Improve Engagement With Polling Apps for the Classroom
Would you like to find a way to increase student engagement during a classroom lecture? Would you like to get feedback on whether each student has grasped a complex concept during class before test time? In order to make instruction more interactive and to include active learning that motivates students in the classroom, Echo360 and Echo360 have developed Point Solutions, a powerful audience response and engagement system for students of all ages, from elementary school through university students. To learn more about how this technology can improve engagement in your classroom, continue reading.
How does a polling app work and how does it increase engagement?
Point Solutions is a foolproof way to get your audience to participate in the learning activity, whether they are joining you in person or online. Its polling feature transforms lectures and presentations into interactive sessions that allow you to truly connect with your students.
Using their own mobile device or one provided by the educational institution, students can provide immediate feedback in the form of polls for knowledge checking, in-class surveys, group work, and other engaging activities. They allow even the quietest students to participate in a class “conversation” because each response is recorded in the form of a pie chart, a graph, or other visual representation and every response is given equal weight. Because each student needs to respond to the question before moving on, it encourages the engagement of every student throughout the lesson.
There are just about limitless ways the polling feature can be used. An instructor can insert a question to make sure students have understood an important concept. If most students have, the instructor can move on. If a significant number have not, they can go into more detail on the concept to ensure full understanding of all students.
The polling feature doesn’t always have to be used for academic purposes. If the class has won an award, like a pizza party, the polling feature can be used to decide how many pizzas will be ordered with each topping. By using the polling feature in fun ways as well as academically, students are encouraged to see it as a fun activity, which is an additional reason for them to be happy to participate during lessons.
Are classroom polling apps easy to use?
Point Solutions is designed to be easy to learn for both instructors and students. It has a user-friendly interface that is easy to understand. You can choose to use scheduled or self-paced questions—you have the ultimate control over how you use Point Solutions’ polling capabilities.
In addition to the polling features of Point Solutions, you can use the gamification features of EchoPoll to further engage your students. These features allow you to award badges for completion or accomplishments, and students can see what badges each other student has. This promotes friendly competition and is a great motivation for each student to strive to do their best.
As you create presentations, you can easily integrate Echo360, an easy-to-use, browser-based video editor that works well with popular LMS like Blackboard, Canvas, Google Classroom, and more. You can quickly embed videos into classroom presentations and with Echo360’s Automatic Speech Recognition, create editable, searchable transcripts that can be easily made into closed captioning so your content is truly accessible for all students.
How can I engage my students using a polling app in my classroom?
Point Solutions and the entire suite of products we have to offer are created based on our e³ philosophy, which espouses equity, engagement, and evidence. To learn how you can use them in your classroom, contact us today. We’ll demonstrate all the features and answer any questions you have, and get you started as soon as you’d like.