Press "Enter" to skip to content

5.2 Notes: The value of active learning and classroom design [± 80 minutes]

4. Conclusion

In this set of notes, you explored active learning, one of the key means through which instructors can increase student engagement and participation. Through active learning students not only engage with their peers and the learning environment, but also become more cognizant of their own learning, and actively participate in the construction of their own and their peers’ knowledge. This is made somewhat easier by flexible classroom designs, in which students can rearrange the environment to suit group as well as individual work. It is still possible, however, to make the best of a fixed classroom design by introducing active learning segments into more traditional lectures.

5. Bibliography

Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M. C., Norman, M. K. 2010. How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Baepler, P., Walker, J.D., Brooks, D.C., Saichaie, K., & Petersen, C.I. 2016. A guide to teaching in the active learning classroom: history, research, and practice. Stylus Publishing.

Braxton, J. M., Milem, J. F., & Sullivan, A. S. 2000. The influence of active learning on the college student departure process: toward a revision of Tinto’s theory. The Journal of Higher Education. 71: 569-590.

Bullard, L., Felder, R., & Raubenheimer, D. 2008. Effects of active learning on student performance and retention. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education. 22-25 June 2008. Pittsburgh, PA: ASEE PEER. 1-8.

Crouch, C. H., & Mazur, E. 2001. Peer instruction: ten years of experience and results. American Association of Physics Teachers. 69(9): 970-977.

Deslauriers, L., Schelew, E., & Wieman, C. 2011. Improved Learning in a Large-Enrollment Physics Class. Science. 332(6031): 862–864. doi: 10.1126/science.1201783

Diamond, M. J. 1972. Improving the undergraduate lecture class by use of student-led discussion groups. American Psychologist. 27(10): 978.

Green, C. S., & Klug, H. G. 1990. Teaching critical thinking and writing through debates: An experimental evaluation. Teaching Sociology. 18: 462-471.

Eddy, S. L., Hogan, K. A. (2014) Getting under the hood: how and for whom does increasing course structure work? CBE-Life Sciences Education 13, 453-468.

Haak, D. C., HilleRisLambers, J., Pitre, E., Freeman, S. 2011. Increased structure and active learning reduce the achievement gap in introductory biology. Science. 332: 1213-1216.

Handelsman, J., Miller, S., & Pfund, C. 2007. Scientific teaching. New York: W. H. Freeman and Company.

Lepper, M. R., & Cordova, D. I. 1992. A desire to be taught: instructional consequences of intrinsic motivation. Motivation and Emotion. 16(3): 187-208.

Lorenzo, M., Crouch, C. H., & Mazur, E. 2006. Reducing the gender gap in the physics classroom. American Journal of Physics. 74: 118-122.

McGuire, S. Y. 2015. Teach Students How to Learn: Strategies You Can Incorporate Into Any Course to Improve Student Metacognition, Study Skills, and Motivation. Sterling, Virginia: Stylus Publishing, LLC.

Millis, B. J. 1990. Helping faculty build learning communities through cooperative groups. Available: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/podimproveacad/202/ [2017, August 31].

Park, E. L., & Choi, B. K. 2014. Transformation of classroom spaces: traditional versus active learning classroom in colleges. Higher Education. 68(5): 749-771.

Prensky, M. 2002. The motivation of gameplay or, the real 21st century learning revolution. On The Horizon. 10(1): 1-14.

Preszler, R. W. (2009) Replacing lecture with peer-led workshops improves student learning. CBE-Life Sciences Education. 8: 182-192.

Rao, D. & Stupans, I. 2012. Exploring the potential of role play in higher education: development of a typology and teacher guidelines. Innovations in Education and Teaching International. 49(4): 427-436.

Sadler, P. M., & Good, E. 2006. The impact of self- and peer-grading on student learning. Educational Assessment. 11(1): 1-31.

Smith, M. K., Wood, W. B., Adams, W. K., Wieman, C., Knight, J. K., Guild, N., & Su, T. T. 2009. Why Peer Discussion Improves Student Performance on In-Class Concept Questions. Science. 323(5910): 122–124. doi: 10.1126/science.1165919

Sogunro, O. A. 2004. Efficacy of role-playing pedagogy in training leaders: some reflections. Journal of Management Development. 23(4): 355-371.

Tanner, K. D. (2013). Structure Matters: Twenty-One Teaching Strategies to Promote Student Engagement and Cultivate Classroom Equity. CBE-Life Sciences Education. 12(3): 322–331. doi: 10.1187/cbe.13-06-0115

Wieman, C., Perkins, K., Gilbert, S., Benay, F., Kennedy, S., Semsar, K., Knight, J., Shi, J., Smith, M., Kelly, T., Taylor, J., Yurk, H., Birol, G., Langdon, L., Pentecost, T., Stewart, J., Arthurs, L., Bair, A., Stempien, J., Gilley, B., Jones, F., Kennedy, B., Chasteen, S., & Simon, B. 2017. Clicker resource guide: an instructors guide to the effective use of personal response systems (clickers) in teaching. Available: http://www.cwsei.ubc.ca/resources/clickers.htm [2017, September 14].