App receives good ‘Response’

Students are frequently told by professors to put their phones away during class. But a new company, Via Response, is trying to change that rule for good, replacing outdated clicker response remotes with a computer- or phone-based app.

UCF marketing professor Carolyn Massiah is testing Via Response in her marketing lecture capture course of more than 1,400 students this semester. The program allows students inside the classroom as well as students streaming the lecture online the chance to respond and participate in class discussions. In addition to UCF, the app is being tested at the University of Florida, and it has nearly 25 other pilots scheduled for universities throughout the country.

The majority of students in Massiah's class use Via Response.

Paige Baldinger, a junior in Massiah's marketing class, said the program is easy to use and understand. She also said it is cheaper than the other clickers and that she gave it her full support.

Via Response allows students to participate in class without the use of a clicker. What makes this program so appealing is that it requires students to buy one program instead of multiple clickers. Many professors require different clickers for each of their classes, which seems unnecessary and expensive for penny-pinching college students.

Via Response can be purchased and used on smartphones, tablets or laptops.

Sales manager Derek Holliday said that the software averages less than 50 percent of the cost of clicker systems. It can be purchased for either $19.95 per semester or $29.95 for the entire year, and there are no additional fees for adding on more classes or using the app itself.

Students are also given the option to rent a clicker from Via Response for $10 if they don't have access to either a smartphone or laptop, and they can simply mail it back at the end of the semester.

Holliday also said that students without access to these devices will not be penalized because the platform will work with a legacy clicker company so everyone will have the tools necessary to participate, either by phone or clicker.

As well as being the more affordable option, Via Response creates a personalized program for each student. It has a feature which can send notifications to a student's phone to remind them of upcoming assignments.

This program would allow professors to gain more participation in their classes by utilizing social media-like tools. Via Response is free for all professors, which means there is no risk for them to trying the program. Professors can create their own questions, quizzes and discussion boards in order to encourage attendance and participation in the classroom. It also allows professors to add Via Response to their existing PowerPoints, which is a bonus since many professors use the same PowerPoints for many years.

While this program is gaining acceptance from many, some may still be hesitant to change.

"There are students and professors alike who will not want to use this new technology, but that is the same case for any new technology product introduced in any consumer environment," Massiah said. "There is no 100 percent adoption."

There is also the chance that students will take advantage of having their phones out in class and use them for non-school related purposes.

Massiah said that professors are naive if they think students are only using their phones for educational purposes.

"I am just capitalizing on the fact that the majority will have the phones with them in class and already on," Massiah said.

Via Response is taking the initiative and attempting to reach students in a way that has never been done before.

"I think that textbooks and stand-alone lectures will not be sufficient," Massiah said. "We must continue to look for innovative ways to bridge the gap."