Using Clickers (Student Response System) with Blackboard

Student Response System (SRS) is a technology which allows faculty to receive immediate feedback from students wirelessly with the use of small handheld devices commonly referred to as 'clickers' (displayed below). Turning Technologies is a Student Response System that has been centrally adopted by NIU starting from Fall 2011 semester.

Turning Technologies student response system can be used in conjunction with Blackboard to create a complete interactive learning experience. You can use Turning Technologies software in the classroom to engage your students and provide them with instant feedback and then upload results from your class assessments conducted with Turning Technologies SRS to Blackboard.

Hardware - The following components are needed to run Turning Technologies SRS in a classroom or lecture hall: computer with Turning Technologies software on it, projector, receiver, and a response pad (clicker). NIU has adopted ResponseCard NXT type of student response pad (pictured on the left).

Faculty who plan to teach with clickers, can request an instructor kit from the regional Turning Technologies representative: A. J. Parker (aparker@turningtechnologies.com / 866.746.3015). NIU Provost's Office sponsored smart classrooms have Turning Technologies software already installed on faculty member stations (http://www.its.niu.edu/its/labs/classroom_locations.shtml). If you teach in your department or college supported smart classrooms, please contact your local technical staff for software information.

Software - the following software is installed in ITS managed smart classrooms:

• Turning Point - allows to integrate questions into existing or new PowerPoint presentations.
• TurningPoint AnyWhere - allows polling in any application, including whiteboard software, web browsers, PDFs, Microsoft Office products, or Keynote.
• TurningKey - allows to use SRS for self-paced testing.

Software Download: http://www.turningtechnologies.com/responsesystemsupport/downloads/

Training Documents:

• 8 Steps TuringPoint
• TurningPoint for New Users
• Additional Topics in TurningPoint
• TurningPoint AnyWhere
• 8 Steps TurningPoint AnyWhere
• TurningKey
• ResultsManager

Online Tutorials: http://trainingportal.turningtechnologies.com/

Importing a Participant List from Blackboard

Using TurningPoint in the Smart Classroom

Uploading Session Data to Blackboard

Importing a Participant List From Blackboard

You need to import a participant list from Blackboard typically at the beginning of the semester after all of the students have registered their clickers in the Blackboard course you are teaching. Step-by-step instructions for students on how to register clickers in a Blackboard course can be found here: http://www.its.niu.edu/its/blackboard/clickers/turningpoint.shtml.To import a participant list from Blackboard,

1. Select Integrations from the Tools menu.

2. Select Blackboard, type https://webcourses.niu.edu and click Next.

3. Type your NIU AccountID username and password and click Next.

4. Select Import Participant List and click Next.

5. Select the course to import and click Finish.

6. Name the list and click Save. Note: By default the list will be saved in the TurningPoint Participant folder in the MyDocuments folder. You can point it to be saved at a different location if you choose to.

7. Click OK when confirmed that the list was imported.

7. Copy the participant list that you have imported onto the USB/flash drive and bring it with you (along with the TurningPoint presentation) to the smart classroom. Alternately, the participant list can be saved on the network drive, if it is accessible to you from the smart classroom.

Using TurningPoint in the Smart Classroom

1. Copy the participant list and your presentation (from your office or home computer) onto the USB/flash drive or the network drive that you have access to from the smart classroom. Bring the flash drive with you to the smart classroom.

2. In the smart classroom, plug in the receiver to the computer.

3. Plug in the USB/flash drive to the computer (if your files are located on a flash drive).

4. Open TurningPoint by double-clicking on the icon from the Desktop.

5. Open your presentation from the Office button (locate the presentation on your flash drive or the network drive and choose Open).

6. Click Participants and choose Import a Participant List.

7. Browse to either your flash drive or network drive to locate the participant list. Click Open.

8. Select the Participant List.

9. Reset the session.

10. Run the presentation.

11. Save the session. Make sure to save it either on your flash drive or the network drive so that you can access the session file from your office.

Uploading Session Data to Blackboard

1. Select Integrations from the Tools menu.

2. Select Blackboard, type https://webcourses.niu.edu and click Next.

3. Type your NIU AccountID username and password and click Next.

4. Select Export Grades/Email Student Grades and click Next.

5. Select the course and click Next.

6. Click Other Session.

7. Browse to the location where you saved the session file from your class (it could be your USB/flash drive or your network drive) and click Open.

8. Place a check mark next to 'Add Grades shown above to Blackboard Gradebook'

9. Specify the name of the assessment which will also be the name of the column in Blackboard Grade Center. The score should reflect the total number of points possible for that assessment.

10. Optionally, you can choose to email students. 

11. Click Ok when the confirmation dialog 'Data exported successfully.' appears.

12. The column can now be viewed in the Blackboard Grade Center. The grade is also available to students in their view of the grades.

More details regarding the system are available from Turning Technologies at http://www.turningtechnologies.com/.

Last updated: 08/29/2011