Engaging Minds: University of Canterbury and EchoPoll
by Alison Maloney
As Team Leader of Blended Learning and Academic Development at the University of Canterbury, Dr Brad Hurren is on a mission to make complex material engaging and accessible for every student. In addition to this Team Leader role, Hurren is also a teaching academic – he works with over 200 on-campus students and 20 distance learners, some of whom are high-performance athletes – he knows first-hand the challenge of delivering complex, hands-on subject matter in a way that captivates and involves every student.
Applying for an Echo360 e3 Tech grant in 2023 offered Hurren and his colleagues Donna Thompson and Pablo Taylor, both already responsible for the administration of EchoVideo at the University, the opportunity to get hands on with EchoPoll, an interactive polling tool designed to engage students and enhance learning both in the classroom and online.
In this video Dr Brad Hurren talks about the University of Canterbury’s decision to adopt EchoPoll enterprise-wide.
Wanting to highlight the difference between learning at high school and the academic rigour of being responsible for your own learning at University, Hurren found EchoPoll’s academic tone and flexible features more aligned with a university setting.
In his lectures and workshops, Hurren uses EchoPoll to conduct knowledge checks, track student mastery, and adjust the pace of lessons based on real-time feedback. Whether it’s identifying muscle structures through hotspot questions or gauging students’ comfort levels with difficult topics, EchoPoll allows Hurren to tailor his teaching to student needs in a way traditional methods don’t.
“Anatomy and physiology are very tangible, three-dimensional subjects,” said Hurren. “It’s crucial for students to engage with the material in a hands-on way. Traditionally, we’ve used models, practical demonstrations, and dissections, but EchoPoll allows us to expand those methods into new and exciting directions.”
Hurren uses EchoPoll in both lectures and workshop. In lectures he uses the tool for quick knowledge checks—sometimes it’s a multiple-choice question, or he might show an image of a muscle and ask students to pinpoint specific structures. He’s not just testing knowledge but also guiding the flow of the lesson based on how well students are grasping the material.
In more intimate classroom settings, such as workshops where smaller groups of students can engage on a deeper level, EchoPoll’s individual and team features allow attributing answers to specific students and offers gamified elements, like leaderboards, that helps foster an interactive learning environment.
Hurren notes how he finds the analytics available in EchoPoll and EchoVideo – the Echosystem tools the University of Canterbury has adopted – really helpful as he can see in real-time how the students are engaging with the content being delivered and allows him to be reflective and agile in realtime.
Dr Brad Hurren explains why having real-time analytics supports learning and teaching.
Feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive. Many, particularly those transitioning from high school, appreciate the platform’s more mature and academically focused interface, which Hurren believes helps shift their mindset towards higher education.
“Our students don’t want to sit and listen to a lecture for 50 minutes straight, they want to be part of the learning process, and EchoPoll helps facilitate that in a meaningful way."
Hurren’s success with EchoPoll has sparked interest from other academics at the University of Canterbury. His unique blend of traditional teaching with innovative technology is serving as a model for others who are looking to move beyond conventional teaching methods.
“We’re encouraging academics to think about how tools like EchoPoll can engage students in ways they might not have considered before. It’s not just about testing but enhancing learning in real-time,” said Hurren.
To those who worry that introducing tools such as EchoPoll create a conflict with the amount of content, Hurren reminds academics that introducing new tools offers a way to adjust delivering the same content by using a different mechanism to do so. “Anatomy and physiology are jargon and content heavy and using solutions like EchoPoll and EchoVideo provides another opportunity to deliver the content in different but still meaningful ways.
Dr Brad Hurren explains how having new tools to use is an opportunity and not a challenge.
As technology continues to reshape education, Brad Hurren’s use of EchoPoll at the University of Canterbury exemplifies how innovative tools can enhance learning and empower students. His forward-thinking approach is helping to set a new standard for teaching anatomy and physiology, making complex material more accessible and engaging for all students.
HEADING TO ASCILITE?
Two of Echo360’s e3 Tech Grant recipients are presenting this year.
Leveraging Classroom Polling and Artificial Intelligence to Enhance Learner Engagement and Metacognition in a First-Year Anatomy and Physiology Course
Dr Brad Hurren (University of Canterbury)
December 3rd, 12:00 – 12:20PM
Green Room
How worked example Echo360 videos and embedded polls with students as partners improved learning outcomes in Accounting.
Elizabeth Marsland (QUT)
December 2nd, 12:00PM – 12:20 PM
White Room