24 - Using Clickers to Enhance Learning in Upper-Level Mathematics Courses

Summary

Introduction

I began using clickers in the classroom in Fall 2005. Before using them, I was skeptical about their value. Indeed, my initial bias was very much against multiple choice questions and against what I perceived as the impersonal nature of the technology. Nonetheless, I was intrigued by (and helping to co-author) the collection of ConcepTests available as a supplement to Calculus, by Hughes-Hallett, et.al. I decided to experiment with using both the ConcepTests and the clickers in my calculus classes in 2005. From the very first semester, my students loved this addition to the course. Also, to my great surprise, the use of clickers and ConcepTests significantly increased the interactive conversations in the classroom. Student engagement with the material was noticeably higher and objective evaluations (such as grades on final exams) improved. I have been using the clickers ever since, and (at the urging of my students) have expanded their use into my upper level classes as well. This paper is about using the clickers in a 200-level Introduction to Proofs course and a 300-level Abstract Algebra course.

All the clicker questions used in the Introduction to Proofs course and the Abstract Algebra course (as well as a 300-level Graph Theory course) were written by me, and I am happy to share them. They are available off my page on the St. Lawrence University website myslu.stlawu.edu/~plock. A link to this page can also be found on the Math QUEST homepage.