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Barbara Leach

October 30, 2009

Reflections on Theories and Strategies for Active Learning

As I prepare for my future role as a Library Media Specialist, I am always


observing and studying what goes on in the classrooms that surround me. I realize that
not only will I want students to be able to use the traditional library resources and
materials at hand, but to also be able to embrace technology as a means to enhance and
broaden the wealth of information that is available to them. The students of my future
will be able to access information in ways that have never been used before, and there
will be infinite amounts of it at their fingertips.

In the classrooms I observe on a daily basis, there is a wealth of information


processing taking place. Traditional methods of teaching and learning are prevalent.
Teachers are giving facts: the Spanish teacher teaches new words and terminology, grade
level teachers are presenting math facts, spelling words, grammar, and Social Studies, the
science teacher is constantly opening doors to a world of wonder (just to highlight a few).
The students memorize and process these facts and information, and respond accordingly.
The teacher is active, while the students are passive learners. The students are
challenged, and are learning. However, for some, this method of teaching has its
limitations. In an effort to reach all students, in addition to this traditional method of
teaching, our students and faculty are about to embark on a new journey together. They
will leave their regular classrooms to participate in “interest-based enrichment clusters
designed around a constructivist learning theory that focuses on authentic high-end
learning”. (www.giften.uconn.edu) All the while, they will further merge together in
their use of technology to present, explore, retain and comprehend.

Active learning: the IIM approach

The Independent Investigation Method, or more familiarly referred to as IIM, is a form of


active learning that teaches students how to do research. “It is a model that guides
primary, intermediate, and secondary students through the research process. IIM gives
teachers the tools to teach and monitor the skills. It addresses state standards. It prevents

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plagiarism.” (www.iimresearch.com) Our first through fourth grade students recently
used the IIM approach to learning by researching their classroom “animal” mascots. Not
only did they enjoy the research process, they learned a lot of interesting facts along the
way. The end result was a presentation by each class to their entire grade level on
everything they had learned about their particular animal or mascot figure. This approach
will help them as they become more sophisticated in their topics of interest and research.
It is an empowering means of learning for the students. It is a building block to future
learning. I find this approach very refreshing, as students are eager to learn and are
involved first-hand in the process.

The constructive theory

Enrichment clustering is a way of learning which has many similarities to project-based


learning. This view of learning, called constructivism, is a more modern or contemporary
view of learning in which the students come to school “with a range of prior knowledge,
skills, beliefs and experiences and they construct new knowledge and understanding
based on what they already know and believe”. (Mills, 2006) This method acknowledges
that all students do not learn the same way. The students will be actively involved in the
learning process as opposed to passive participation. They will be allowed to choose an
area of interest, will work together as a team, and be coached or guided by a teacher. The
outcome can be anything from a field trip to an art museum or gallery to building a robot,
to making a donation to the humane society. The role of the teachers and students are
reversed. It will remove them from the structured classroom learning setting for about an
hour a week for several weeks while they develop and solve a problem or reach a specific
goal.

Collaborative learning

Collaborative learning, or cooperative learning, involves two or more peers engaged in an


activity that requires them to maintain some agreement and reach a shared solution.
(Mills, 2006) The use of enrichment clusters does just this. Students in the first and
second grades will come together from different classrooms, sharing a common interest.
Students in the third and fourth grades will come together in the same way. The sizes of

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the groups will be limited or small as compared to the size of their homerooms. The
teacher will act as the coach or facilitator. The use of the students’ internet skills will be
a key component to their study and research. They must work together cooperatively in
order to succeed and to reach their end result.

Coaching and mentoring

Coaching and mentoring takes place in many forms. Techniques of coaching and
mentoring include “responsive listening, open-ended questioning, descriptive and
constructive feedback, and clarification through nonjudgmental responses and reactions”.
(Mills, 2006) When a new teacher joins the staff at my school, an experienced teacher in
their same grade level mentors him or her, or if he/she is a “Special Subject” teacher (art,
ballet, music, P.E., science, Spanish) they are mentored by another “Special Subject” peer
for the first year. Students are coached and mentored as well, although not in such an
obvious manner. If they are new to the school, they are paired with a buddy who has
attended the school for at least a couple of years, and perhaps even lives close by, to
acclimate them to their new environment. This enables the faculty and students alike to
settle into their new environment and prosper as they figure out the routines, procedures,
customs, personalities and system of their new school and teaching/learning environment.
It is an extremely beneficial practice. Our educators and students alike are learning
through coaching and mentoring. There is a lot to be said for learning by example.

It is important for students to be active learners. They must learn to think critically and
figure things out for themselves. Teachers should be facilitators in the classroom, instead
of traditional teachers who simply regurgitate information each day while students sit in
rows of desks and work independently without having a chance to collaborate and work
with their peers. It is an exciting time to be a teacher. It is an even more exciting time to
be a student.

References:

http://www.iimresearch.com/iim/index.php

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Mills, Steven C. (2006) Using the Internet for Active Teaching and Learning. Upper
Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Renzulli, Joseph from


http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/pdf/Authentic_High-End_Learning.pdf

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