Active learning in the maths and stats classroom using free classroom response systems

A partially flipped learning approach has been used to teach a first year business mathematics and statistics module, with students having access to video solutions for most homework questions. This makes available valuable classtime for active learning approaches. One such approach is the use of free classroom response systems (CRS) such as Kahoot, Socrative and Quizlet to enable quick fun interventions that engage students in active learning. Students generally are enthusiastic, enjoying the participation and interactions. More broadly CRS can be used to individually quiz students in class, encouraging them to prepare properly and reduce cognitive load during lectures by encouraging mastery of basic terminology and concepts. Their collective responses to multiple choice questions can be displayed as bar charts, prompting discussions, surfacing misconceptions and enabling the identification of possible areas of weakness. Engaging group activities can be used as ice-breakers and to foster camaraderie amongst students. Bring your device - you will experience taking a quiz with Kahoot, work through a self-paced quiz with immediate feedback using Socrative and compete within a team using Quizlet. The workshop will then look at how to set up activities using these tools and discuss how to effectively integrate them into your teaching.