Active Learning

Active learning refers to techniques where students do more than simply listen to a lecture. Students are DOING something including discovering, processing, and applying information. Active learning "derives from two basic assumptions: (1) that learning is by nature an active endeavor and (2) that different people learn in different ways" (Meyers and Jones, 1993). Research shows greater learning when students engage in active learning. It is important to remember, however, that lecture does have its place and that you should not do active learning without content or objectives. The elements of active learning are talking and listening, writing, reading, and reflecting (Meyers and Jones, 1993). Bonwell and Eison (1991) state that some characteristics of active learning are:

Students are involved in more than listening, less emphasis is placed on transmitting information and more on developing students’ skills, students are involved in higher-order thinking (analysis, synthesis, evaluation), students are engaged in activities (e.g., reading discussing, writing), and greater emphasis is placed on students’ exploration of their own attitudes and values. (p. 2)

There may be some resistance to active learning by students who are accustomed to lectures, students who prefer passive learning, or students in large classes (who don’t expect it). Thus, you need to prepare students. Explain your objectives and the benefits of the active learning techniques explicitly to students. Expect both successes and failures as you try active learning techniques. Solicit feedback on the activity afterwards from the students to improve it in the future. Some active learning techniques take little faculty preparation and may be done spontaneously; others require much more preparation. Active learning techniques can occur in class or outside of class (e.g., computer simulations, internships, WWW assignments, class Internet discussion lists, independent study research). Active learning can be used with all levels of students from first year through graduate students. Teaching a mass class does not prohibit the use of active learning techniques; in fact, they may be especially important to promote interest and learning in a mass class. Below, I offer a few examples of in-class active learning techniques used in small and large classes, and with all levels of students.
Think-Pair-Share

Give students a task such as a question or problem to solve, an original example to develop, etc. Have them work on this 2-5 minutes alone (think). Then have them discuss their ideas for 3-5 minutes with the student sitting next to them (pair). Finally, ask or choose student pairs to share their ideas with the whole class (share). I have used these in classes ranging from 12 to 340 students.
Collaborative learning groups

These may be formal or informal, graded or not, short-term or long-term. Generally, you assign students to heterogeneous groups of 3-6 students. They choose a leader and a scribe (note-taker). They are given a task to work on together. Often, student preparation for the CLG has been required earlier (reading or homework). The group produces a group answer or paper or project. These work best in small to medium size classes, but I have also used them in a class of 340 students. If interested, see my short paper on "Collaborative Learning Groups in the Large Class: Is it Possible?" in Teaching Sociology, 1993, 21, 403-408.

via Active Learning.