Embedding Echo360 polls to create interactive media

Introducing polling activities into teaching has been found to benefit learners in a variety of ways. Research has shown that the most well-recalled period of a lecture is the first five minutes (Burns, 1985) and the average human attention span is no more than 20 minutes, so breaking up a lecture can help maintain attention levels, relieve student fatigue, and give time for students to catch up, understand and debrief on key points (Allen and Tanner, 2005).

Now you can conduct polling, even in your asynchronous recorded lectures, using Echo360 interactive media with embedded polling. Echo360’s interactive media enables instructors to insert questions into video content to increase student engagement and quickly assess student understanding of the material. Asking students to respond to a question within a video is a way for them to think about how to apply what they are learning while offering opportunities for practice.

With Echo360, instructors can build a personal library of reusable questions that can be embedded into one video, or many videos. Interactive media can be embedded into a Blackboard content area simply by clicking the plus button, or added to your Echo360 class list.

Once embedded in a video, poll questions are “gated” for student viewers, requiring the student to respond to the poll before they can continue. By including these activities within their videos and class presentations, instructors can gain valuable insights into student learning, as well as measure student comprehension. This is also an opportunity for students to let instructors know if there is any confusion with the learning content.

Echo360’s learning analytics provide downloadable information about who watched the video and how they responded—giving quick formative assessment information on whether content needs to be revisited or students are ready to move on.

If you have any questions regarding the use of Echo360 or any other educational technology, request an appointment with one of CATE’s instructional designers at go.uic.edu/IDappointment or contact CATE Support staff at LTS@uic.edu.