1997
The University of Illinois Physics department embarks on a major reform of their introductory classes. They model their lectures after the successful ConceptTests, introduced at Harvard University, in which conceptual questions are posed and students are allowed to discuss possible answers with their neighbors.
Their journey eventually leads four of the Illinois Physicists—Tim Stelzer, Mats Selen, Gary Gladding, and Benny Brown to develop their own wireless radio frequency system—iClicker—to further enable student engagement and peer learning. They focused the development of their solution on keeping students’ attention on course content, not technology.