Active Learning in Higher Education

2021

Active learning methods put students in the center of teaching and learning and may positively affect students' skills, engagement, and achievements in class. Many higher education institutions therefore encourage faculty to adopt active learning practices in their instruction, particularly in large lecture-based courses. This mixed-method study examined the implications of transitioning to active learning for the learning experiences of undergraduate students in a large-scale technology design course. The course transitioned to active learning instruction during the outbreak of COVID-19 and was thus delivered online. Using a sample of 301 surveyed students (161 before the transition and 140 after), this study characterizes students' perspectives of their learning experience and the new knowledge and skills they learned before versus after the transition to active learning. Findings showed that the active learning transition changed students' engagement with peers and their perspectives about the difficulty level of the course. We also found a salient change in students' perspectives of the types of knowledge and skills they gained before versus after the transition. We discuss the findings and offer suggestions for promoting active learning in college instruction.

Active Learning in Higher Education, 2022

This design-based research (DBR) study had both local and general goals. Its local goal was to increase active learning in the online courses offered at a large research university in the midwestern United States. Its larger goal was to define active learning design principles for online courses in general, so that they might be used to improve the learning experience for wider audiences. While the principles of active learning can be applied to courses in any mode of delivery: flipped classroom, blended, or fully online, the importance of active learning in online courses is highlighted because active learning course design requires numerous upfront considerations. Moreover, because the pedagogical model is structured throughout the online learning environment and thus is made visible, online courses present a unique opportunity to review what is core to the principles of active learning. The design intervention (an innovative course review method) incorporated the principles of authentic e-learning. The study addressed two major research questions: (1) "To what extent does the intervention-a new course review method-indicate the extent to which active learning is present in the design of an online course?" and (2) "How do the principles of authentic e-learning incorporated in the new course review method need to be refined?" To address the first question, the online course review intervention was used to evaluate the learning activities and assessments of 75 undergraduate online courses against these authentic e-learning principles, resulting in an active learning (AL) score for each course. To address the second question, we surveyed the learners in these 75 courses about what made learning meaningful and coded the learners' feedback in reference to the active learning design principles. The practical outcome of this DBR study is a pedagogical course review that quantifies active learning in online courses. The theoretical outcomes of this DBR study are refined active learning design principles that can serve instructors, designers, teacher educators, and administrators in enhancing the design of online courses. The findings of this study affirm that the authentic task principles as well as newly identified learner-centered design principles together can serve as evidence-based principles to define and refine active learning in online courses.

Flipping the College Classroom, 2017

This chapter provides guidance on how to create and implement effective active learning experiences for the flipped classroom. The active learning experiences are organized into four categories: group work, peer tutoring, discussions, and individual work. Research on the effectiveness of group work, peer tutoring, and discussions is examined with special emphasis placed on identifying which of the six learning domains (e.g. higher-order thinking, affective learning, educational and professional skills) are supported by the active learning experiences. Evidence-based advice for effectively facilitating and monitoring group work, peer tutoring, and discussions is also provided. Finally, examples of other effective active learning experiences for each category (group work, peer tutoring, discussions, and individual work) are provided along with any research related to the activity/experience.

2006 GSW Proceedings

The authors were intrigued by the different ways and methods advocated in the engineering education literature to promote active learning in a class over passive learning. The two authors were in charge of teaching a sophomore-level course in design and manufacturing at the University of New Mexico. They have combined (1) group work, (2) student teaching and presentations, (3) pop quizzes, (4) peer rating of team members and non-team members, and (5) problem-based learning or PBL in an effort to maximize the active learning involved in the class. All of the aforementioned methods have been tried, typically individually, in previous educational studies and were recommended for teachers. An exception is the peer rating of nonteam members, which is presented for the first time here and is conducted via a student-filled form provided in the Appendix. The educational experience, along with statistical data, from this unique combination is discussed herein along with any recommendations or lessons learned.

This article "Designing for active learning: A conversation" describes collaboration between a lecturer and an educational designer to apply practical, reflective processes to the redevelopment, for online learning and teaching, of a Masters of Education unit. This systematic process occurs within a reflective action framework. The article provides insight into the possibilities and advantages of bringing teachers and designers together to improve practice and will strike a chord with teachers just setting out into the "online unknown".

2017

Active learning, described as learning through the active participation of students, has received considerable attention in recent decades. The term broadly describes a student centered approach, in which the responsibility for learning is placed upon the student, often working in collaboration with their peers (group assignments, discussions, think pairs, etc). The pedagogical merits of active learning for universities have long been acknowledged, as well as its challenges. Active learning can increase student achievement and create positive relationships among students. Nonetheless, for many educators there remain questions about what active learning is and how it can be effectively implemented. Technology can further enhance the advantages of active learning, providing significant improvements with regards to the structure and nature of teacher-student, student-student and teacher-teacher collaboration within and between universities and enable a variety of formal and informal le...

Technology, Knowledge and Learning

Active learning strategies increase student engagement and performances, however, there is student resistance toward such instructional interventions. To overcome student resistance groupwork can be useful. In addition, digital technology can be used to redesign courses to add active learning techniques and support learning with and not from technologies. We developed active learning strategies in a digital environment, artifact-generated learning (AGL). The aim of this exploratory research was to study student engagement in AGL setting by focusing on how student work together, student satisfaction, motivation, and roles. We conducted an open course with students from various disciplines. We applied Chi's conceptual framework of the three active learning levels of active-constructiveinteractive (interactive is highest level), to study the AGL intervention in student groups. Methods of focus groups, observations, and online questionnaires were conducted to analyze group interaction. Results, presented for four student groups, indicate two groups were active-constructive, one group was interactive, and one group reached beyond the highest level that we call co-design level. Implications raise awareness to distinguish between active learners and co-designers. An interactive group is not necessarily a co-designer. A co-designer is an active student who also acts beyond the given course design as s/he constructively searches for and utilizes other resources in order to accomplish set goals. To overcome student resistance, a new process-based assessment format may enhance students to become co-designers on the group level.

ICERI Proceedings

2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access Proceedings

Antonio. He earned his doctorate in Education in a dual-degree program between the University of Padua and The University of Tennessee. He also holds a doctorate in Languages, Cultures, and Societies from Ca' Foscari University of Venice. His research interests include new literacies, youth cultures, games and learning, music technology, and multimodality. He presented his work at national and international conferences such as GLS (Games + Learning + Society) and G4C (Games for Change). He is the author of the book La Quotidianità dell'Assurdo (The Everyday Absurd, Archetipolibri, Bologna, 2010).

2009 Annual Conference & Exposition Proceedings

is currently a PhD Candidate in the Architectural Engineering Department at Penn State. Robert's research focuses on the improvement of team collaboration while leveraging advanced data modeling and visualization technologies for building design and construction. Robert earned his Masters in Architectural Engineering at Penn State, as well as having a background in the construction industry. In addition, Robert has also spend time working with VTT, the Technical Research Center of Finland, as a visiting scholar with their Building Informatics team. Robert's interest in Multi-Media educational methods has grown through his research into improving team collaboration through improved communication technology. He can be reached at