Development of a Tablet-PC-based System to Increase Instructor-Student Classroom Interactions and Student Learning

1. ABSTRACT This paper describes a pilot study for a Tablet-PC-based system, called the Classroom Learning Partner (CLP) that is being developed to support in-class assessment in large classes. The goal of CLP is to increase instructor-student interaction thereby increasing student learning. This pilot study is a first step: It evaluates the use of Tablet PCs and a Tablet-PC-based classroom presentation system in an introductory computer science class. The presentation system, Classroom Presenter (1), supports student wireless submission of digital ink answers to in-class exercises. In this study, we evaluate the hypothesis that the use of such a system increases student learning by: (1) increasing student focus and attentiveness in class, (2) providing immediate feedback to both students and instructor about student misunderstandings, (3) enabling the instructor to adjust course material in real-time based upon student answers to in-class exercises, (4) increasing student satisfaction. This pilot study evaluates each of the above four parameters by means of classroom observation, surveys, and interviews.