Students think about the question before answering it; afterwards, they then spend a few minutes discussing the problem with their peers before committing to a final answer.

"The idea is simple," says Head Teaching Fellow Christopher B. Schaffer. "You talk to people around you, and chances are the people who got the question right the first time got it right for the right reason, and will be more confident in their reasoning. So, they'll be more likely to convince their peers."

PRS Meets Science Center C

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But Mazur's concept of peer instruction would still be a fancy term instead of reality if it were not for the interactive Personal Response Systems (PRS).

Looking like a cross between a phaser from Star Trek and a remote control from Wal-Mart, the input devices allow students to instantly "beam" their answers to a central terminal by pressing a corresponding numerical button. The terminal would then compile the answers and create final distribution statistics for how the class fared on each question.

The units were distributed to students on the first day of class, funded by the science center grant.

For Mazur, PRS is the perfect answer to a perplexing problem. Previous attempts with flashcards and raising hands did not get true responses from students and not all students were participating. Early electronic devices were logistical nightmares to set up and maintain, with their many wires and bulky size.

And PRS also forces students to think twice before they sleep through class. Although they are responsible for bringing their devices to lecture each week, students have added incentive not to forget them at home--since the system records each student's responses, participation in class is counted towards the final grade. As an added catch, random pretests are given at the beginning of class, "to make sure people comes to class on time," Mazur says.