nearly everyone has either a cell OR access to a computer. But I think every educator should think about his/her audience and pros / cons of bringing cell phones into the classroom as teaching tools. I have also used TwtPoll in online courses but the first time I did it, it disable the announcement tool in the LMS I was using. Long story short… I love the concept of polling software but there can be a number of challenges.