“The notion of the backchannel in the classroom is as old as whispering in someone’s ear,” he says. “We’d always dealt with the problem, but (technology) was magnifying the effect.”
He noticed that when attendance at his lectures grew, class participation began to decrease, in part because some students were reluctant to ask questions in front of large group.
“You realize that questions must be going unasked, that learning is going to be reduced,” Griswold said. “If we’re losing efficiency, that’s undesirable.”
With the help of a grant from Hewlett-Packard in 2001, he developed software that allows students to use personal digital assistants or laptop computers to join a public backchannel in his lecture hall and ask their questions anonymously in real time.
“When you give people this public ubiquitous backchannel, it broadens the discourse,” he says. “Some of these questions are very high-end.”
During lectures to as many as 200 students, students can sign on to the discussion. Griswold said the technology has also expanded the role of his teaching assistants, who vet the questions and provide responses.
“It’s not just Fred to Sally,” he said. “It’s Fred talking to everyone. That’s what gives the lecture the power, the shared discourse.”
