1) Dr. Nik Reeves-McLaren implemented the lecture engagement tool LectureTools to address poor student engagement and falling exam scores in his materials science lectures. 2) LectureTools allows instructors to add interactive polling questions, videos, and other elements to PowerPoint slides. Students can participate using their devices during class. 3) Most students signed up for LectureTools accounts and provided positive feedback on how it helped their understanding, though some found it distracting. The software failed during one lecture but students still participated. 4) While LectureTools was generally a positive experience, Dr. Reeves-McLaren notes he could make better use of interactive elements and that having

1. LectureTools
Dr Nik Reeves-McLaren
Research andTeaching Fellow
Materials Science and Engineering

2. The Problem
• My ‘traditional’ teaching is mainly to PGT students
• Poor engagement in class and with material
• Attendances excellent at PGT level
• Average exam scores falling in recent years

3. Poor Engagement?

4. Poor Engagement
• Guardian article by Donald Clark:“Ten reasons we
should ditch University lectures”
• http://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-
network/blog/2014/may/15/ten-reasons-we-
should-ditch-university-lectures

5. The Problem with Lectures
1. Babylonian hour
2. Passive observers
3. Attention fall-off
4. Note-taking skills not taught
5. Disabilities

6. The Problem with Lectures
6. One bite at the cherry
7. Cognitive overload
8. Tyranny of location
9. Tyranny of time
10. Poor presentation

7. 1233AD: Not much has changed?

8. Setting the Scene
• Two new modules: MAT6664 and MAT6665
• MAT6664: ~ 45 New MSc students (all MSE),
95%+ international students
• MAT6665: The 6664 cohort plus ~ 35 DDP
students (MSE + other Engineering) + PDRAs…

9. Setting the Scene
• Bout of viral meningitis in the summer had left me
with impaired hearing
• Couldn’t guarantee I could hear students if they
had questions
• Made holiday at Butlins calmer…

10. Setting the Scene
• Tried several approaches to improve engagement
whilst also adapting to make life easier for me:
• Clickers
• Twitter
• Screencasts (YouTube/MOLE)
• LectureTools

11. What is LectureTools?
• “An Echo360 Active Learning Company”
• “Student Engagement Solution”
• “Internet-based lecture supplement”
• University Pilot, contact: tel@sheffield.ac.uk

12. So, umm… What is LectureTools?
• Teacher creates notes in PowerPoint or Keynote
• Upload notes to LectureTools, then add interactive
elements
• Students bring devices to lecture, log in to
LectureTools and can follow along, make notes,
interact… and ask questions / raise ‘confusion flags’

13. WhatThe Students See

14. First Challenge: Devices
• I asked (42) MAT6664 students if they would be
comfortable bringing a device to class:

15. Second Challenge: Sign-up
• All very well me trying LectureTools if the
students wouldn’t sign up for a free account…
• Sent MOLE Announcement & Spent 5-10 minutes
in first lecture on setup and induction
• 72 out of ~ 85 signed up (~85%) - many during
the first lecture

16. How I Used LectureTools

17. How I Used LectureTools
• Hotspot Questions - “Image Quiz”

18. How I Used LectureTools
• Hotspot Questions - “Image Quiz”

19. How I Used LectureTools
• Other Interactive Elements:
• Multiple Choice Questions
• Video (linked fromYouTube)
• Short / Numerical Answer, Ordered Lists

20. How I Used LectureTools
• Multiple Choice Questions

21. How I Used LectureTools
• Generally ~ 30-50% of students engaged directly
with the exercises in LectureTools
• Interactive element allowed me to address
“Muddiest Points” in situ using theVisualiser
• Also used some of the same quizzes in later lectures
to revise key points - students scored much better

22. Student Feedback

23. Student Feedback - Lecture 1
84%!

24. Student Feedback - Lecture 1
74%

25. Student Feedback - Lecture 1

26. Student Feedback - Lecture 1
76%

27. Student Feedback - Short Answer
• It is good
• Very helpful and enjoyable
• It is very helpful for further understanding
• Positive
• It was hard to follow what Nik was saying whilst typing...its
easier to write notes in book.... but that may be because I’m
old-school..It will probably get easier with practise :) Also the
students took a while to quiet down..hard to hear Nik in the beginning

28. Student Feedback
• It is good... and should let teachers answer questions after class.
• We could not download the lecture notes from LectureTools,
that's may be the only thing inconvenient.
• Easy to use but can be distracting from listening to the lecture
• I am wondering how to download the lecture file. And some
letters in the equation do not have a good explanation, so I got
confused about some equations.
• Interesting and interactive

29. Student Feedback - Final
HELPED UNDERSTANDING?
52%

30. Student Feedback - Final
ADDED ENJOYMENT?
54%

31. Caveat: Lecture 2 Disaster!
• I had three 2-hr lectures using LectureTools…
• The software failed - for me alone - early into the
middle lecture…
• Around 10% of students still completed interactive
elements even though I had switched to Keynote!
• Lecture 3: Mainly used it at start / end

32. Closing Remarks

33. CLOSING REMARKS
• LectureTools was easy to use and largely a positive
experience for both me & the students
• Personally, I can still make better use of this:
• Needed more interactive elements!
• Promote better use of questions / confusion flags

34. CLOSING REMARKS
• Smartphone screen too small; worked well on
tablets or laptops
• Less disruptive than switching apps to run
TurningPoint for clickers… but still a long delay in
getting questions answered
• Always have a backup when usingTechnology!