Catalyzing Learner Engagement Using Cutting-Edge Classroom Response Systems in Higher Education

In this presentation, we introduce a cutting-edge technology for enacting and measuring learner engagement in novel ways. We will open by problematizing traditional approaches to learner engagement and offer a research-based solution in a new classroom response system developed at Harvard University—Learning Catalytics. The presentation will include an overview of key cognitive science principles tied to research on how students learn best. We will link those principles with the functionality of Learning Catalytics to connect learning theory to teaching practice. We will then provide an overview of the limitations of existing classroom response systems and describe how Learning Catalytics addresses those limitations. Finally, we will describe how we used Learning Catalytics to enact and measure learner engagement in novel ways, through a pilot study in an undergraduate physics classroom at Harvard University. This pilot was guided by two questions: How can we use Learning Catalytics to help students engage with subject matter in ways that will help them learn? And how can we measure student engagement in new ways using the analytics built into the system? The objective of this presentation is to introduce Learning Catalytics as a new instructional tool and respond to these questions.