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Active Learning Strategies

This section will cover the application of active learning strategies.   

When selecting an active learning strategy for your lesson, you may want to consider:

  1. The course delivery medium. Is the course online, blended, or in-person? If online or blended, will students participate in the lesson synchronously or asynchronously? If in-person, is it a lecture setting or a tutorial or seminar setting?  
  2. The course discipline, and relevant program- or course-level learning outcomes. What skills and knowledge are students in your discipline expected to demonstrate, and what activities might support this development?  
  3. The class size. Is it a large introductory course, or a smaller upper-year seminar? What is the ratio of instructional staff to students for providing facilitation support?  
  4. The classroom layout and furnishings, including fixed versus moveable features [for in-person courses]. Are students able to move around the room to interact with new peers, or are they limited to interacting with those in their immediate vicinity?  
  5. Accessibility needs of your students, including mobility challenges, students’ comfort level, and the availability of required resources. What will your students need to participate in an activity, and how will you incorporate flexibility to encourage all students to engage in ways that are meaningful and comfortable to them?  
  6. The cognitive complexity of the activity, or how it relates to the lesson’s intended learning outcomes. If the activity requires students to apply their knowledge or formulate new ideas, consider whether they have the foundational knowledge, skills, and experience to do so meaningfully.  
  7. Your comfort and experience as an instructor. Remember, there is no need to pressure yourself into doing something that feels “risky” or outside of your comfort zone. Start small, and work your way up as you develop confidence in facilitating active learning techniques into your teaching. 

The following video provides more ideas about how to apply and promote active learning across a variety of teaching contexts, specifcially large classrooms and online learning.

Active Learning Resources:

You can use the resources below as a starting point for your own research on active learning strategies.  

  • Griffith University (Queensland, Australia) has a fantastic searchable database of active learning strategies. The Active Learning Design Tool allows you to filter by class size, classroom layout, preparation time, and many other criteria.  
  • If you feel like diving headfirst into the world of active learning, check out the University of Central Florida’s list of 228 Interactive Learning Techniques.   
  • If you are teaching in a large classroom, consider one of the strategies outlined in the University of Waterloo’s Activities for Large Classes.   
  • If you would like to learn more about activities for online learners, visit UC Davis’s Learning Activities and Active Learning Online. 

Are there any active learning strategies you want to learn more about? If so, please record them in the “Active Learning Strategies” section in the downloadable worksheet. After doing that, the worksheet will also prompt you with an activity that will bring together all that you have learned in this module. Now that we have defined active learning, explained its importance, and identified some considerations for selecting and implementing active learning into your teaching, it is time for you to create your own plan! 

References

Interactive Learning Techniques, University of Central Florida: https://www.fctl.ucf.edu/teachingandlearningresources/coursedesign/assessment/content/101_tips.pdf  

The Active Learning Design Tool, Griffith University (Queensland): https://app.secure.griffith.edu.au/active-learning/   

Activities for Large Classes, University of Waterloo:  https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/teaching-resources/teaching-tips/educational-technologies/all/activities-large-classes   

Four-Step Strategy for Creating Active Learning in Any Learning Space:  https://onlinelearninginsights.wordpress.com/tag/active-learning-strategies-for-online/   

Learning Activities and Active Learning Online, UC Davis:  https://canvas.ucdavis.edu/courses/34528/pages/learning-activities-and-active-learning-online