INTRODUCING ACTIVE LEARNING

Source: "Active Learning 101 Strategies

to Teach Any Subject"; Silberman, M.

Ten Methods to Get Participation at Any Time

Active learning cannot occur without student participation. There are various ways to structure
discussion and obtain responses from students at any time dur8ing a class. Some are
especially suitable when time is limited or participation needs to be coaxed. You might also
consider combining these methods-for example, using subdiscussion and then inviting a
spokesperson from each group to serve on a panel.

1. Open discussion: Ask a question and open it up to the entire group without any further structuring. The
straightforward quality of open discussion is appealing. If you are worried that the discussion might be too
lengthy, say beforehand, "I'd like to ask four or five students to share…" To encourage students to raise their
hands, ask, "How many of you have a response to my question?" Then, call on a student with his or her hand
raised.

2. Response cards: Pass out index cards and request anonymous answers to your questions. Have the index
cards passed around the group or otherwise distributed. Use response cards to save time or to provide
anonymity for personally threatening self-disclosures. The need to state your answer concisely on a card is
another advantage.

3. Polling: Design a short survey that is filled out and tallied on the spot, or poll students verbally. Use polling to
obtain data quickly and in a quantifiable form. If you use a written survey, try to feed back the results to students
as quickly as possible. If you use a verbal survey, ask for a show of hand s or invite students to hold up answer
cards.

4. Subgroup discussion: Break students into subgroups of three or more to share (and record) information. Use
subgroup discussion when you have sufficient time to process questions and issues. This is one of the key
methods for obtaining everyone's participation.

5. Learning partners: Have students work on tasks or discuss key questions with the student seated next to them.
Use learning partners when you want to involve everybody but don't have enough time for small-group discussion.
A pair is a good group configuration for developing a supportive relationship and/or for working on complex
activities that would not lend themselves to large-group configurations.

6. Whips: Go around the group and obtain short responses to key questions. Use whips when you want to obtain
something quickly from each student. Sentence stems (e.g., "One way I like to stay active is by…") are useful in
conducting whips. Invite students to "pass" whenever they wish. To avoid repetition, ask each student for a new
contribution to the process.

7. Panels: Invite a small number of student sot present their views in front of the entire class. An informal panel
can be created by asking for the views of a designated number of students who remain in their seats. Use panels
when time permits to have a focused serious response to your questions. Rotate panelists to increase
participation.

8. Fishbowl: Ask a portion of the class to form a discussion circle, and have the remaining students form a listening
circle around them. Bring new groups into the inner circle to continue the discussion. Use fishbowls to help bring
focus to large-group discussions. Though time consuming, this is the best method for combining the virtues of
large- and small-group discussion. As a variation on concentric circles, have students remain seated at a table
and invite different tables or parts of a table to be the discussants as the others listen.
 9. Games: Use a fun exercise or a quiz game to elicit students' ideas, knowledge, or skill. TV game shows such as
Family Feud or Jeopardy can be used as the basis of a game that elicits participation. Use games to spark
energy and involvement. Games are also helpful to make dramatic points that students seldom forget.

10. Calling on the next speaker: Ask students to raise their hands when they want to share their views, and request
that the present speaker call on the next speaker (rather than the teacher performing this role). Use this
technique when you are sure there is a lot of interest in the discussion or activity and you wish to promote student
interaction.

Ten Assignments to Give Learning Partners

Although we have just looked at ten ways to obtain student participation, th euse of learning
partners deserves notice. One of the most effective and efficient ways to promote active
learning is to divide a class into pairs and compose learning partnerships. It's hard to get left
out in a pair. It's also hard to hide in one. Learning partnerships can be short or long term.
Learning partners can undertake a wide variety of quick tasks or more time-consuming
assignments, such as those in the following list.

1. Discuss a short written document together.

2. Interview each other concerning partner's reactions to an assigned reading, a lecture, a video, or any other
educational activity.
3. Critique or edit each other's written work.
4. Question your partner about an assigned reading.
5. Recap a lesson or class session together.
6. Develop questions together to ask the teacher.
7. Analyze a case problem, exercise, or experiment together.
8. Test each other.
9. Respond to a question posed by the teacher.
10. Compare notes taken in class.

Ten Questions to Obtain Student Expectations

An active learning environment is a place where students' needs, expectations, and concerns
influence the teacher's instructional plans. You can vary the questions you ask to find out from
students what their goals are. Some may be especially appropriate to your situation. You can
obtain answers through the ten methods to obtain participation that were described earlier.

1. What questions about (subject matter of class) do you come with?

2. What information or skills do you want to get from this class?
3. What information or skills don't you need or don't you want?
4. What do you want to take away from this class? Name one thing.
5. What are your hopes for this class? What are your concerns?
6. Do the class objectives match what you need?
7. What knowledge or skills do you feel you need to have? Which ones would be nice to have?
8. What are your expectations about this class?
9. Why did you choose this class (if the class is elective)? Why did you come?
10. What have you gotten from previous classes or experiences on this topic?
Twelve Suggestions to Improve a Lecture
Lecturing is one of the most time-honored teaching methods, but does it have a place in an
active learning environment? Although used too often, lecturing can be tailored to be more
effective in the classroom. For that to happen, a teacher should build interest first, maximize
understanding and retention, involve students during the lecture, and reinforce what has been
presented. Here are several options to do just that.

Building Interest
1. Lead-off story or interesting visual: Provide a relevant anecdote, fictional story, cartoon, graphic or
demonstration that captures the students' attention to what you are about to teach.
2. Initial case problem: Present a problem around which the lecture will be structured. Fashion the lecture so that
the answer unfolds during the class hour.
3. Test question: Ask students a question (even if they have little prior knowledge) so they will be motivated to
listen to your lecture for the answer.
4. Brainstorming: Engage students in the process of generating a list of issues in response to a specific question
or topic. At the beginning of a lecture, it can invite everyone to participate and put them at ease. As an instructor,
make it a point to accept all responses.

Maximizing Understanding and Retention

5. Headlines: Reduce the major points in the lecture to key words that act as verbal subheadings or memory aids.
6. Examples and analogies: Provide real-life illustrations of the ideas in the lecture and, if possible, create a
comparison between your material and the knowledge and experience students already have.
7. Visual Backup: Use flip charts, transparencies, brief handouts (fill-ins are great), and demonstrations that enable
students to see as well as hear what you are saying.

Involving Students During the Lecture

8. Spot challenges: Interrupt the lecture periodically and challenge students to give examples of the concepts
presented so far or to answer spot quiz questions. This is a good time to have students work in pairs to review
key points, quiz each other on the lecture, compare notes, etc. (refer to "10 Assignments give Learning Partners")
9. Illuminating exercises: Throughout the presentation, intersperse brief activities that illuminate the points you are
making.
10. Energy Shifts: Attention span studies have shown that students' interest and attention in the traditional lecture
diminishes significantly after 20 minutes. Energy shifts-or changes of pace-in 15-20 increments from the teacher
to students and back again are essential if student attention is to remain focused. Activities like paired discussion,
small-group mini-discussions, or brainstorming in the middle of the lecture can help students experience a variety
of voices and a sense of shared responsibility for their learning.

Reinforcing the Lecture

11. Application problem: Pose a problem or question for student to solve based on the information given in the
lecture.
12. Student review: Ask students to review the contents of the lecture with each other, or give them a self-scoring
review test. Brainstorming at the end of the lecture or ending with a quick whip allows the students to summarize
the information discussed, to develop a framework for the material covered, and to provide feedback on what was
understood or learned.

Ten Suggestions to Form Learning Groups

Small-group work is a significant part of active learning. It's important to form groups quickly
and efficiently and, at the same time, to vary the composition and sometimes the size of the
groups throughout the class. The following options are interesting alternatives to letting
students choose their own groups or counting off up to a number you have designated.

1. Grouping cards: Determine how many students are in the class and how many different groupings you want
throughout the session. For example, in a class of twenty, one activity may call for four groups of five; another for
 five groups of four; still another for six groups of three with two observers. Code these groups using colored dots
(red, blue, green, and yellow for four groups), decorative stickers (five different stickers on a common theme for
five groups- for example, lions, monkeys, tigers, giraffes, elephants), and a number (1 through 6 for six groups).
Randomly place a number, colored dot, and sticker on a card for each student and include the card in the
student's materials. When you are ready to form your groups, identify the code you are using and direct the
students to join their group in a designated place. Students will be able to move quickly to their groups, saving
time and eliminating confusion. To make the process even more efficient, you may want to post signs indicating
group meeting areas.

2. Puzzles: Purchase children's jigsaw puzzles or create your own by cutting out pictures from magazines; pasting
them on cardboard; and cutting them into the desired shape, size, and number. Select the number of puzzles
according to the number of groups you want to create. Separate the puzzles, mix up the pieces, and give each
student a puzzle piece. When you are ready to form your groups, instruct students to locate those with the other
pieces needed to complete a puzzle.

3. Nametags: Use name tags of different shapes and/or colors to designate different groupings.

4. Birthdays: Ask students to line up by birthdays, then break into the number of groups you need for a particular
activity. In large classes, form groups by birth months. For example, 60 students can be divided into three
groups of roughly equal size by composing groups of those born in (1) January, February, March, and April; (2)
May, June, July, and August; and (3) September, October, November, and December.

5. Playing cards: Use a deck of playing cards to designate groups. For example, use jacks, queens, kings, and
aces to create four groups of four, and add additional number cards depending on the number of students.
Shuffle the cards and deal one to each student. Then direct students to locate others of their kind to form a
group.

6. Finding famous fictional friends and families: Create a list of famous fictional family members or friends in
groups of three or four (e.g., Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook, Wendy; Alice, Cheshire Cat, Queen of Hearts,
Mad Hatter; Superman, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, Clark Kent; Larry, Moe, and Curly; Shaquille O'Neil, Kobe
Bryant, Phil Jackson). Choose the same number of fictional characters, as there are students. Write the fictional
names on index cards, one on each card, to create a family group of cards. Shuffle the cards and give each
student a card with a fictional name. When you are ready to form groups, ask the students to find the other
members of their "family". Once the famous group is complete, they can find a spot to congregate.

7. Draw numbers; Determine the number and size of the groups you want to create, put numbers on individual slips
of paper, and place them in a box. Students draw a number from the box to indicate the group to which they
belong. For example, if you want for groups of four, you would have sixteen slips of paper with four each of the
numbers 1 through 4.

8. Candy flavors: Give students each a wrapped piece of sugarless hard candy of various flavors (other snacks or
treats of the like will do) to indicate groupings. For example, your four groups might be lemon, butterscotch,
cherry, and mint.

9. Choose like items: Select toys on a common theme and use them to indicate groups. For example, you might
choose transportation and use cars, airplanes, boats, and trains. Each student would "draw" a toy from a box and
locate others with the same toy to forma group.

10. Student materials: You can code student learning materials using colored paper clips, colored handouts, or
stickers on folders to predetermine groupings.
Ten Alternatives in Selecting Group leaders and Filling Other Jobs
One way to facilitate active learning in small groups is to assign jobs to some of the group
members such as leader, facilitator, timekeeper, recorder, spokesperson, process
observer, or materials manager. Often, you can simply ask for volunteers to assume some
of these responsibilities, but sometimes it's fun and efficient to use a creative selection
strategy.

1. Alphabetical assignment: Identify the jobs needed and assign them in alphabetical order by first name. In a
long-term group, rotate jobs using this order.

2. Birthday assignment: make assignments in chronological order by students' birthdays (in the calendar year). In
a long-term group, rotate jobs using this order.

3. Number lottery: Ask group members to count off. Place the numbers held by group members in a hat and pick
the person for each job.

4. Color lottery: Select a color for each assignment. The person who is wearing something with a certain color
receives that assignment.

5. Clothing article: Assign responsibilities by selecting corresponding articles of clothing, such as eyeglasses,
silver jewelry, a sweater, or brown shoes.

6. Voting: Ask group members to vote on the job recipient. One popular method is to signal members to point to
the person for whom they are voting. The person with the most fingers pointing at him or her gets the job.

7. Random assignment: Ask each member to calculate and reveal the sum of the last four digits of his or her
home phone number (e.g., 9999 equals 36). Then announce a number from 1 to 36. The person in the group
whose sum comes that closest to that number will be the person assigned to the job.

8. Pet lovers: Assign a designated job to the person with the greatest number of pets.

9. Family size: Assign a designed job to the person with the most (or fewest) siblings.

10. Door Prize: Prior to class, place a sticker in such a way as to identify one member per group. Methods include a
sticker on a nametag, on a seat or desk, on one of the instructional handouts, and the like. The person receiving
the sticker gets the "prize" of a specific group job. To award more than one job. Use stickers of different colors.

Ten Tips When Facilitating Discussion

Class discussion plays a vital role in active learning. Hearing a wide variety of views
challenges students' thinking. Your role during a group discussion is to facilitate the flow of
comments from students. Although it is not necessary to interject after each student speaks,
periodically assisting the group with their contributions can be helpful. Here is a ten-point
facilitation menu to use as you lead group discussions.

1. Paraphrase what someone has said so that the student feels understood and the other student scan hear a
concise summary of what's been said at greater length:
So, what you're saying is that you have to be very careful about the words you use because a particular person
might be offended by them.

2. Check your understanding against the words of a student or ask a student to clarify what he or she is saying:
 Are you saying that this political correctness has gone too far? I'm not sure that I understand exactly what you
meant. Could you please run it by us again?

3. Compliment an interesting or insightful comment:

That's a good point. I'm glad that you brought that to our attention.

4. Elaborate on a student's contribution to the discussion with examples or suggest a new way to view the problem:
Your comments provide an interesting point from the minority perspective. We could also consider how the
majority would view the same situation.

5. Energize a discussion by quickening the pace, using humor, or, if necessary, prodding the group for more
contributions.
Oh my, we have lots of quiet people in this class! Here's a challenge for you. For the next two minutes, let's see
how many words can you think of that are no longer politically acceptable.

6. Disagree (gently) with a student's comments to stimulate further discussion.

I can see where you are coming from, but I'm not sure that what you are describing is always the case. Has
anyone else had an experience that is different than Jim's?

7. Mediate differences of opinion between students, and relieve any tensions that may be brewing.
I think that Joanne and Miah are not really disagreeing with each other but are just bringing out two different sides
of the issue.

8. Pull together ideas, showing their relationship to each other.

As you can see from Austin and Noah's comments, the words we use can offend people. Both of them have
given us an example of how they feel excluded by gender-bound words.

9. Change the group process by altering the method for obtaining participation of moving the group to a stage of
evaluating ideas that have been placed before the group.
Let's break into smaller groups and see if you can come up with some criteria for establishing gender-sensitive
word usage.

10. Summarize (and record, if desired) the major views of the group.
I have noted three major ideas that have come from the group's discussion as to when words are harmful: (1)
They exclude come people, (2) They insult some people. (3) They are determined only by the majority culture.

Ten Tips When Facilitating Experiential Activities

Experiential activities really help to make learning active. Such activities typically involve role-
playing, games, simulations, visualization, and problem-solving tasks. It's often far better for
students to experience something rather than hear it talked about. When facilitating
experiential activities, here are ten steps to consider.

1. Explain your objectives: Students like to know what is going to happen and why.

2. Sell the benefits. Explain why you were doing the activity and share how the activity connects with the other
activities before it.

3. Speak slowly when giving directions. You might also provide visual backup. Make sure the instructions are
understandable.

4. Demonstrate the activity if the directions are complicated. Let the student see it in action before they do it.

5. Divide students into subgroups before giving further directions. If you don't, students may forget the
instructions while the groups are being formed.
 6. Inform students how much time they have. State the time allotted for the entire activity, and then announce
periodically how much time remains.

7. Keep the activity moving. Don't slow things down by endlessly recording student contributions on flip charts or
blackboards, and don't let a discussion drag on too long.
8. Challenge the students. There is more energy when activities create a moderate level of tension. If tasks are a
snap, students will get lethargic.

9. Always discuss the activity. When an activity has concluded, invite students to "process" the feelings that the
activity elicited and share the insights and learnings contained.

10. Carefully structure the first processing experiences. Guide the discussion and ask only a few questions. If
students are in subgroups, ask them to take a brief turn sharing their responses.

Ten Options for Role Playing

Role-playing is an especially useful experiential learning method. It can be used to spark a
discussion, to reenact an event, to practice skills, or to experience how certain phenomena
feel. To be successful when conducting role-playing, however, it helps to know different ways
to set it up (scripting) and lead it (formatting).

Scripting
1. Free form: Students can be given a general scenario and asked to fill in the details themselves.
2. Prescribed: Students can be given well-prepared instructions that state the facts about the roles they are
portraying and how they are to behave.
3. Semi prescribed: Students can be given extensive background information about the situation and the
characters to be portrayed, but not told how to handle the situation.
4. Replay of life: Students can portray themselves in an actual situation they have faced.
5. Dramatic reading: Students can be given a previously prepared script to act out.

Formatting
6. Simultaneous: All students can be formed into pairs for a two-person drama, trios for a there-person drama, and
so on, and can simultaneously undertake their role-plays.
7. Stage front: One or more students can role-play in front of the group and the rest of the group can serve as
feedback observers.
8. Rotational: Actors in front of the group can be rotated, usually by interrupting the role-play in progress and
substituting for one or more of the actors.
9. Different actors: More than one actor can be recruited to role-play the same situation in its entirety. This allows
the group to observe more than one style.
10. Repeated: The role play can be practiced a second time.

Ten Time Savers When Active Learning Takes Time

Whatever methods you use, active learning takes time. Therefore, it is crucial that no time is
wasted. Many teachers, however, lose control of time by allowing a number of time wasters to
occur. Here are things you can do to save time.

1. Start on time: This act sends a message to latecomers that you're serious. If all of the students are not yet in
the room, you can begin the class with a discussion or filler activity for which complete attendance is not
necessary.

2. Give clear instructions. Don't start an activity when students are confused about what to do. If the directions
are complicated, put them in writing.
 3. Prepare visual information ahead of time. Don't write lecture points on flip charts or the blackboard while
students watch. Have points prerecorded. Also, decide if recording student input is really necessary. If so, don't
record all the words coming from the class discussion. Use "headlines" to capture what students are saying.

4. Move distribution of handouts quickly. Put handouts in prepared stapled packets; distribute packets to key
areas of the classroom so that several people can help with their distribution.

5. Expedite subgroup reporting. Ask subgroups to list their ideas on flip chart paper and post their lists on the
walls of the classroom so that all groups' work can be viewed and discussed at the same time. Or, going from
group to group, have each one report only one item at a time so that everyone can listen for possible overlap.
Subgroups should not repeat what has already been said.

6. Don't let discussion drag on. Express the need to move on, but, during a subsequent discussion, be sure to
call on those who were cut off. Or begin a discussion by stating a time limit and suggesting how many
contributions time will permit.

7. Swiftly obtain volunteers. Don't wait endlessly for volunteers to emerge. Recruit volunteers before class starts
or restarts after a break; consistently call on individual students when there are no immediate volunteers.

8. Be prepared for tired or lethargic groups. Provide a list of ideas, questions, or even answers, and ask
students to select ones they agree with; frequently, your list will trigger thoughts and issues from students.

9. Quicken the pace of activities from time to time. Often, putting students under time pressure energizes them
and makes them more productive.

10. Get the class's prompt attention. Use a variety of cues or attention getting devises to inform the class that you
are ready to reconvene them after small-group activity.

Ten Interventions When Students Get Out of Hand

Using active learning techniques tends to minimize the classroom management problems that
often plague teachers who rely too heavily on lecture and full-group discussion. If difficulties
such as monopolizing, distracting, and withdrawing behaviors still occur, here are some
interventions you can use. Some work well with individual students; others work with the
entire class.

1. Signal nonverbally: Make eye contact with students or move closer to them when they hold private
conversations, start to fall asleep, or hide from participation. Press your fingers together (unobtrusively) to signal
wordy students to finish what they are saying. Make a "T" sign with your fingers to stop unwanted behavior.

2. Listen actively. When students monopolize discussion, go off on a tangent, or argue with you, interject with a
summary of their views and then ask others to speak. Or you can acknowledge the value of their viewpoints or
invite them to discuss their views with you during a break.

3. Get your ducks in a row. When the same students always speak up in class while others hold back, pose a
question or problem and then ask how many people have a response to it. You should see new hands go up.
Call on one of them. The same technique might work when trying to obtain volunteers for role playing.

4. Invoke participation rules. From time to time, tell students that you would like to use rules such as these:
 No laughing during role-playing
 Only students who have not spoken as yet can participate.
 Build on each other's ideas.
 Speak for yourself, not for others.
5. Use good-natured humor. One way to deflect difficult behavior is to use humor with students. Be careful,
however, not be sarcastic or patronizing. Gently protest the harassment (e.g., "Enough, enough for one day!").
Humorously, put yourself down instead of the students (e.g., "I guess I deserved this.")

6. Connect on a personal level. Whether the problem students are hostile or withdrawn, make a point of getting to
know them during breaks. It's unlikely that students will continue to give you a hard time or remain distant if
you've taken an interest in them.

7. Change the method of participation. Sometimes you can control the damage done by difficult students by
inserting new formats such as using pairs or small groups rather than full-class activities.

8. Ignore mildly negative behaviors. Pay little or no attention to behaviors that are small nuisances. Carry on with
the class and see if they go away.

9. Discuss very negative behaviors in private. You must call a stop to behaviors you find detrimental to learning.
Firmly request, in private, a change in behavior of those students who are disruptive. If the entire class in
involved, stop the lesson and explain clearly what you need from students to conduct the class effectively.

10. Don't take personally the difficulties you encounter. Remember that many problem behaviors have nothing to
do with you. They are due to personal fears and needs or displaced anger toward someone else. See if you can
pick up cues when this is the case and ask whether students can put aside the conditions affecting their positive
involvement in the class.