Reading Summary 2- Active Classroom Techniques Alicia Srinivasagam

CMCL 507

Active Classroom Techniques discusses strategies that instructors can use to increase student
engagement and promote active learning in the classroom. These techniques focus on enhancing
active learning by students; this encourages increased motivation and the acquisition of adaptive
expertise which allows for the application of knowledge in creative ways. These strategies are
especially useful in lecture heavy courses, where questioning techniques and group discussion
can be used to assess student understanding of course content and identify concepts that need to
be clarified. Questions posed in lecture should test higher levels of understanding such as
application and evaluation rather than memory alone- these questions stretch students further and
allow them to assess their understanding in a more meaningful way before an exam or
assignment.
In university courses, large class size can make student participation more challenging
since some students shy away from speaking in front of a group. In larger classes, instructor can
utilize group discussion techniques such as pair or group sharing to allow students to share their
ideas in a less intimidating way. Group responses or ideas can then be shared with the class as a
whole, giving the instructor an idea of student understanding. Through this method students also
gain higher levels of understanding by explaining their ideas to others, and may even be able to
have any misunderstandings of course content clarified by their peers. The use of clicker
systems/apps allow instructors to assess class understanding and stimulate discussion in large
classes, as students are able to share their ideas or respond to questions easily, and seeing other’s
responses stimulates discussion among students. In addition, instructors can create post-lecture
summaries or reflections which encourage students to share what is most confusing for them.
This gives the instructor concrete feedback and promotes a learner-centered classroom culture
where students are free to share their struggles and work through them with support.
This reading provides a number of strategies for assisting students in the lab during my
practicum. Students in the lab are set up in teams, and also work with a partner within their
teams. I hope to facilitate discussion among lab teams that will allow the students to learn
experientially, during my time in the course I found that this was the way that I learned best. The
material in the labs must be explored fully to prepare for the midterm exams; I believe that I can
help students by posing more advanced questions for them to think about, which motivate them
to dig deeper and connect the specimens they are working with to the concepts that they are
learning in the lectures.
I believe that the classroom activities suggested for lectures will be incredibly useful to
me as a peer mentor when creating review sessions for the midterm exams. Having taken the
course before I have an idea of the level of understanding required; creating application and
evaluation types of practice questions for students will promote more meaningful learning and be
helpful in directing student’s studying. I myself experience a lot of anxiety at the idea of sharing
my ideas in a group, so I have found the use of clicker systems and quizzing applications helpful
in many of my own courses. These tools would encourage participation in review sessions and
help students to identify concepts that they struggle with. I hope to use this strategy to create a
more casual ‘game show’ type of review session for the next midterm that can direct students in
preparing for their exam- students in science courses are often quite stressed out and this strategy
is a low pressure, fun way for them to assess their own understanding of the material.