CPS (And no...I don't mean Child Protective Services!)

Last year, a colleague of mine asked me, "Have you ever heard of CPS?" Immediately, I thought of Child Protective Services, but she then told me what she meant. After she told me about it, she showed me how to use the hardware and software, and gave me a chance to try it out with my students. They LOVED it. They were engaged in the lesson, and it gave me immediate feedback on the areas of the curriculum in which they were weak and needed extra assistance.

What is this thing I speak of?

CPS, which stands for classroom response system. In a nutshell, CPS is a wireless, interactive response system that gives educators immediate feedback from their students. It uses a wireless remote, a portable receiver, and a program that can be installed on a teacher's computer which allows teachers to input a list of questions that students can answer, or even an interactive PowerPoint. Some teachers even use this software to keep attendance records. Think "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" or "Family Feud" for the classroom.

I will use the software tomorrow for the first time this school year. I plan on using it to provide formative data on my students' mastery of our unit on the Middle East. I will update this post with pictures that show this being used in the classroom.

For more information about CPS systems, visit http://www.einstruction.com/index.cfm or http://www.mhhe.com/cps/index.shtml

(image credit: McGraw-Hill)