Using a “clicker” in an introductory science class has been common practice for several years at Marquette. Now, their use is becoming more frequent at universities throughout the U.S., with more than 1,000 universities using the devices regularly.
Yet while they make some classroom procedures smoother, many professors are noticing instances of academic dishonesty surrounding the devices as they become more popular.
Clickers are devices similar to a remote control that allow students to answer quiz questions and can take attendance in larger classes. When a student purchases the device, they are registered online with the class so the student can be accounted for during class participation activities.
One of the most common forms of academic dishonesty while using clickers is when a student takes more than one clicker to class –– theirs and another students’ –– and “clicks” the other person in. Clickers also make it easier for students to share answers during in-class quizzes.
Professors have mixed reactions to clickers and how they contribute to academic dishonesty.
Christopher Stockdale, an associate professor of physics at Marquette, said despite having a positive experience with clickers, he still monitors how students use the devices in his 100-person lectures.
“I normally walk around and make sure that each student has just one clicker, but I’ve never had a real problem with academic misconduct,” he said.
Stockdale added that clickers have been useful in his classroom because they give shy students an opportunity to participate without fear of being embarrassed.
“People are very hesitant to speak out in class or raise their hand to express an opinion,” he said. “The anonymity of clickers is a very liberating move –– allowing students to express an opinion without possibly facing ridicule from their neighbors.”
This same anonymity, however, is what has caused problems with cheating for professors at Marquette and other universities.
Michelle Mynlieff, a professor of biological sciences at Marquette, said it is considered cheating if a student is using more than one clicker in class.
“I’ve reported students to the dean for doing this,” she said. “However, cheating can occur whether using a clicker or not. Either situation can probably occur in a lecture hall where I can’t monitor the whole classroom.”
Mynlieff said despite issues that have occurred with cheating and clickers, she has also had positive experiences with them.
“(They) are a great way to give students a sample of the types of questions that might appear on an exam in a low stakes situation,” she said.
Jennifer Gallagher, a sophomore in the College of Health Sciences, said she has noticed several instances of cheating from her classmates while using clickers in her introductory biology and chemistry classes.
She added that while the clickers were efficient, they made it easier for her classmates to cheat.
“There was definitely dishonesty with the clickers, but I’m not sure they are more dishonest than if you were taking a written quiz,” Gallagher said. “It may be easier to be dishonest with clickers since you can just see what button someone else pressed.”