What is active learning?

Active learning can take many forms, and sometimes goes by other names:

• Interactive engagement: head- and hands-on activities that yield immediate feedback through discussion with peers and instructors. [Hake 1998]
• Deliberate practice: problem solving during class with frequent feedback. [Deslauriers 2011]
• Active learning: activities and discussion in class, as opposed to passive listening; emphasis on higher-order thinking; group work. [Freeman et al. 2014]

Active learning is lighter-weight than the flipped-class model, in which students read texts and watch videos before class, then (perhaps exclusively) do exercises with peers during class.

How can I get started with active learning in my class?

Here are four exercises that are good for getting started:

• Think-pair-share: students think about a question, pair up to discuss, then share with the class.
• One-minute papers: students write a brief response to what was just taught.
• Brainstorming: students pause to think about how to solve a problem.
• In-class polling: students all respond to a question in real time.

You can use those at any time during a lecture. Every 15 to 20 minutes is a good target. More often could feel overwhelming; less often could lead to students’ working memory becoming saturated.

Where can I learn more?

• Please contact MTEI for a consultation about implementing active learning in your own courses! We are happy to help.
• Engineering Teaching Day 2022 had a session on active learning with more resources.
• Cornell’s Active Learning Initiative funds courses to implement active learning.
• Other resources:
  • Susan A. Ambrose, Michael W. Bridges, Michele DiPietro, Marsha C. Lovett, Marie K. Norman. How Learning Works. Jossey-Bass, 2010.
  • Anders Ericsson, Robert Pool. Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise. Eamon Dolan, 2016.
  • Daniel L. Schwartz, Jessica M. Tsang, Kristen P. Blair. The ABCs of How We Learn. Norton, 2016.
  • Carl Wieman. Improving How Universities Teach Science. Harvard, 2017.
  • Argenta M. Price, Candice J. Kim, Eric W. Burkholder, Amy V. Fritz, Carl E. Wieman. A Detailed Characterization of the Expert Problem-Solving Process in Science and Engineering: Guidance for Teaching and Assessment. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 20(3), 13 Aug 2021.
  • The Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative at the University of British Columbia.