Subjects like astrophysics, mechanics and thermodynamics are naturally intimidating to students, but with the new "clicker" system of lecturing, the physics department is hoping to make these topics more accessible.
"The system works somewhat like a game show clicker," said Sanjay Mishra, associate professor in the physics department and the first professor to implement the system into his lectures. "I project a question onto the screen through PowerPoint and the students have a small device on their desk where they can press a button for a, b, or c.
"The responses are sent to my computer and immediately graded."
Mishra first thought about implementing the system back when he was obtaining his Ph.D.
"I liked the idea of this 'clicker' system because it has several advantages for the student as well as the instructor," he said. "First of all, it forces all students to participate in class.
"Some students are shy and don't like to respond orally to questions, but this way all they have to do is press a button and it is anonymous."
He said it also forces students to come to class regularly and allows professors to get instant feedback.
"We can use the questions as a type of pop-quiz so students make a point to be in class more often," Mishra said. "It also allows me to immediately judge what topics and areas need to be more thoroughly covered, because after each question a bar graph is produced showing what percentage of the class got the question right and what percentage got it wrong."
The "clicker" is also an easy grading system for professors because the computer does all the work and it can gather other statistical information based on gender or race.
"We have received a lot of positive feedback from students and from other professors saying that they are interested in this system," said Shah Jahan, professor and chair of the physics department. "I think it is a great thing and would like to see it implemented in other classes."
Mishra has been using the system in his lectures for the past year and considers it a part of the future of wireless communication.
"I am the first professor to be using it here at The University of Memphis, but my idea is to use it and make other faculty members aware of it and hopefully they will adopt it," he said. "I would love to see more professors using it by next semester."
Mishra said that right now, other universities around the country are implementing this system and he expects it to be widely used in a year or so.
"It sounds like a different and more interesting way of sitting through lectures," said Brian Knight, a junior biology major. "It seems like it would help me keep up in class."
