We experimentally assessed the efficacy of two online instructional methods, guided inquiry and video, on learning and conceptual change, while also examining the relationship of student characteristics to these outcomes. Results indicate an interaction between mindset and instructional method for learning; additional learner characteristics may…

The last 35 years have shown a greater interest among higher education professionals to adapt the principles of active learning within the classroom. Active learning, an instructional approach that allows students the opportunity to participate in the process of learning, requires them to do something more than just passively receive instruction.…

Reacting to the Past (Reacting) is an active-learning pedagogy utilizing elaborate historical roleplaying games. This study examined the effect of Reacting on student academic self-efficacy, perspective taking, engagement, and perceived learning, and considered whether these outcomes were impacted by the type of role a student assumed. Students…

This study examines the impact of a pedagogical strategy using individual life mapping as a foundational piece of a graduate educational leadership program. We argue that active learning opportunities, like life mapping, allow educational leadership students to explore more fully their sense-making processes about systems leadership, which is…

In Cell Biology, a sophomore/junior undergraduate-level high-enrollment core course, students areexpected to develop a broad and detailed understanding of the functioning of eukaryotic cells. Forexample, some of the more challenging biological concepts include machinery involved in thereplication and translational processes, protein…

This paper explores the effective online teaching practices and activities used for an asynchronous online learning environment. During the 15-week semester, students had various opportunities to learn rigorous content while utilizing various technological tools. The course, called "How People Learn," offered diverse and exciting…

This study assessed the impact of flipped instruction on study effort, exam performance, motivation, and perceived class quality in two sections of an introductory chemistry course. Giving frequent assignments and quizzes provided enough incentive to ensure pre-class study compliance, and flipped instruction did not appreciably increase overall…

Reading is an "invisible" skill, making it challenging to address in a college classroom. Yet, it is fundamental to disciplinary thought. Inspired by the "signature pedagogies" conversation, I wanted to find ways to make more visible in my classroom what I do when I work with readings. This gave rise to several questions: How…

This paper presents a case study of a Competency-Based Education Introduction to Psychology course conducted in a small, private, traditional university in the western United States. Two competency-graded sections were offered, one online and one in the classroom. Eleven undergraduate students completed the online section, and 24 students…

This paper illustrates a radical course design structured to create active and situated learning in which students participate in communities of practice within the classroom, replicating real-life work situations. This paper illustrates the approach through a People Management module, but the approach is also used across a range of disciplines…

Colleges and universities are beginning to invest in active learning (AL) classrooms in an effort to replace the traditional lecture style pedagogy that is frequently used by many professors in higher education (Eagan et al., 2014). This is a quantitative research study conducted at a medium-sized Midwestern university. Students were given the…

This instructional article is about an innovative teaching approach for enhancing student engagement and active learning in higher education through a combination of just-in-time teaching and the use of PowerPoint technology. The central component of this approach was students' pre-lecture preparation of a short PowerPoint presentation in which…

Studies have shown Active Learning Classrooms [ALCs] help increase student engagement and improve student performance. However, remodeling all traditional classrooms to ALCs entails substantial financial burdens. Thus, an imperative question for institutions of higher education is whether active learning pedagogies can improve learning outcomes…

This study highlights how teaching a research methods course to undergraduate students can be a successful endeavor when active learning is the main method of learning and teaching. In this study, the effectiveness of using active learning in the experimental group to achieve the learning outcomes and final product of a freshman-year writing and…

We evaluated students' perceptions and reactions to an active learning Karaoke Video project in both a large (104 student) undergraduate class in Natural History of Georgia and a small graduate seminar in Fish Ecology. Undergraduate responses were evaluated with both questionnaires and triangulation interviews and graduate student responses…