The Inaugural Conference on Classroom Response Systems: Innovations and Best Practices
Conference Details | Description | Objectives | Tracks | Keynote Speaker | Benefits to Speakers | Conference Schedule | Bibliography of Clickers | Proposal Submission
Conference Details
Date: November 15, 2008
Time: 7:30 AM (Continental Breakfast/Registration)- 5:00 PM
Location: Founder's Union Building, Shelby Campus, University of Louisville
Keynote Speakers: Drs. Tim Stelzer and Doug Duncan
Registration cost: $150 (Early Bird); $175 after August 15, 2008
Description
Since the 1980s, the use of classroom response systems, or “clickers”, has proliferated on college campuses across the United States . Faculty members from numerous disciplines use clickers for various purposes, depending on the goals of the course and the learning needs of the students. Clickers are used widely to assess the level of students' knowledge, both before introducing new material and after it has been taught; to enhance active learning strategies such as peer instruction or think-pair-share activities; to enhance class discussion on difficult subjects where anonymity of opinion is helpful; to obtain attendance or participation information; to gather feedback on teaching; or assist in testing and evaluation of students (Zhu, 2007).
In the past 25 years, articles on the scholarship of teaching surrounding the use of clickers has increased dramatically. This conference will bring together scholars from across the United States to begin the process of using that literature and our collective experience in teaching with clickers to develop innovations and “best practice” models for the use of audience response systems in the classroom.
Objectives
- Compare and contrast innovations in classroom response systems that lead to better student engagement, foster greater critical thinking, provide effective assessment and evaluation, and offer other benefits for faculty and students.
- Describe "best practices" in the use of classroom response systems.
Tracks
Please Note: Track topics have changed as of February 11, 2008.
- Social Sciences
- STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
- Business and Humanities
- Health Sciences
Concurrent sessions will be 75 minutes in length.
Keynote Speakers
Tim Stelzer, Ph.D.
Professor Timothy Stelzer received his bachelor's degree in physics from St. John's University in 1988, and his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1993. After working as a senior research assistant in the Center for Particle Theory at Durham University (UK), he joined the Department of Physics at the University of Illinois as a postdoctoral research associate in 1995. Iin 1998, he was promoted to a visiting assistant research professor and to an assistant research professor in 2000.
A high-energy particle theorist, Professor Stelzer has concentrated on standard model physics at hadron colliders. He has written extensively on top-quark physics and radiation in top events. In addition, he has developed computational methods that have dramatically reduced the difficulty of performing complex cross section calculations. He is the primary author of MadGraph ®, a software program that automatically generates the Feynman diagrams and helicity amplitude code for tree-level standard model processes. Most recently, he has been working on a new program to predict how often rare new particles would be produced and also what signatures would distinguish these new particles from the large background of particles already known. He has developed a novel multi-channel approach that efficiently integrates any scattering amplitude to obtain the cross section of any desired process.
Professor Stelzer has also been heavily involved with the Physics Education Group at Illinois, where he has led the development and implementation of tools for assessing the effectiveness of educational innovations in our introductory courses and expanding the use of web technology in physics pedagogy. He was instrumental in the development of the I-clicker ™ and is a regular on the University's "Incomplete List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by Their Students."
Doug Duncan, Ph.D.
Dr. Doug Duncan, Professor of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences of the University of Colorado and Director of Fiske Planetarium . Dr. Duncan is a national leader in presenting the excitement of scientific discoveries to the general public; he has appeared on BBC television and on the National Public Radio Program All Things Considered, and has lectured at the Smithsonian Institution. He is also the author of one of the first books about teaching with clickers. His book, “Clickers in the Astronomy Classroom” (published by Addison Wesley) is publishing in a second edition in late 2008 and shows evidence of its impact on student learning and attitudes. Dr. Duncan is a frequent speaker on the power of classroom response systems as a teaching tool.
To learn more be sure to visit Dr. Duncan's website.
Benefits to Speakers
- $75.00 registration fee (a 50% reduction)
- All presentations will be published in the "Conference Proceedings"
Conference Schedule
| 7:30-8:30 AM | Registration and Continental Breakfast |
| 8:30-8:45 AM | Welcome |
| 8:45-10:15 AM | Keynote |
| 10:15-10:30 AM | Food/Drink Break |
| 10:30-11:45 AM | 1st Session |
| 11:45-12:00 PM | Break |
| 12:00-1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 1:00-1:15 PM | Break |
| 1:15-2:30 PM | 2nd Session |
| 2:30-3:00 PM | Break |
| 3:00-4:15 PM | 3rd Session |
| 4:15-4:30 PM | Break |
| 4:30-5:00 PM | Door Prizes and Closing Comments |
Bibliography of Research Related to Classroom Response Systems
Research related to classroom response systems available through Vanderbilt University's Center for Teaching (opens in a new browser window).
Proposal Submission
Thank you for your interest, however proposals are no longer being accepted. Please return May 1, 2008 and register to attend the conference.