At the start of our class discussion on active learning, I kind of took the approach of several in the class that many of the active learning exercises were gimmicks. I took this approach for several reasons:
1) Students who are seeking higher education should be self-disciplined enough to listen to a lecture, study for the test, and retain and build on their knowledge.
2) It takes away from valuable class time and might hinder the ability to cover more information.
3) As a scientist, my take on classes was coming from a different angle. To me, the class is where we obtain the basic information/concepts and the lab was the active learning, hands-on portion which reinforced the class and help build higher-level thinking. They compliment each other and one cannot happen without the other.
Thanks to Laura and the handout she gave several of us on specific techniques for active learning and their outcomes, I realized that:
1) Active learning is not a gimmick.
2) The way science is taught in higher education doesn't help faciliate learning and greater level of thinking.
So about point 1, I think Laura's handout identifies some amazing techniques for facilitating active learning in the classroom. These include:
Face-to-face discussions
Symposiums
Panels
Debates
Case studies
Games
Videos
Simulations
When reading the article, to my surprise, I had participiated in classes which used several of these techniques. When I reflect back on those classes today, I can still remember the subject that was taught and the take-home point from the lecture. Clearly, those active learning techniques helped me remember a subject matter that I do not reflect on constantly. About point 2, recently, I have sat in on several upper level science classes at a couple of universities within the Richmond area. The lectures resemble the picture above. The professor at the front of the class...speaking (i.e.raining) out information to students. However, from speaking with the students, they are not absorbing or learning it. Yes, the lab is meant to reinforce the class via active, hands-on learning. However, the lab and the class seem disjointed to students; therefore, they do not identify how it reinforces the class lecture. Maybe it is because they didn't absorb the class lecture due to their low involvement and engagement in the class. Shouldn't we as future educators try to make science come alive in the classroom rather than just in the lab? Maybe this will facilitate retention of the information, building on the knowledge, and facilitate a higher level of thinking. As I am preparing for my teaching internship next spring, I am going to make it my goal to bring active learning to the classroom as well as the lab!
I agree that trying to implement active learning techniques during my teaching externship is a main goal of mine as well. I have noted during my observations of classes at a few institutions that the students seem to lack engagement with the material. The professors are trying to show relevance of the material to the students but it does not seem to be enough. The students also do not seem to want to participate in active learning style activities (group discussions, speaking in front of the class about certain subjects) so it will be tricky finding the best active learning techniques to engage these subsets of students. It may require more legwork than choosing the most commonly used methods. I think once we are able to achieve engagement with the students we will be in good shape though.
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