Active learning approaches frequently promote student conversations about the content. As students try to explain things to each other, argue about answers, and ask questions, learning happens. We can hear it and see it. It’s why we teach.
Imagine this scenario: students taking physics—one group with a faculty member who lectures effectively, the other with one who uses active learning extensively. In both cases what students learn is tested after the class session along with their reports of how much they think they’ve
If you have attended a professional conference, then you have likely experienced or are familiar with breakout sessions. These typically short workshops occur in a space separate from and smaller than that of the keynote presentation and allow attendees to dive deeper into a topic
A year ago I received the worst student ratings of instruction (SRIs) in my 28 years of teaching. On the Likert scale I am normally between 4 and 5 for quality of instructor and quality of the course. Last year, however, my fall term ratings
I think the active learning versus lecture debate is finally moving on to more useful questions than which one is better. Now there’s interest in deciding when to lecture and when to use active learning. When do we make those decisions, and are we making
While most faculty think of assessments as used to measure learning after the fact, formative assessment classroom techniques (FACTs) give an instructor a snapshot of where students are in their learning so as to address any gaps in their understanding. Online instructors have a variety
This research was motivated by the persistent belief that use of active learning approaches engenders student resistance. Despite the well-documented benefits of active learning, students don’t always endorse these approaches with enthusiasm and that makes faculty reluctant to use these approaches. Up to this point
Low-stakes assignments include work we have students do that doesn’t count for a large part of the course grade. There’s a strong set of reasons to use these kinds of assignments, but also some challenges. Let’s take stock.
Long before the written word, humans relied on stories to entertain, instruct, and preserve cultural traditions. Storytelling is a fundamental way that humans communicate, and yet it is often left out of the college classroom. Rather than telling students stories about how something works or
Many instructors realize the value of teaching students fundamental concepts rather than focusing on details. A certain number of basic facts may have to be memorized, but beyond that it is generally more important to have students learn how to apply those facts to solve
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