latest news & information

Latest Renovations
The lecture hall in Biological Sciences 3 opened in Spring, and it features the greatest array of resources for teaching and presentation.

The room has all the features of other Smart Lecture Halls, and also offers high definition projection of Blu-Ray discs with full theatrical sound.

SmartClassroom Quick Start Guides
We have placed a quick reference guide on how to use classroom equipment in every SmartClassroom and Smart Lecture Hall. These colorful reference sheets show how to use the equipment in that particular room, and are intended to help remind you of how to use the equipment. Look for the laminated Quick Start Guide in the holder attached to the podium.

Enhance class participation with audience response "clickers"
What is audience response? At UCI, it means that we have equipment available to collect responses from handheld devices purchased by the students. These devices (commonly called "clickers") enable students to respond to a question by pressing one of the keys on the clicker, much like using a TV remote control. The instructor determines when students may use the clickers and can optionally show a histogram of student votes at the end of each response period on the projection screen.

Faculty are using this technology now to get immediate feedback on student comprehension and as a means of encouraging students to keep up with assigned reading and attend lecture. Some courses are even using the system to conduct weekly quizzes.

To participate, students will need to buy an audience response clicker. These are inexpensive, and a student only has to buy one, because they will use the same clicker in any UCI class that uses the technology. When the clicker is purchased, the student visits a website to register their device's serial number so that they can receive credit for using it in classes. Over 5000 UCI undergraduates have purchased these devices since Fall 2006.

For more information about this technology or for help in using it, please visit our web pages on audience response at UCI. You are also welcome to contact Dave McCue at (949) 824-4210 or dmccue@uci.edu.

If you would like to read more about the audience response equipment we use from the maker of the system, please visit http://www.iclicker.com/ (opens in a new browser window).