Active Learning in the Online Environment
Creating an Active Learning Environment Online
Not all e-learning environments or assignments are equal in terms of active learning. Assignments where students interact with their instructors and peers online provide a greater degree of active learning than do assignments where students merely view a web page, or click a series of links. Likewise, different web-based technologies have different potentials for active learning. A typical PowerPoint presentation does not have the active learning potential that a discussion board has. Creating active learning environments online, therefore, requires attention to both the planning and execution of the assignment as well as the technology used to carry out the assignment. Below are three basic strategies based on available web-based technologies that can be used to create an active learning environment online.
Create communicative activities.
Planning activities that are primarily communicative have the most potential to provide an active learning environment online. These activities require the use of various communication tools from chat to discussion boards for brainstorming, inquiry learning, role playing, or other activities that require students to actively participate in the learning process. The course management systems supported by CITES Educational Technologies, Illinois Compass and WebBoard, support the creation of group communication areas, chat, discussion boards, and file sharing areas necessary for designing communicative active learning activities online.
Have students produce.
Activities that are based on producing a final product that can be partially or wholly built and displayed on the Internet, such as a web page, or a multimedia presentation, are also excellent active learning exercises. As with other active learning activities, basing these assignments on group work or peer learning models often increases both motivation and student achievement. Furthermore, using such a strategy increases the active learning potential of the online environment by combining production with communication, and thereby requiring the student to interact with their peers and the subject material in the completion of the assignment. There are a large number of production tools available and most web and multimedia formats can be displayed in Illinois Compass.
Use adaptive technologies.
Adaptive technologies, such as simulations, also have a high active learning potential. There are a number of different approaches to creating adaptive applications, from designing excel spreadsheets to demonstrate what happens when variables are changed in a mathematical model, to using expensive simulation software that can replicate complex natural systems and interactions. In general, creating an active learning assignment based on adaptive technology requires both technical knowledge to create the learning module, and careful planning to ensure that the student must engage in the activity and not just click buttons and type numbers.
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