Learning Catalytics: You’ve probably struggled at some point to keep students engaged during lectures. Their attention spans seem to dwindle by the minute, and before you know it, half the class is distracted or dozing off. As an educator, you constantly battle the urge to throw in the towel in frustration. But what if there were an easy way to reinvigorate your students and spark their curiosity again?
Learning Catalytics is an interactive student response tool that does just that. By integrating questions into your lessons that students can respond to in real-time using their mobile devices, Learning Catalytics transforms passive listeners into active learners. Keep reading to find out how this innovative educational technology can bring your classroom back to life and give your students an experience they won’t forget.
What Is Learning Catalytics?

Learning Catalytics is an interactive student response tool that transforms lectures into engaging learning experiences. Students can respond to questions using their laptops, tablets or smartphones, giving instructors valuable insights into student understanding in real time.
How It Works
Students log into your Learning Catalytics session on their devices and see an interactive slide deck. As you progress through the slides, you can pose open-ended questions, multiple choice questions, polling questions or numeric input questions.
Students submit responses which are displayed instantly in aggregate, word cloud or tag cloud form. You can then adapt your lecture based on the responses, focusing on areas that need clarification. Students feel more engaged since their input shapes the lesson.
Benefits
Using Learning Catalytics offers many benefits:
- Gage student understanding. See responses in real time to adapt instruction.
- Encourage participation. Every student answers every question, increasing engagement.
- Generate discussion. Open-ended questions spark debate and peer learning.
- Share responses. Word clouds and tag clouds provide an at-a-glance sense of student perspectives.
- Review material. Numeric input questions are ideal for practicing calculations. Save and reuse questions.
- Improve learning. Research shows increased interactivity and feedback enhance information retention.
With Learning Catalytics, lectures become dynamic and collaborative. Students gain confidence through active participation and instructors gain insight into how students are learning. Overall, it transforms the learning experience for students and teachers alike.
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Benefits of Using Learning Catalytics in the Classroom
Using Learning Catalytics in your classroom has some major benefits for both you and your students.
Engagement and Interaction
Learning Catalytics allows students to respond to open-ended questions, polls, and quizzes directly from their devices. This high level of interaction and engagement keeps students focused and participating.
Formative Assessments
With Learning Catalytics, you can view student responses in real time and adjust your lesson accordingly. This allows you to ensure understanding before moving on and address any misunderstandings on the spot. You’ll get a pulse on where your students are at in their learning.
Learning Analytics

The analytics provided give you insight into how your students are performing, both individually and as a whole. You can see which questions students struggled with and review those concepts again. You’ll have data to help guide your teaching and focus on the areas that need improvement.
Anonymity
Students can respond anonymously which may make some feel more comfortable participating, especially for sensitive topics. Anonymity can lead to more honest engagement without fear of judgment.
Accessibility
Learning Catalytics works with a variety of devices from smartphones and tablets to laptops. This accessibility allows for easy implementation in your classroom with the technology your students already have. Responses are given through a web browser, so there’s no app to install.
Using Learning Catalytics, you can create an interactive learning environment where students feel engaged and empowered. The insights gained will help strengthen your teaching and improve student outcomes. Overall, it’s a win-win for everyone involved!
Key Features of Learning Catalytics
Learning Catalytics has some useful features that can really engage your students.
Interactive Questions
You can create interactive questions that students answer using their own mobile devices. The questions can include multiple choice, short answer, drawing tools, and more. Students get instant feedback on their answers, and you get to see responses in real-time to guide your instruction.
Peer Instruction
This feature allows students to discuss questions with each other before answering. You pose a challenging question, students enter their initial responses, then discuss with nearby classmates. After discussing, students can revise their answers. This helps students articulate their thinking and evaluate their own understanding.
Random Calling
If you want to randomly call on students to explain their thinking, Learning Catalytics can select students at random to share their responses with the class. This keeps students engaged since they don’t know who might be called on next! Students can also volunteer to share their thoughts.
Heat Maps
For some question types, Learning Catalytics generates “heat maps” that provide visual representations of how the class answered as a whole. You can see at a glance if there are any tricky concepts that need more explanation. The heat maps are also useful for starting class discussions.
Customizable
You can create your own questions from scratch or choose from over 50,000 pre-made questions in the library. Either way, the questions and tools are highly customizable to your needs. You have control over the content, question types, timing, and whether questions are graded or not.
Learning Catalytics puts students at the center of the learning experience. With interactive and engaging features, it can transform any lecture into an active learning environment. Students will be more motivated to participate, and you’ll gain valuable insight into their thinking to help guide your instruction.
Tips for Implementing Learning Catalytics Effectively

Learning Catalytics is a great interactive tool, but to get the most out of it, here are some tips for effective implementation:
Keep Questions Brief
Focus on one concept or topic at a time. Don’t overload students with complicated, multi-part questions. Keep things short and simple.
Provide Time to Respond
Give students adequate time to read, process and respond to questions. Some may require more time for open-ended questions. Consider your students and set reasonable time limits for each question type.
Share Responses
After students have responded, share the aggregate responses on-screen. Discuss any common mistakes or misconceptions. This helps students learn from each other and fosters engaging discussions.
Follow Up
Ask follow up questions to make students think more deeply about topics. For example, if most chose one response, ask why others may have chosen differently. Follow ups help reinforce understanding.
Offer Extra Credit
Provide opportunities for students to earn extra credit by answering additional questions correctly. This motivates students to do their best and rewards their effort. But don’t overdo the extra credit, limit to 1-2 per class session.
Review and Repeat
Briefly review the main points and questions from previous lessons. Then introduce a new related concept or topic. Repeating and building on what students have already learned leads to mastery.
Following these tips will help you get the most interactivity and engagement from your students using Learning Catalytics. Keep at it, start simple and build from there. Your students will appreciate your effort to keep learning fun and interactive.
Student Perspectives on Using Learning Catalytics
Students today are digital natives, so technology-enhanced learning tools tend to resonate strongly with them. Learning Catalytics is no exception. Here are a few perspectives on using this interactive classroom response system from students:
Learning Catalytics makes classes more engaging. The interactive questions encourage me to pay closer attention so I can respond, and seeing how other students answer helps bring topics to life. It’s much better than just listening to a lecture.
The anonymity allows me to respond honestly without worrying what others might think. I feel more comfortable participating and asking questions. I can get clarification on topics I’m unsure about without feeling embarrassed.
Getting real-time feedback on my understanding helps me figure out what I need to review again. If a large percentage of the class struggles with a question, the professor will usually re-explain the concept. This instant feedback loop is really valuable for learning.
Learning Catalytics adds an element of fun to classes that can otherwise seem boring or tedious. The competitive aspect of some question types, like battles, makes learning feel more like a game. Even when we’re reviewing material from a previous class, the interactive questions keep things interesting.
While Learning Catalytics can’t replace traditional teaching methods altogether, it’s a great supplement that gives students an active role in the learning process. The anonymity, gamification, and instant feedback all help to create an engaging learning experience that resonates strongly with today’s students. Overall, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, with many students reporting that they wish more of their professors would incorporate this technology into their courses.
FAQ
Learning Catalytics is an interactive student response tool that lets you pose open-ended questions to students during class. Students can respond using their laptops, smartphones or tablets and you’ll see their answers in real-time. This allows for engaging discussions and gives you insight into student understanding.
How do students access Learning Catalytics?
Students use their devices to access Learning Catalytics through a web browser. They go to learningcatalytics.com and enter the session code you provide. There is no need to download an app.
What kinds of questions can I ask?
You can ask a variety of open-ended questions like:
- Short answer
- Numerical input
- Multiple choice
- Ranking/ordering
- Sketching and drawing
Learning Catalytics supports images, videos, and equations in questions and answers.
Can students work in groups?
Yes, Learning Catalytics has a group mode that allows students to collaborate. You can assign students to groups and they can work together on questions, discussing answers before submitting a group response.
Do students need accounts?
No, students do not need to create accounts or login to use Learning Catalytics. They simply enter the unique session code you provide to join your session. Their responses and group assignments will be associated with that session code.
How are student responses analyzed?
You’ll see student responses in real-time, including summaries of common responses as well as more complex analyzes of open-ended responses. The interactive visualizations give you a quick sense of how well concepts are understood so you can adapt your lesson and provide feedback right away.
How can I get started?
Register for your free Learning Catalytics account and start creating questions. You can then launch your first session, provide students the session code to join, and start engaging in active learning and discussion. There are resources and webinars available to help you make the most of Learning Catalytics.
Conclusion
So there you have it, some easy ways to engage your students using Learning Catalytics. Once you start implementing these interactive features in your classroom, you’ll wonder how you ever taught without them. Your students will come to class excited to learn and participate, rather than just sitting there while you lecture at them.
And the best part is, Learning Catalytics makes it simple to get started and provides so many options for making learning fun and engaging. What are you waiting for? Give Learning Catalytics a try and watch as your students light up with curiosity and passion for learning. Their enthusiasm will energize you as an instructor and remind you why you chose this career in the first place. So go ahead, engage your students and rediscover your own love of teaching. Learning Catalytics provides an easy way to do both.