News
Feature of the Month: LiveVoting - Real-time interaction (and challenge)
LiveVoting is an audience response system integrated into ILIAS. It provides lecturers and studends with ways to engage in conversation with each other in lectures, seminars, or workshops. LiveVoting can be used to ask questions, gather feedback, gauge moods, collect spontaneous ideas, and carry out challenges—all in real time.
Lecturers can create a LiveVoting poll directly in their course. Participants can take part via their smartphones, tablets, or laptops using a QR code (or PIN). It is not necessary to log in to ILIAS.
Questions can be designed as simple multiple-choice questions (A/B/C/D answers), assessments, opinion polls, or open-ended text contributions. The following question types are available: single/multiple choice, free text, correct order, priorities, and estimate numbers. The results can be displayed anonymously immediately and discussed in the teaching context. This generates spontaneous feedback – similar to quiz formats such as the audience joker on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”
What's new? Challenge mode
In addition to the existing functions, there is now also a challenge mode in which participants compete against each other in a game and can collect points for answering questions correctly. Participants can take part anonymously or using a nickname. Currently, only single and multiple choice questions are possible in this mode, which must be answered within a certain period of time.
How does it work?
- Open the “Create object” option in the course and select LiveVoting from the list.
- Give the LiveVoting a title and a short description, and choose between classic mode and challenge mode.
- In the “Manage” tab, you can specify the type and content of the questions, such as multiple-choice questions or open text entries.
- Under “Settings,” you can specify, for example, whether participation should be possible without logging into ILIAS. Here you can also put the LiveVoting online.
- During the event, you start LiveVoting directly via ILIAS. Participants access the vote via a QR code or link and enter their answers.
- Once the voting time has expired, the results can be displayed and evaluated live – anonymously, clearly and visible to everyone.
How can LiveVoting be used?
LiveVoting is particularly suitable for large lectures with many participants, but it also creates lively interaction in smaller seminars. The following usage scenarios are conceivable, among others:
- Starting a lecture: Ask about the students' level of knowledge or follow up on content from the last session.
- Interjections during the lecture: Test your students' understanding of complicated content—for example, by asking questions such as, “Which formula correctly describes iron oxide?”
- Gauging mood and opinion: Let your students vote on theses, take positions, or discuss perspectives.
- Choosing and prioritizing topics: Vote on seminar or project topics to transparently incorporate your students' interests.
- Use Challenge Mode for a playful knowledge quiz
A practical example: In a lecture with more than 300 students, there are several project topics to choose from. Participants vote for their preferred topic via a short LiveVoting session. The result is immediately visible, and the instructor can adopt the most popular topics for group work.
What are the advantages for teaching?
LiveVoting makes courses more interactive, dynamic, and participatory. Students become active participants, not just listeners. The immediate visualization of results makes it easier for teachers to assess understanding and creates transparency in the learning process. Anonymous participation allows even more reserved students to contribute—a clear benefit for the depth of discussion and inclusion.
Overall, LiveVoting strengthens the connection between knowledge transfer and active learning—and helps to make courses lively learning spaces.
Further information and instructions