Interact with your audience with online poll
A couple of days ago I gave a presentation to graduate students from the School of Management, Universiti Sains Malaysia. The presentation was scheduled to start at 2.30 pm for 2 hours. Giving a lecture or presentation at this time is always very challenging. When I have to give a presentation in the afternoon session I always challenge myself to keep the audience awake and alert for the whole duration of the presentation. To prepare for this presentation, I spent a great deal of time to prepare my PowerPoint and gather the material from books and, of course, internet. It is my habit that while I'm busy working on my project (in this case my presentation) I would switch to another window reading email or blogs. That was when I came across a posting about "Poll Everywhere". Basically it is an online polling application that tries to simplify the process of holding polls. It allows anyone to participate in the polls by using either a simple text messaging system, email, or twitter - and it is free for up to 30 voting. I thought, wow, this is great! I can use this thingy as an interactive tool to engage the audience and keep them alert.
After signed up for the free account, I did some testing and everything worked very well. For the presentation, I prepared seven multiple choice questions (see below).
The plan was to ask the question at appropriate point during the presentation, ideally to cover for the entire duration. I was excited but anxious. I asked the organizer to make sure the internet connection is available but as a backup plan I borrowed a broadband from my relative. I just wanted to make sure that I can try the online polling for the first time...successfully. Since the free account allows only 30 participants to vote and the number of participants on the day was around 70, I had to divide them into group, each with two or three members. Only one member representing the group will vote (they can take turn to vote).
This is how the question looks like on the screen:
I asked each group to discuss the question in 30 seconds to one minute (depending on the question). The poll was done simply by asking the group to send SMS (the message would be the code for the answer) to the phone number shown on the screen. The outcome? Within less than 1 minute the results appeared in real time on the screen (see below), and new votes are added very quickly! I was very pleased and I think the participants were also equally excited. The "experiment" was a success. (Note: I would like to hear some feedback from those who attended my talk the other day).
What are the advantages of using the online poll? Well, it's a better and faster way to get a feedback. You get a better picture of the audience response towards certain issue that you are discussing. The audience will have the opportunity to interact and discuss among them (in a group). Certainly it is better than asking the audience to raise their hand (hand count). Hmm...now I can't wait to use this online poll in my classroom and in my other presentations. Online poll is certainly one of the best Web 2.0 tools for 2010! Thank you Poll Everywhere!
Learn more about Poll Everywhere at their website or watch this You Tube video.
To get a taste of the online polling, send your answer to the question below. Don't forget to put the plus (+) sign before the phone number. Don't worry, it costs only 20 to 30 cents per vote. It's for educational purposes...Alternatively, tweet the answer or use your web browser to send the answer. Give it a try!
I have a few messages to share in this posting:
After signed up for the free account, I did some testing and everything worked very well. For the presentation, I prepared seven multiple choice questions (see below).
The plan was to ask the question at appropriate point during the presentation, ideally to cover for the entire duration. I was excited but anxious. I asked the organizer to make sure the internet connection is available but as a backup plan I borrowed a broadband from my relative. I just wanted to make sure that I can try the online polling for the first time...successfully. Since the free account allows only 30 participants to vote and the number of participants on the day was around 70, I had to divide them into group, each with two or three members. Only one member representing the group will vote (they can take turn to vote).
This is how the question looks like on the screen:
I asked each group to discuss the question in 30 seconds to one minute (depending on the question). The poll was done simply by asking the group to send SMS (the message would be the code for the answer) to the phone number shown on the screen. The outcome? Within less than 1 minute the results appeared in real time on the screen (see below), and new votes are added very quickly! I was very pleased and I think the participants were also equally excited. The "experiment" was a success. (Note: I would like to hear some feedback from those who attended my talk the other day).
What are the advantages of using the online poll? Well, it's a better and faster way to get a feedback. You get a better picture of the audience response towards certain issue that you are discussing. The audience will have the opportunity to interact and discuss among them (in a group). Certainly it is better than asking the audience to raise their hand (hand count). Hmm...now I can't wait to use this online poll in my classroom and in my other presentations. Online poll is certainly one of the best Web 2.0 tools for 2010! Thank you Poll Everywhere!
Learn more about Poll Everywhere at their website or watch this You Tube video.
To get a taste of the online polling, send your answer to the question below. Don't forget to put the plus (+) sign before the phone number. Don't worry, it costs only 20 to 30 cents per vote. It's for educational purposes...Alternatively, tweet the answer or use your web browser to send the answer. Give it a try!
Make a live audience poll at Poll Everywhere
I have a few messages to share in this posting:
- Upgrade to PowerPoint 2010 - you have access to many useful new features;
- Read blogs - you can LEARN a lot of new things everyday!
- Create your own blog and share information and knowledge with others. Sharing is caring!
- Don't be afraid to try new things to enhance teaching and learning.
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