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Center for Innovative Learning: TurningPoint

Background

About TurningPoint 

TurningPoint is an interactive learning tool that can be used to increase student engagement during class. It can be used in live, face-to-face classes as well as live online classes. Using Turning point, instructors can pose questions at any time and students can respond using a smart-phone or computer.  TurningPoint helps to promote active listening and recall among students and provides both students and instructors real-time feedback regarding student understanding and learning.

Advantages

  • Easy to use
  • Embed questions in your PowerPoint presentation
  • Questions can be graded or ungraded
  • Each student has a unique account
  • Results can be uploaded to Canvas
  • No cost for instructors

Disadvantages

  • Students must pay for license (about $30 per year)
  • Requires prep before and after class and some multi-tasking during class

How Does TurningPoint Promote Learning?

Tools like TurningPoint allow Instructors to pose questions to students "live" during class (face-to-face or online) and to receive responses from students in real time. This can help:

  • Increase student engagement
  • Cue student attention to lecture material
  • Promote retrieval and practice of new information
  • Increase student self-awareness and help them assess their understanding
  • Focus instructor attention on content that students don't understand

Resources for Instructors

Setup a TurningPoint Account and Link to Canvas

If this is your first time using TurningPoint, you need to create a TurningPoint "instructor account" and link it to your ACPHS Canvas Account. Watch this short video for instructions.

Download the TurningPoint Desktop App

After you setup your TurningPoint "instructor account", download the TurningPoint Desktop App. 

Start Using TurningPoint 

There are three ways to conduct polling with your students:

  1. PowerPoint Polling
  2. Self Paced Polling
  3. Anywhere Polling

Watch these 2-3 minute TurningPoint video tutorials to get started!

Reach Out to Colleagues for Ideas

And check the ACPHS Faculty Resource List to see if there's someone with TurningPoint experience who might give you a hand.

Webinar: Using TurningPoint to Increase Student Engagement and Interaction

For Instructors New to TurningPoint

Looking to incorporate more student interaction in your course?

TurningPoint “polling software” can help increase student interaction and engagement in both in-person and online classes. It can also provide you with valuable real-time insight into students’ understanding of key points.

In this webinar we will demonstrate how TurningPoint works, show you how to incorporate a TurningPoint polls/questions in a PowerPoint deck, and show you how to integrate TurningPoint with your Canvas Course.

 

Resources for Students

This video explains to students how to setup a new TurningPoint account. It includes three steps:

  • 0:21  Create a new TurningPoint student account
  • 2:04  Purchase a TurningPoint student subscription
  • 2:53  Link a TurningPoint student account to Canvas

 

Video Link: https://acphs.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=afbb1bf9-ebfe-4267-b260-ac28015a33c4

Video Embed Code: <iframe src="https://acphs.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Embed.aspx?id=afbb1bf9-ebfe-4267-b260-ac28015a33c4&autoplay=false&offerviewer=true&showtitle=true&showbrand=false&start=0&interactivity=all" height="405" width="720" style="border: 1px solid #464646;" allowfullscreen allow="autoplay"></iframe>

 

Readings

Readings

Egelandsdal, K., Krumsvik, R.J. Clickers and formative feedback at university lectures. Educ Inf Technol 22, 55–74 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-015-9437-x

Khanna, M. M., & Cortese, M. J. (2016). The benefits of quizzing in content-focused versus skills-focused courses. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 2(1), 87–97. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000051

Khanna, M. M. (2015). Ungraded Pop Quizzes: Test-Enhanced Learning Without All the Anxiety. Teaching of Psychology, 42(2), 174–178. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628315573144

Nevid, J. S., & Mahon, K. (2009). Mastery Quizzing as a Signaling Device to Cue Attention to Lecture Material. Teaching of Psychology, 36(1), 29–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986280802529152