Active Learning Classroom Design and Pedagogy

Lithograph of Faraday delivering a Christmas lecture at the
Royal Institution. Maybe we've been doing things this way for too long? 

Active learning classrooms are spaces designed with student achievement in mind. As active learning is student-centered, so must the classroom reflect that orientation. The furniture is often mobile, designed with castors, making it possible to easily create tables for small groups of students to work together on projects, or to rearrange the set-up quickly for one-on-one meetings, speakers, or class discussions. Active learning classrooms are also equipped with all the technology necessary for faculty to seamlessly monitor student work, and for students to have at their disposal the tools and technology they might need to complete cooperative learning, experiential, service, project-based, or problem-based assignments. Active learning classrooms help shift the focus from the professor and the traditional lecture to the students and their peers.

To Assess by Sitting Down Beside

One key idea is to assess student learning and student progress from close up, as opposed to from "Faraday's stage," and as Dr. Ronald Purser reminds in his Problem Based Learning overview (n.d.), that requires sitting down with the students and observing them sitting down with one another. “To Assess,” he begins: “The Latin origin of this term, assidere, literally means to sit down beside. Another way of thinking of assessment is to use careful judgment based on the kind of close observation that comes from ‘sitting down beside.’” As opposed to outcomes-based assessment or assessment for the purposes of accreditation or program review, which too often ties faculty to sitting down with data instead of students, this real time assessment helps faculty keep students on track throughout a semester. This allows for real time improvement of the curriculum, and therefore greater engagement and student achievement.

The Learner-Centered Teaching Philosophy

Well known for her expertise in the field of active learning and active learning spaces, Diana Oblinger explains the importance of the pedagogy-design connection by simply stating that “Learning spaces convey an image of the institution’s philosophy about teaching and learning” (2005). These spaces are particularly important, then, for institutions looking to focus on learners and to engage underserved populations and minorities, as research made popular through the Yale Center for Teaching and Learning clearly shows. For example,

• Active learning "has been empirically shown to decrease the achievement gap for underrepresented minorities and first generation college students, particularly in STEM fields; to reach 'a diversity of students'; and to build 'higher- order thinking skills' across engaged student populations" (Handelsman, et. al, 2007). 
• "Active learning therefore can help improve class climate by promoting interconnections between students, which can enhance the sense of belonging and motivation for marginalized students and those with differing levels of academic preparation."
• "Early quasi-experimental research revealed that teaching in an ALC can improve student attitudes, conceptual understanding, and passing rates, especially for female and minority students" (Baepler, et. al., 2016, Beichner 2007, Walker 2011).

Service and Experiential Learning

Benefits related specifically to service learning are reported by Yeh (2017) in Service-Learning and Persistence of Low-Income, First-GenerationCollege Students: An Exploratory Study. Her interviews with students gave “insight into the efficacy of service learning as a tool for improving college persistence,” which her framework equates with retention. Benefits related specifically to experiential learning are reported by Thacker, Berna, Torr, and Walsh in Experiential Learning: Benefits for Hispanic and First-Generation College Students (2017). They found that students in the studied experiential learning courses “report increased confidence, greater accessibility to and understanding of application of course concepts. And, perhaps of utmost importance, these pedagogical tools offer Hispanic, first generation students a lens through which they are able to view themselves as personally successful, intellectually empowered, and as productive community members.”

Summary

A shift from a  traditional lecture format to an active learning format of any type can often be challenging, but the benefits are innumerable. Active learning and active learning spaces often engage all students, including underserved populations, by offering them a chance to use soft skills and abilities that reflect the need for these same skills post graduation. Having spaces designed for this type of learning can make a great difference in bridging the gap between the two pedagogies, while at the same time proving an institution's commitment to student-centered learning.