Using Technology-Based Methods to Foster Learning in Large 
Lecture Classes: Evidence for the Pedagogic Value of Clickers 

R. Mayer, A. Stull, K. Almeroth, B. Bimber, D. Chun, M. Bulger, 
J. Campbell, A. Knight, and H. Zhang
University of California
Santa Barbara, CA 93106-5110


Today, many college courses are taught in large lecture halls 
that hold hundreds of students.   Instructors of large lecture 
courses may be concerned that this learning environment can 
lead students to be cognitively passive.  This study examines 
the effectiveness of a technology-supported instructional method 
that is intended to allow learner interactivity in a large 
lecture class, and thereby foster deeper learning.  In 
particular, proponents have proposed using a personal response 
system (or "clickers") in which students press a button on a 
hand-held remote control device corresponding to their answer 
to a multiple choice question projected on a screen, then see 
the class distribution of answers, and discuss the thinking 
leading to the correct answer.