Using Clicker Technology for Large-Scale Classroom Experiments in Economics

经济学课堂实验设计的最新进展帮助讲师以更有说服力和可理解的方式向学生传达经济思想，以应对经济理论高度抽象性和通用性对有效学习的挑战。在规模较大的大学，入学率最高的经济学课程是入门课程。这些课程通常以大型讲座形式授课，由于后勤方面的挑战，不适合包括课堂实验。相对较新的“点击器”（clicker）技术在支持这些大班的经济实验和主动学习方面显示出了良好的前景。课堂上的点击器可以让学生通过输入板单独回答教师的问题，然后收集到的数据可以立即汇总到教师的笔记本电脑上，以提供即时的解释性材料。这个项目通过开发一个基于网络的“点击实验”平台，将点击器技术扩展到课堂实验中。该项目正在开发适合于微观和宏观经济学原理课程的点击实验。在一个点击器实验中，学生使用他们的输入板做出决定，教师的笔记本电脑通过互联网将这些数据转发到服务器进行存储和处理。具有解释性值的汇总结果通过教室投影仪返回给班级。（学生也可以在课外使用该平台的网络界面查看他们的个人成绩。）对经济学课堂实验效果的智力价值评估表明，利用实验的小组的学生在经济学知识的标准化测试和课堂考试中表现更好。但是，由于课堂实验很难在大班中进行，因此在这个项目出现之前，这种教学上的改进通常不可能用于原理学生。更广泛的影响Clicker技术允许以合理的价格轻松地在课堂上与学生互动。在这个项目中使用点击器的公司表示，其他教师也有兴趣为各自学科的课程开发定制的点击器模块。这个项目的成功结果可能会鼓励其他教师追求这个目标。许多经济学的实验设计在心理学、政治学和社会学等其他社会科学中都有解释。这些实验的点击器实现将允许这些相关学科的大班教师将这种新的主动学习增强带给他们的学生。

Economics (82)Recent advances in the design of classroom experiments in economics have helped lecturers convey economic ideas to students in a more convincing and understandable manner, meeting the challenge to effective learning resulting from the high level of abstraction and generality of economic theory. At large universities, the highest enrollment classes in economics are introductory classes. These are typically taught in a large lecture format that is not amenable to the inclusion of classroom experiments due to logistical challenges. The relatively new "clicker" technology has shown good promise in supporting economic experiments and active learning in these very large classes. A clicker interlude during a lecture allows students to individually respond to instructor questions via the entry pads, and the collected data can then be immediately aggregated at the instructor's laptop to provide on-the-fly expositional material. This project is extending clicker technology to classroom experiments by developing a web-based platform for "clicker experiments." The project is developing clicker experiments that are appropriate for Principles of Micro- and Macroeconomics classes. In a clicker experiment, students make decisions using their entry pads, and the instructor's laptop forwards these data over the Internet to a server for storage and processing. Aggregated results with expositional value are returned back to the class via a classroom projector. (Students can also view their individual results outside of class using the platform's web interface.) Intellectual Merit Assessments of the efficacy of classroom experiments in economics have shown that students in sections utilizing experiments perform better on standardized tests of economic knowledge and on class examinations. But, since classroom experiments are difficult to run in large classes, this pedagogical enhancement has typically not been possible for Principles students until the advent of this project. Broader Impacts Clicker technology allows for easy in-class student interaction at a reasonable price. The company whose clickers are being utilized in this project has indicated that other instructors are interesting in developing custom clicker modules for classes in their respective disciplines. A successful outcome in this project is likely to encourage other instructors to pursue this goal. Many experimental designs for economics have interpretations in other social sciences such as psychology, political science, and sociology. A clicker implementation of these experiments would permit instructors of large classes in these allied disciplines to bring this new active learning enhancement to their students.