Comparative study of three different personal response systems with fourth- year undergraduate veterinary students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare three different Personal Response Systems that have been used in recent years at the School of Veterinary Science, University of Liverpool: a technology-free system (Communicubes), a handset delivery device (TurningPoint), and a cloud-based technology (Poll Everywhere) that allows students to use a range of personal computing devices to register their answer. All three systems offer a method to promote active learning, and lecturers were encouraged to use them. However, there are cost and logistical implications for each. The authors found that both staff and students did have particular preferences for a specific system. This preference was not the same for both groups. The outcome of the comparison is that further research is needed into cloud-based technology as it offers benefits to the students but is also a distraction.