Faculty Perceptions about Barriers to Active Learning

1. Faculty Perceptions about Barriers to Active Learning Joel Michael Analysis and Critique

2. Traditional Teacher’s Role • Teacher in front of class • Writes on blackboard • Students write • Emphasizes rote memorization • Memorize facts • Students do not talk

3. Active Learning • From Paper • “Active learning involves building, testing, and repairing one’s mental model of what is being learned” • What does this mean?

4. Active Learning • Teacher interacts more with students • Get students involved in learning process • Ask questions • Class discussion on material • Emphasizes how to use knowledge • Use vivid examples • Students more likely to remember • Students tend to forget a lot of rote memorization!

5. Active Learning • The author assumes this is a better teaching style • Is it better? • How would you measure this? • Tests may reflect the teacher’s style

6. Active Learning • Education is moving in this direction in U.S. • May be good for many business and introductory courses • Courses with advance math • This teaching style may be harder to apply • I usually spent a week trying to understand advance mathematics

7. Active Learning • Some courses require rote memorization • History • Times, Names, Events, etc. • Political Science • Structure of Gov., Leaders, etc. • Higher level history and political science courses could use more active learning • Students need a foundation of basic knowledge

8. Active Learning • Word used often is facilitated • Teacher facilitates learning • Used in University of Phoenix

9. Barriers to Active Learning • Author lists many barriers to this teaching style • Student Barriers • Faculty Barriers • Pedagogical Barriers • I critiqued some of them

10. Barriers to Active LearningStudents • Students do not know how • Students do not know how to prepare for lectures • Students will not do it • Student heterogeneity • Heterogeneity means students have different ethnic and social backgrounds • How? • Possible richer discussions

11. Barriers to Active LearningStudents • Reason for barrier • Students are used to traditional style of teaching since school • Rote memorization dominates education in U.S. • Grades 1 – 12

12. Barriers to Active LearningFaculty • Requires more preparation time • Teacher has less control of classroom • Colleagues do not use this method

13. Barriers to Active LearningFaculty • Poor student evaluations • From experience • Evaluations tend to correlate with the grades • Better grades leads to better evaluations

14. Barriers to Active LearningFaculty • “Lack of teacher maturity” • Have no idea • Usually teacher is more mature than students • Faculty reward structure • Have no idea • Teachers usually have fixed salaries • Could be bonus for good test scores • Teachers do not know how to do it

15. Barriers to Active LearningPedagogical Issues • Pedagogical – teaching • Classrooms do not lend to this style • Classrooms are inanimate • Takes too much time and content suffers • Student assessment is more difficult • Give same tests • Class size

16. Barriers to Active LearningPedagogical Issues • Difficult to predict outcomes • Difficult to ensure “quality control” • Each class, students learn the same material

17. Barriers to Active LearningPedagogical Issues • Not enough resources • Teachers always complain about this • Standard class times • A class is 50 minutes

18. Criticism • Do you have any complaints about article? • Is it a good article?

19. Criticism • Author never defines active learning! • He gave some vague definition • Psychologists are very good at doing this! • Along with economists, etc.

20. Criticisms • Valid Criticisms • Students are used to traditional style • Faculty are used to traditional style • As a person gets older, the less likely they can change • Some faculty do not like questions • Students may ask a question that the professor does not know

21. Criticisms • “Quality Control” • Dynamics of classroom could change with different students • I had classes that were fun and some classes I did not like • Valid criticism • Some criticisms are ludicrous!

22. Criticisms • More preparation time • In the beginning, teachers may need more time to prepare • As they get used to it, it becomes easier • Learning Curve • Classroom size • Bigger the classroom, the more difficult • Also true for rote memorization

23. Criticisms • If active learning works, then use it. • It also depends on instructor’s personality

24. Barriers to Active LearningFaculty • Teachers may not implement active learning • U.S. Federal and states gov.s are passing laws • Many students are behind • Many U.S. schools are weak • Laws make the teacher responsible for students’ scores on national tests • National tests • Determine how well student’s scored compared to the national average

25. Barriers to Active LearningFaculty • I do not like this • Forces teachers to emphasize test scores • Teacher has to focus on material for national exam • I do not think it is the teacher’s fault! • Thus, teachers are not likely to switch to active learning • Teachers are not likely to experiment with new method • School is more worried about test scores.

26. References • Michael, Joel. 2007. “Faculty Perceptions about Barriers to Active Learning.” College Teaching 55(2): 42-7.