Audience response systems are used to teach and receive immediate feedback. They can be used in a variety of settings, but they are most often applied in educational and professional situations. These systems require software and hardware components to work effectively.

Audience Response Systems

Audience response systems help facilitate communication in presentations and lecture scenarios. They allow presenters to ask questions, record audience responses and give feedback based on participant answers. These systems require hardware and software working in conjunction to allow both parties to provide and receive the communication they need. Hardware usually involves the control consoles (or “clickers”) used by the audience and the receiver to take responses. The software is usually a slide show program or specialized audience response program. Presenters can take polls, offer quizzes and teach information with these systems as answers can be provided in various formats such as true/false, multiple choice, short answer and numeric.

Educational Applications

These systems are sometimes referred to as classroom response systems or student response systems in educational settings. Professors can immediately receive student feedback with the systems as opposed to asking students to raise their hands individually for each presented question. They can also be used to take attendance, record grades and collect other data. There are several benefits to using such systems when compared to standard question-and-answer sessions. Professors can present sets of interactive questions at one time to allow more material to be covered in one session. Students are also better encouraged to respond by the ability to answer anonymously. Instructors can then create discussions based around the answers received.

Professional Applications

There are several ways audience response systems can be used in professional settings just as in educational applications. The systems can be used for small and large-scale scenarios. They are useful in daily meetings when passing information to multiple employees is necessary. Audience response systems can also be used at large conferences when giving presentations or passing information to and from fellow attendees. The general purpose for these systems is to keep colleagues on one accord when tasks are to be completed, and they are helpful when teaching new protocol for business procedures. Audience response systems make such meetings more time-efficient than slower sessions that rely solely on verbal communication.

Choosing a Response System

There are many different types of response devices available to meet the needs of various organizations. Features that should be taken into consideration include range from responders to receivers, keypads, weight, size, battery type, display screen and keypad characters. The hardware used is just as important as the software that goes with it, so the appropriate system should allow responses to be taken within popular software programs. Ideal software will also be able to immediately generate reports based off of response data. This is useful for organizing data as saved information that can be retrieved or made into visual diagrams later. Training is helpful for getting the most out of the system, and it should be made available upon acquiring the hardware or programs.

There are many ways to use response systems, but instructors and business professionals should explore options thoroughly to choose the best system for their particular lesson plans or business needs.

To know more about response systems visit: www.meridiaars.com