Learning to Click: An Evaluation of the Personal Response System Clicker Technology in Introductory Marketing Courses

The incorporation of personal response system (PRS) clickers into teaching pedagogy has created implications for teaching practice and student satisfaction. Using a current undergraduate business student population, the authors measure student attitudes and preferences and identify student performance outcomes relating to the use of PRS clickers. Study results validate the broad applicability of this technology by showing positive student attitudes, learning experiences, and the mitigation of barriers toward acceptance of this technology. Importantly, measures of student performance correlate to self-reported learning outcomes realized through using PRS clickers. The study also finds evidence that PRS clickers benefit those students who are frequently disadvantaged in the classroom. Specifically, students with a low need for cognition or facing cultural barriers are shown to have a better learning experience when using clicker technology. The article concludes with recommendations on applying PRS clicker technology to teaching practice and identifies areas for future investigation. (Contains 4 figures, 1 table and 1 note.)