Audience response

Audience response is a type of interaction associated with the use of audience response systems, to create interactivity between a presenter and its audience. Audience response is a type of interaction associated with the use of audience response systems, to create interactivity between a presenter and its audience. Systems for co-located audiences combine wireless hardware with presentation software, and systems for remote audiences may use telephones or web polls for audiences watching through television or the Internet. Various names are used for this technology, including real time response, the worm, dial testing, and audience response meters. In educational settings, such systems are often called 'student response systems' or 'personal response systems.' The hand-held remote control that students use to convey their responses to questions is often called a 'clicker.' More recent entrants into the market do not require specialized hardware. There are commercial and open-source, cloud-based tools that allow responses from the audience using a range of personal computing devices such as cell phones, smartphones, and laptops. These types of systems have added new types of functionality as well, such as free text responses that are aggregated into sortable word clouds, as well as the more traditional true/false and multiple choice style questions. This type of system also mitigates some of the concerns articulated below in the 'Challenges of audience response' section. Hardware Based Audience Response:The presenter uses a computer and a video projector to project a presentation for the audience to see. In the most common use of such audience response systems, presentation slides built with the audience response software display questions with several possible answers, more commonly referred to as multiple choice questions. The audience participates by selecting the answer they believe to be correct and pushing the corresponding key on their individual wireless keypad. Their answer is then sent to a base station – or receiver – that is also attached to the presenter's computer. The audience response software collects the results, and the aggregate data is graphically displayed within the presentation for all to see. Some clickers also have additional keys, allowing the presenter to ask (and audience members to answer) True/False questions or even questions calling for particular numerical answers. Depending on the presenter's requirements, the data can either be collected anonymously (e.g., in the case of voting) or it can be traced to individual participants in circumstances where tracking is required (e.g., classroom quizzes, homework, or questions that ultimately count towards a student's course grade). Incoming data may also be stored in a database that resides on the host computer, and data reports can be created after the presentation for further analysis. Software/Cloud Based Audience Response:The presenter uses a computer to create the questions, sometimes called polls. In this case however, those questions can be open ended, dial testing, and votable open ended as well as multiple choice. Those questions are then downloaded into the presenter's presentation program of choice. During the presentation, the questions automatically display within the presentation program, or from a web browser, and can in some cases even be displayed only on the participant's tablet computer or smartphone. Results are instantly tabulated via the internet, and presented on screen in real time, including grading the 'correct' answer if desired. Some services offer presenters real time moderation for open ended responses or questions prior to displaying them on screen. Depending on the presenter's requirements, the data can be collected anonymously, or it can be traced to individual participants who have created accounts in advance of the poll. This method is commonly used on corporate training where attendance must be verified, and in classrooms, where grades must be assigned. Data from both methods can be saved and analyzed by the presenter and loaded manually or via API into learning management systems.