BACKGROUND

Dan Ciofani is a high school teacher at the Medina County Career Center. He specializes in career tech (formerly known as the vocational field), is certified in social studies and is currently teaching custodial maintenance and government classes. Dan has been in education since 1985, and has been at the Career Center for the last two years.

CHALLENGE

Dan based the decision to purchase TurningPoint® on his previous use of the product in the Cleveland Municipal School District and his knowledge of its capabilities. He entered the Medina County Career Center as a passionate champion for what student response technology could accomplish: encourage student engagement, supports an interactive methodology of teaching, instigates contemplation, heightens responsibility, and builds a comfortable environment for learning.

SOLUTION

Dan stumbled across Turning Technologies during a casual conversation with a distributor. He learned more about the technology through a classroom pilot, and when he came to Medina County, he was brimming with ideas. Finding funding from the district was not an issue. After Dan explained the technology and arranged an in-service, the funding fell into place. “If you just see it, you’ll understand! I didn’t have to push the issue,” he said.

There are a number of different ways that he enjoys implementing TurningPoint in the classroom, including traditional true/false and multiple choice slides, but one of his favorite methods is to incorporate pictures. He asks students to identify the figure, event or issue (such as a protest) for his Government classes. For Custodial Maintenance, he uses photos to identify tools, safety methods and proper usage, such as, “In the event of this, what tool would you use?”

Dan speaks highly of the engagement TurningPoint brings into his classroom. “Enjoyment equals a willingness to participate. When it’s more fun, it takes the edge off of fear to answer incorrectly in front of peers.”

He also likes to add an element of competition to the classroom, yet keeping it light and enjoyable. Dan has found that poor readers and people that have been disconnected from education from an early age enjoy it. TurningPoint makes learning fun and removes pressure, building confidence.

“If it’s a comfortable environment, I like to take the time to pull up the Participant Monitor and congratulate the students that answered a question correctly—or perhaps bring attention to anyone who is incorrect and playfully asking them, ‘Don’t you remember?’”

He found that when it comes to tests, especially in an urban environment, students were more excited to take a TurningPoint quiz than traditional paper-based quizzes—resulting in reduced test anxiety. He also noted when using TurningPoint, classes generally answer less questions in a 40 minute period. Instead of hurrying through as they would in a paper test, students tend to think through each answer, being more contemplative.

“It’s also great for class discussions on controversial topics, asking students if they are for or against issues, and reviewing students’ opinions. Implementing TurningPoint has opened the door for a lot of conversations,” he said.

CONCLUSION

Dan speaks very highly of the staff at Turning Technologies. “The support is fantastic; you immediately talk to a person when you call the company. As with any software, you may stumble now and then, but they are always extremely helpful.”

He also notes that the company listens closely to its users and has made positive changes based on their thoughtful adoption of feedback. “By being great listeners, their technology continues to improve.”

Dan’s ultimate goal as an educator is to create a positive learning environment. He credits TurningPoint with helping him achieve that goal. “Using this student response system continues to stir students’ interest, and you can comfortably use it two to three times a week.”

He has found through his years of experience that with new technology, teachers often “wear it out” and students eventually grow tired of it. With TurningPoint, he finds that this is not the case and that “you just can’t kill it!”

For more information about purchasing Turning Technologies’ audience response systems for your school district, contact us at 866-746-3015.