 College instructors, especially those teaching large lecture courses, often wonder how they can know whether their students are following them during class. Others are troubled by the fact that sometimes a few students monopolize class discussion time, leaving the rest of the students mostly unheard. Others wonder how they could get truly honest answers from students on controversial topics. My name is Nancy Graham, classroom services manager at Western Washington University. In this short movie I will describe how classroom response systems can be used to answer these questions, and I will also describe some strategies for using clickers and getting started. An instructional technology that got its start with hardwired systems in the 1980s, classroom response systems using clickers have come a long way in terms of reliability, integration with other classroom technologies, and ease of use. Some colleges require students to purchase the clickers, while others provide the clickers to courses on a reservation basis. The classroom used must have the system installed, both the software and the receiving device. Once the elements are there, instructors must then develop effective questions to use in their class sessions. The best questions address a specific purpose in the class, such as directing attention or raising awareness on certain topics. Most systems support many types of questions, multiple choice, true, false, numeric, series, short answer, and survey. The questions can appear directly on a PowerPoint screen, which interacts with the installed software and receiving device, but questions also can be asked from within the system software or orally. Students may need to enter information into the clicker device in order to join or log in to the session, either anonymously or by using a student ID, whichever the instructor prefers. In general, three main steps for using a classroom response system in class are an instructor presents a question or problem often projected on a screen in front of the class. Students have a specific amount of time to input their answers using their clicker device, which will display a confirmation their input was received, and instructor and the students instantly view a display charting the distribution of responses. The instructor will usually have a series of questions prepared, either clustered together or peppered throughout the presentation. Anonymous student responses can immediately be projected for everyone to see and discuss, reviewed to inform the instructional process on the fly, or simply gathered for future use. Responses tied to individual students or clicker IDs can also be displayed and additionally can be automatically saved as a data file for later reporting. There are many instructional strategies for using clickers. The questions or statements can serve to launch a discussion, or as checkpoints for understanding, or as graded evaluations. One of the major uses for classroom response systems is to foster discussion. Examples include posing a relevant question and sharing aggregated results to warm up for a whole class discussion, or using opinion polling, or surveys to analyze the differences and similarities of choices and consider alternative viewpoints. Getting an individual response to a controversial question, having students discuss or debate with their peers, and then repeating the question for a before and after comparison. Some instructors have made teaching more dynamic by having students work in groups to discuss and vote on the best answer to a problem or dilemma, given some possible yet incomplete solutions. Using questions and student feedback to drive every step of the instruction throughout a lecture, or allowing students to predict the outcome of a demonstration done in class. Above all, by using clickers effectively, instructors can promote students' participation independent of their temperament. Students who are reluctant to speak out in class now have the opportunity to express opinions and provide feedback. To get started, check with the classroom technology office at your institution. Find out what system is available to you and how your colleagues have used similar classroom response systems. Explore the many resources available online. In the words of Professor Ian Beatty at the University of Massachusetts, classroom response systems can serve as catalysts for creating a more interactive, student-centered classroom in the lecture hall. They not only make it easier to engage students in learning activities during lecture, but also enhance the communication among students and between the students and the instructor. This enhanced communication assists the students and the instructor in assessing understanding during class time and affords the instructor the opportunity to devise instructional interventions that target students' needs as they arise.