Should we prepare students for active learning classrooms? An unresolved question and two provocations

ABSTRACT

In addition to their pedagogical benefits, active learning classrooms constitute an important topic of research and have renewed debates on the impact of the built environment on education. However, this literature sometimes overlooks the experiences of learners by focusing on the design and practice of teaching in active learning classrooms. The article focuses on learners and asks a question through the reflective style of the Renaissance essay: ‘should we prepare students for active learning classrooms?’

KEYWORDS:

• Active learning
• active learning classrooms
• SoTL
• student experience

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank Jovan Groen for helpful feedback on a prior version of the article. Parts of the argument benefited from thoughtful feedback at the 2017 Queen's University Showcase on Teaching and Learning.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Notes on contributors

Michael P. A. Murphy

Michael P. A. Murphy is a PhD Candidate and SSHRC doctoral fellow in International Relations and Political Theory at the University of Ottawa.