Understanding the effects of discreet real-time social interaction on student engagement in lectures

Student disengagement in lectures is a common issue experienced by higher education globally. Our approach is to use the application of known human behaviour in groups to influence educationally meaningful behaviour by students during and external to lectures through the use of available technology that is both affordable and desirable to those students. We have developed a proof-of-concept application GroupNotes that we believe meets those aims. This paper outlines the principles behind the application design and some preliminary test results.