Exploring Active Learning

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“for the rest of your life, you won’t be judged by test scores. You’ll be judged by the kind of human being you are, and the kind of work that you do.”

Putting Students in Charge: Active Learning for Student-Centered Classrooms

Some traditions are best left in the trash bin. For instance, the age old model of teaching, where the teacher lectures and the students take notes, isn’t a useful tradition. It’s time to throw that model on its head and begin to implement a student-focused classroom where kids learn by doing. 

As an example, former sixth-grade teacher Ron Berger threw out the class curriculum in order to give kids an opportunity to take control of their own education. The students came up with projects that contributed to society in a meaningful way. His students learned by doing, and they were learning skills that they would use outside of school. “For the rest of your life, you won’t be judged by test scores. You’ll be judged by the kind of human being you are, and the kind of work that you do” (Gosner, 2021).

The whole purpose of active learning is to allow students to engage with the lesson material in a deep and meaningful way. Katherine Caldwell says “Students must be engaged in asking deep and meaningful questions about what they are learning, and they must have an authentic voice in our classrooms and communities'' (Cadwell, n.d.). Cadwell says elementary school students who practice this go on to middle school actually like the challenges.

Active learning is a particularly helpful strategy for students with disabilities, according to researchers. 

"We have in our practice, as well as in our research, seen substantial progress of social abilities, as well as critical thinking and language, with students in preschools and compulsory schools using Socratic, Paideia seminars. In dialogic seminar contexts, interaction with other people is methodically facilitated and encouraged, helping both teachers and students co-construct their knowledge and develop their understandings in flexible ways. The social nature of dialogic learning may serve as a scaffold for children with specific abilities to effectively interact with others and perceive those others’ emotions" (Nouri, et al, 2018).

Example Activity

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Cooley School classroom teacher Ms. Malhiot wanted her students to learn the school’s code of conduct. However, she didn’t want them to just be able to recite the code; she wanted them to internalize it. So, how did she do this? Ms. Malhiot taught the school's code of conduct in a student-centered, active learning environment. "Ms. Malhiot decided  to take the concept and give students a chance to visually represent it. This not only reinforces the notion that this is an important set of rules but gives students specific examples of what someone might mean when they walk in and say 'Be Responsible', 'Be Respectful', and 'Be Safe'" (Zumpano, 2014). The lesson also helps students get to know one another.

View this activity on the blog: <<Technology in Education: Views from the Closet>>

The lesson began with students using the smartboard to list various examples of positive behaviors for each step of the code. Next, the students gathered in small discussion groups to discuss the code and develop a storyboard for their presentation. They used a graphic organizer to assist them. From there, students took pictures of things around the school that would help them illustrate their point. Finally, they would use their iPads and the app  PicCollage to create artistic representations of their work.

I used another app to demonstrate this lesson. <<View my Padlet>>

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What Makes this Active Learning?

In this example, Ms. Malhiot turned the traditional model of teaching on its head. Students took control of the lesson and worked in cooperative groups to dig down deep and discover real-world examples to illustrate the school code of conduct. In the end, they created resources that would help themselves, and each other, remember the lesson.

Unfortunately, too many teachers are stuck in the old teaching model, choosing to do all the talking while students “receive” their knowledge. Part of the problem is that teacher prep programs rarely cover student-centered teaching. And school administrators don’t buy-in to the practice because they are too focused on standardized testing.

Opportunities/Suggestions/Additional Ideas

Having students learn about the code of conduct doesn’t have to stop at the end of class. The teacher can integrate it into other subjects, such as reading and writing. Students could be encouraged to watch one another and give a shout-out when they see their peers demonstrating the code in real life. Also, the students could form a peer court to examine unproductive behaviors and suggest alternatives.

Additional Resources

The Power of Student-Driven Learning--Shelley White (YouTube)

Teaching in an Active Learning Classroom -- Center for Educational Innovation

Learn about Paideia Education -- National Paideia Center

References

    Cadwell, K. (n.d.) The Harkness Pedagogy: Students Drive the Conversation!

Strategies for Classroom Dialouge. Katherinecadwell.com. 

    Gonser, S. (2021, September 20) Student Engagement: Ron Berger on the Power of ‘Beautiful Work’. https://www.edutopia.org/article/ron-berger-power-beautiful-work.

    Nouri, A., and Pihlgren, A. (2018, ) Socratic Seminars for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Dialogic Pedagogy: An International Online Journal. http://dpj.pitt.edu DOI: 10.5195/dpj.2018.173

    Zumpano, N. (2014, Sept. 4) Be Safe, Be Respectful and Be Responsible with PicCollage (and Educreations!). Technology in Education: Views From the Closet. http://zumpanotechlab.blogspot.com/2014/09/be-safe-be-respectful-and-be.html