Introduction to

Active Learning
Energizing the Classroom
Brian Rybarczyk, Ph.D.
UNC Chapel Hill
Department of Biology
 Objectives
• Introduce concept of active learning

• Demonstrate techniques & activities

• Incorporate active learning into your

future teaching
da Vinci and the Renaissance
Embodies essence of the
Renaissance

‘Rebirth’ of learning
Thinking outside the box
Ideas
Discovery
Experiment
Change is good
 Brainstorm Activity

Write down ways that your professors

taught you

Effective methods
Ineffective methods
 Brainstorm Activity II

What are some ways you learn best now

as a scientist?
 What is Active Learning?
% Retained 100

active learning

50 lecture

0
10 20 30 40 50 60

Time of class (min)

From: McKeachie, Teaching tips: Strategies, research and theory for

for college and university teachers, Houghton-Mifflin (1998)
What is Active Learning?
What is Active Learning?
students solve problems, answer questions,
formulate questions of their own, discuss,
explain, debate, or brainstorm during class

Problem-
Based Learn By Doing
Learning

Active Learning

Inquiry-based
Cooperative learning
Learning
 What is the purpose?
• Increase student participation
• Increase student engagement
• Increase student retention
• More student ownership in course
• Less lecturing by instructor
• More exciting classroom experience
• Higher level thinking
 Improving Lectures
• Plan objectives
• Include graphics, charts, graphs, etc
• Plan what you want to annotate
• Learn students’ names
• Cue important points
• Give short activities
• Give students time to generate questions
• Have students summarize major points
 Examples of Active Learning
• Dr. Robert Beichner – NCSU

– SCALE-UP – researching effectiveness of

active learning in physics and chemistry
– http://scaleup.ncsu.edu/

– Example of SCALE-UP Activity

 Active Techniques
• Think-pair-share (pair-share)
• Role playing, simulations
• Muddiest point/clearest point
• Group quizzing
• Generate lists
• Cooperative learning
• Minute papers and writing assignments
• PBL and case studies
• Concept maps
 Reading Primary Literature
• Provide one figure/table to each student
group

• Propose a title for the paper

• Delete abstract and have students write a

summary
Case Studies
Case Studies
Concerns & Issues

What are your concerns

about using active
learning activities &
techniques?
 Suggestions
• Describe to the students what is
happening and why
• State expectations
• Incorporate assessments with activities
• Start off simple (low risk)
• Ask questions, walk around classroom, be
attentive to student questions
• Have students rely on each other
 Resources

National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (case

study collection):
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/case.html
Problem Based Learning (U of Delaware):
http://www.udel.edu/pbl/
MERLOT – (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and
Online Teaching
http://www.merlot.org

Journals of Interest:
Innovate: www.innovateonline.info/index.php
CBE Life Science Education – www.lifescied.org/
Journal of College Science Teaching – www.nsta.org
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education –
www.bambed.org
Brian Rybarczyk, Ph.D.
brybar@unc.edu