Yeka Sub-city Education Office

Supervision Team

Active Learning
Prepared for Training
(Millennium Secondary School)
April, 2024
 .

What is Active Learning?

 Discussion
• What is Active teaching?
• Advantages of Active teaching ?
• Strategies/methods of Active Teaching?
• Challenges to address Active Teaching?
• Ways to overcome challenges of Active
Teaching?

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 Definitions of Active Learning
Active Learning is:
• "anything that involves students in doing things and thinking
about the things they are doing" (Bonwell & Eison, 1991).

• "anything course-related that all students in a class session are

called upon to do other than simply watching, listening and taking
notes“ (Felder & Brent 2009).

• the method that uses techniques such as writing reflections,

discussion, problem solving-activities that promote analysis,
synthesis and evaluation that guide students towards achieving
learning objectives (Morrison, 2015).
• Most of them take only a few minutes to complete. Can be adopted in any
discipline; to be done individually, in pairs or in small groups.
• not a theory but a teaching method that supports learning.
 Active vs. Passive Learning
Active Learning Passive Learning

• is an instructional approach • is a traditional instructional

in which the students style that involves teachers
engage with the material. lecturing and students taking
notes.
• constructivist perspective of • behaviorist theories where the
learning. student is viewed as an empty
• knowledge is actively vessel waiting to be filled.
constructed by the learner • where students are recipients
and integrated with his/her of knowledge, are expected to
existing knowledge and record and absorb knowledge
experience.
 How Students Learn?
• People learn in different settings

• We spend:

14% of our time in school,

53% in home and community

33% asleep.

• the “average attention span,” while varying, seems to

congregate/focus/ around eight to ten minutes
(“Attention Span Statistics,” 2015), and (Richardson, 2010)
6
 Cont…
• Audience attention in lectures starts to
decrease every 10-20 minutes.

7
 When & Why AL?
When to use Active learning?
after introduction of new material
Why we use Active learning?
to enhance learning
to incorporate learning styles
to improve comprehension (of content)
to turn teaching into learning
to students to remember what they
understand.
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 Cont…
Active Learning can be used to engage students in:
a) thinking critically or creatively,
b) speaking with a partner, in a small group/with the entire class,
c) expressing ideas through writing, reading, discussing
d) exploring/discovering personal attitudes and values
e) giving and receiving feedback
f) reflecting upon the learning process, and
g) involving in higher order thinking (analysis, synthesis,
evaluation)
 Cont…
When a teacher employs active learning strategies, he/she will
typically:

(a) spend greater proportion of time helping students develop

their understanding and skills (promoting deep learning) and
(b) a lesser proportion of time transmitting information (i.e.,
supporting surface learning).

Teacher will provide opportunities for students to:

a) apply and demonstrate what they are learning and
b) receive immediate feedback from peers and/or the teacher.
 Where & How AL?
Active Learning can:
a) be completed by students either in-class or
out-of-class,

b) be done by students working either as

individuals or in group, and

c) be done either with or without the use of

technology tools
 Preparing The Class For Active Learning
• Tell students why you’re using these methods and
what the benefits are.
• Set expectations early (and remind often)
• Explain consequences (for good/poor participation
• If possible, get testimonials (written, recorded, or
in-person) from past students who will give tips,
and positive reflections.
• Start with a small AL activity to establish an early
success.
 Active Learning Methods/Strategies
• AL Methods are classroom activities like:
 group work,
 individual assignments,
 reciting/performing,
 class games, and
 question and answer among others.
 Active Learning Strategies
Complex
Forum
Theatre
Active
Review
Site Visits
Brainstorming
Case
Studies Peer
Role Review
Playing Think-pair-
Group share
Evaluation Self
Informal Assessment
Groups Pause for
Large Group Reflection
Discussion
One Minute
Paper Simple
 One Minute Paper
• In this activity students write a 1-2 min response to an
open question.
• This activity can be done at any time. If used at the end
of class, students can write a response to provide you
with feedback on their comprehension. You might ask
• “What is the most important thing you learned?”;
• “Summarize today’s lecture in one sentence”;
• “What questions remain?”
• You might also include this activity throughout the lecture as a
transition between topics, allowing them to reflect and summarize
information, and identify what they do not understand, before
moving on.
 Question-and-Answer Technique
• Questions are a simple yet effective way to promote
interaction, & provide you with a sense of your
students’ comprehension. Can be used in any
discipline.
• Develop your questions before class and decide when
you are going to ask them.
• Questions can be asked at any time, but it is important
to vary the timing to prevent repetition/boredom (e.g.,
do not routinely ask questions after every 5 slides).
• It is important to stimulate activity from the whole
class and to acknowledge all answers, to support
continued participation.
 Brainstorming
• In this activity, students are asked to generate
ideas on a certain topic, category or question
while you facilitate and record the answers on
the blackboard/whiteboard.
• Encourage students to draw on prior knowledge
and experiences.
• It is important to acknowledge all answers
during this idea generation period.
• Brainstorming can be adapted to small or large
classes, in any discipline and any length of time.
Discussion
• can be used with any class size, although it
is typically more effective in smaller group
settings.
• requires the learners to think critically on
the subject being discussed and to use
logic to evaluate their and others'
positions.
Think-Pair-Share

• applied when students take a time to think about

what has just been presented by the teacher (i.e.
think), and

• then discuss it with one or more of the students

they are sitting next to (i.e. pair).

• this is followed by a class discussion (share).

Learning Cell/Peer Review

• is applied when a pair of students study and

learn together by asking and answering
questions on commonly read materials.

• First, students will prepare by reading a section

of a textbook and then writing down questions
about the reading.
 Cont….
• At the next class meeting, the teacher will randomly
put the students in pairs, where one student will ask a
question and they will both discuss it.

• Then it will be the turn of the second student to ask

his/her question to be discussed.

• During this time, the teacher goes around the class

from group to group giving feedback and answering
questions.
Collaborative Learning Group
• is where the teacher assigns students into
groups of 3-6 members and then gives each
group an assignment or task to work on
together.

• This is a good example of active learning

because it causes students to actively
participate together in learning.
Class Game /Role play
• is a learning method considered an energetic
way to learn because it is not only helps the
students to learn the course material but it
helps them to enjoy learning about a topic.
 Active Learning vs. Learning Styles
Active learning strategy for different learners:
• Visual learners (mind maps)/concept maps Power
point/one minute paper
• Auditory learners (review groups/brainstorming/
summary/student to student teaching/interview
• Kinesthetic learner (skill demonstration/ games/student
response systems)
• Multiple learning style (working with partners/role
playing)
 Challenges in Active learning
• Six common obstacles to use AL strategies include:
a. You cannot cover as much course content in the time available;
b. Devising active learning strategies takes too much pre-class
preparation;
c. Large class sizes prevents its implementation;
d. Most instructors think of themselves as being good
lecturers/teachers resistance
e. There is a lack of materials or equipment needed to support
active learning approaches;
f. Students resist non-lecture approaches.
Barriers
Active
Learning
 Suggested Solutions
A. Course Content:
What students can do outside of class to more
effectively, prepare for in-class activities
Pre-class reading assignments
Assign videos
Pre-class quizzes (to ensure that students have
read the material)
 Solutions…
B. Classroom Environment:
• Make your class dynamic
• “Do practically anything other than lecture”

Classrooms that invite students to learn actively & think critically

have the following features in common (Mathews, 2003):
• shared responsibility for the classroom climate
• teachers model thinking for students and support students as
they share their thinking strategies.
• an atmosphere of inquiry/investigation and openness.
• students are given support, but just the right amount of it.
• the arrangement of the space/attractive sitting.
 Some Different Ways to Arrange Classroom Space

Board • Best for listening to the

teacher, but it is not good for
000 000 000 000 interaction among students.
• Teachers who want students to
000 000 000 000 talk to each other avoid this
arrangement.

• Suitable for having small

000 000 000 000 groups working together.
000 000 000 000 • The teacher is not stationary
during most group activities;
000 000 000 000 rather he/she circulates around
the room to observe the
000 000 000 000 groups, answer questions, or
offer guidance.
Classroom Arrangement to help students interact with
each other
• Suitable for a whole class
meeting or discussion.
. • The teacher is one discussant
among many.

• This arrangement is used when

000 000 000 000
students are seated on
000 000 000 000 immovable benches.
• The students sitting in front of
000 000 000 000 the desk turn around & work
000 000 000 000 across the desk with the
students behind them.
 Students’ Resistant to Engage
• Begin using active learning strategies early in the term.
• Introduce the concept on the first day of class.
• Use active learning frequently at least once a class
period initially.
• Vary the active learning strategies you use.
• Give clear instructions.
• State the goal students should meet.
• Put directions for in-class activities on a PowerPoint
slide so that students have something to refer to as they
begin the activity.
• Explain to students why you're using active
learning and the benefits they can expect from
it.
• Be committed to your choice to use active
learning and communicate that confidently to
student.
• Start small and simple.
• Use low-impact strategies such as think-pair-
share or in-class writing exercises.
 Success in an Active Learning Classroom

1) Start with learning objectives

2) Use multiple pedagogies
3) leverage digital and analog tools
4) Increase access between teacher & students
 Tools to Encourage Active Learning
• Active does not mean out of control, does not
mean chaos…it can get there
Have a home base /guide/rule
Use of sound signals
A signal for silence
Walking, stop, stand back to back,
listening opportunity, talk
Performing activities
 Ways to Increase Engagement
• Incorporate movement into your class
• Pick up the pace /speed
• Frequent and effective feedback
• Use 5-7 second thinking time for answering
• Method of summarizing (3 things they learned, 2
interesting, 1 question, share with peers)
• Periodically pause mid sentence
(wait for students to complete /fill in the blanks)
 Cont..
 Teachers who want to succeed:
Add passion /thirst/desire to your teaching
Be ready to get tired
Support your students/colleagues
Build learning communities/groups /Club)
Active learning could be recurrent /frequent
Academic reputation is accumulative
/acquisitive
 .
• To be successful in implementing Active
learning you need to:
Study hall/classroom re-designs
Class size: reconsideration
Technology integration
Continuous in-service teacher training
Curriculum re-design
Teaching Excellence incentives
Nation-wide active learning campaign/promotion
Thank You!