Adding Response Pads To Your CPS Set

You may have a set (32) of CPS response pads in your classroom. However, if you have more than 32 students in one class, you will need to add more clickers. As I said in an earlier blog, the use of this response system in your classroom allows you to understand how much your students know or don’t know about the subject covered in class. You can even use the clickers to review before or after the test. You can have your students take the test using the remotes, eliminating the need for scantron sheets. However, if you have a class that is larger than 32 students, someone has to enter their answers on a sheet of paper (boohoo). Studies have shown that the instant feedback that students receive from these response systems help them learn much better. So, how do you add response pads to your set to increase the number to fit your largest class size? Well I’m glad you asked that question because that is what my blog is about. You will not find this in the help menu of the CPS software.

There are basically two main things that you have to do in order to see the extra response pads, clickers or remotes as they are sometimes called. The first is to change the channel that the extra remotes use to communicate with the RF receiver. They have to use the same channel of course that your set is using. The next thing you have to do is to change the remotes ID number. So for example, if the remote you have stolen or borrowed is number 31, you will need to make it number 33.

So let’s start. Let’s say you have already entered your classes and students. Some of your classes are larger than 32 of course. Open the CPS software and choose “Delivery Options” from the settings menu. Click the “Feedback Grid” tab. Move the slider from 32 to 64 under “Number of Pads for Question Preview”. Now take one of your response pads and (with the power off) press both the left and right arrow keys together. Then very quickly press the + - key. This will show you the channel your clickers are working on. Let’s say for this example it is channel 19. Now take one of the response pads you want to add to your set. Again, press both the left and right arrow keys together (with the power off). Immediately press the + - key. This again will show you what channel the other set is working on. Enter your channel number (19) and press send. The next screen will ask for the address. This is the clicker number. You are adding to your existing set of 32, so enter the number 33 and press send. Press send again to turn the display off. Do this for the rest of the response pads you want to add to your set. You can add more than 450 additional clickers to your set, but I’m sure you wouldn’t want that many students in your class! Remember, that’s 900 more parents as well! I would also write the number you assigned each of the additional response pads either on a piece of tape or by using a labeler so you don’t get confused which response pad is which. Plus you might want to return the clicker to the original owner.

So that’s it. It’s a very quick process. In basically two steps, entering the channel number and the clicker number (for each response pad) you will increase your set from 32 to 500. Enjoy and go paperless. The students will benefit tremendously!