There are almost endless ways to do active learning and it can be adapted to various disciplines, spaces and personal preferences. Throughout the 10^th anniversary of the Dawson Active Learning Community in 2022, champions from a variety of disciplines were highlighted in Dawson’s e-newsletter, D News, and on social media.

The anniversary created opportunities to share active learning pedagogy with the Dawson community and beyond, including at the SALTISE Conference in June, according to DALC coordinators Selma Hamdani and Chris Whittaker.

Active learning was also shared through a bilingual video

The video featured interviews with Dawson faculty members: Jean-François Brière (Physics), Daniel Goldsmith (Humanities), Selma Hamdani (Psychology), Carmen Leung (Chemistry) and Jocelyn Parr (History).

Daniel spoke about the before and after of adopting active learning: “I like seeing students engaged and that’s been the real difference. Before there was always a fraction of the students who were engaged. Now with implementing some of the active learning strategies, I feel like I can capture more of the energy, the enthusiasm, the wisdom of a greater number of students. And it’s a virtuous circle where that feels really good as a teacher. Students enjoy it and it makes me want to go more into it. … I have a lot more fun as a teacher because students are having a lot more fun in their learning environment.”

Selma said that it reminds her of her best moments as a student: “When I found out about active learning, DALC, it brought me back to my best moments at school. Then I realized that’s what made me love to learn. …At the forefront of my thoughts in the classroom: How can I share this experience, this excitement, the beauty of learning with my students.”

Jean-François spoke about how active learning enhances understanding: “In Science we have students who are strong in general at everything that is logic, problem solving. They are very good at it. In Physics, that is often what we evaluate. But there is also the whole conceptual aspect, which is really not simple, which can be so complicated that even teachers often struggle to understand if they did not teach it, if they haven’t given it any thought. Active learning I think really allows us to target that, which is really the understanding.”

Carmen elaborated on the feedback component of active learning: “They are getting it from their peers and they are getting it from me. Peers benefit from hearing what a teacher is saying to other students. What they’ve learned is in line with others…I can see if students have any misconceptions.”

Jocelyn said there is no single answer: (students are) “invited to think really broadly about what’s going on in history and then they answer these questions in really diverse ways, which is really exciting.”

A number of students also shared their thoughts about active learning in a Dawson article.

Second-year student Brenda Truong said: “Being in these classes creates a better sense of community. Whether it is a student explaining the more difficult material in a different way to another student or the friendly competition between tables, it creates a certain bond in the class.”

Second-year student Qasim Mughal said the great thing about active learning is: “the immediate and frequent feedback that we students receive from our teachers when doing in-class activities. Given that the smart boards we work on are visible to everyone in the classroom, other people can easily give us feedback on our work and help us improve in areas where we may have gaps in our knowledge. Also, the fact that we get feedback on our work very close to when we are first exposed to the material helps us pinpoint areas of difficulty early on in the learning process, which enables us to have a more smooth and comprehensive learning experience when we later study on our own.”

Looking toward the future

“Change in academia is being driven by a number of things, including an ever deeper understanding of what effective learning and teaching looks like, and by the accelerated development of tools and expertise when it comes to designing environments and technologies to support it,” DALC coordinator Chris Whittaker said.

“The evidence that Active Learning – as a broad umbrella of pedagogical approaches and strategies – improves student learning outcomes both in terms of conceptual gains and assessment scores, while reducing failures and course drops is overwhelming. What’s more, intensive AL dramatically reduces performance gaps in students from disadvantaged communities – indeed it almost eliminates them – so it is a form of social justice and empowerment.”

“Dawson faculty have shown a remarkable and consistent drive to adopt active learning pedagogies and I believe that will continue if the opportunities and support for change continue to be provided,” Chis said.

“Teachers, like students, want to learn and invest considerable energy into change when they are supported and given rich opportunities to improve. We just have to keep the momentum going in the right direction by relying on evidence and self-directed capacity building opportunities through supportive communities of practice and professional learning communities.”

Shifting towards an active learning approach can be done incrementally or it can be done in large steps when supported by a community of peers, like the DALC. Also, to practice active learning, you do not need to have access to an active learning classroom although it helps.

Open to all faculty

“Many teachers who have participated in the community of practice have described the process as professionally transformative,” Chris said. “Active learning is based in evidence and there are vast tools, resources and expertise – both within the college and across the international educational landscape – that you can lean on to make adopting these strategies easier.”

DALC holds regular meetings and workshops open to all faculty: https://www.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/active-learning/dawson-active-learning-community-dalc/