LEARNING CATALYTICS: A CLOUD-BASED PLATFORM FOR INTERACTIVE TEACHING

[This is Table 7 at the Digital Geology Express session—a blend of workshop and digital poster. Free participant sign-up at www.digitalplanet.org. Participants get a seat at each table and hands-on interaction.]

Research shows that interactive teaching methods, such as peer instruction, are highly effective tools for developing students' conceptual understanding. While no technology is necessary to take advantage of these teaching methods, technology can enable the instructor to better understand student comprehension, prompt students to engage in deeper thinking, and facilitate more productive student discussions in the classroom. In this interactive presentation, we will introduce Learning Catalytics, a cloud-based platform for interactive teaching developed by Eric Mazur, Gary King, and Brian Lukoff, that allows students to use web-enabled devices -- laptops, smartphones, and tablets -- to engage in rich, authentic inquiry tasks in class. By "authentic" we mean that the class mirrors real research and students have the opportunity to make real discoveries, as opposed to apprenticeship style, where students either watch their instructor or perform studies where the instructor knows the desired outcome. With Learning Catalytics, instructors can go beyond clickers and other response systems to create a rich interactive environment that integrates assessment with learning.