Keeping it active
What is it?
Active learning views students as active participants in the learning process. It emphasises the role of active engagement in learning environments to promote higher-order, critical thinking and the development of self-regulated learning practices. As such, the adoption of active learning facilitates the delivery of the flipped model of learning that the university has adopted.
Theoretical foundations
The first systematic approach to the definition and practice-based considerations related to ‘active learning’ was developed by Bonwell and Eison (1991). They outlined two key aspects of active learning, namely, that active learning “involves students in doing things and thinking about the things they are doing.” (Bonwell and Eison, 1991. p.19). The first aspect is underpinned by constructivist learning theory which argues that individuals learn by building on their own knowledge by connecting new ideas and experiences to existing knowledge schemas. New knowledge and experience can either be accommodated by currently held schemas or it can provide the basis for altering or modifying schemas to fit newly acquired knowledge and experience. Crucially, the goal of active learning approaches is to design teaching strategies that help students connect and apply new knowledge to current schemas and to encourage students to think if their schemas are appropriate of if they need to be modified. A collaborative approach can be adopted to promote this kind of thinking and this represents an approach to constructivism that views social interaction as the key feature of the learning process. This is known as social constructivism.
Equally important is the design of activities that promote metacognition. These activities promote student thinking on their own learning processes and this promotes a student’s ability to apply knowledge in novel contexts and a heightened ability to distinguish and evaluate different perspectives, knowledge claims and beliefs. These activities can also be important to help students regulate their learning processes and this is a crucial skill in learning environments that require high levels of student autonomy.
Active learning strategies
Active learning strategies often combine a range of learning activities to effectively meet weekly or unit-level objectives. A useful way is to think about how activities can be used to improve levels of content knowledge in a domain through to thinking about how this knowledge can be extended or applied in different contexts. When learning activities are thought about like this, it becomes easier to decide which activities are appropriate for your students in their learning journeys. Hattie and Yates’ (2013) interpretation of the SOLO taxonomy provides a useful starting point for categorising learning activities according to their function in your learning design. This is illustrated in the table below.
| Task | SOLO Taxonomy verbs | Relevant active learning activities/techniques | Potential tools |
| Introducing new topic/concepts | Identify, Name, Follow simple procedure |
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| Synthesising information | Combine, Describe, Enumerate, List, Perform serial skills |
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| Check for understanding | Combine, Describe, Enumerate, List, Perform serial skills |
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| Encouraging critical thinking | Analyse, Apply, Argue, Compare, Relate, Justify, Explain causes |
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| Problem-solving | Create, Formulate, Generate, Hypothesise, Reflect, Theorise |
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Resources
Bonwell, C.C, & Eison, J. A. (1991). Active Learning: Creating Excitement in the Classroom. Washington DC: School of Education and Human Development, George Washington University.
Hattie, J., & Yates, G. (2013, August 06). Understanding Learning : lessons for learning, teaching and research [Paper presentation]. 2013 – How the Brain Learns: What lessons are there for teaching?. https://research.acer.edu.au/research_conference/RC2013/6august/10
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Dr Glenn Mason SFHEA is the Lead Learning Science Analyst at Western Sydney University and the editor of the university’s Online Engagement and Teaching Hub.
Please cite as Mason, G. (2023). Keeping it active . Western Sydney University Online Engagement and Teaching Hub. https://lf.westernsydney.edu.au/engage/theory/keeping-it-active |
