Running head: ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 1

Active Learning Design Document

Returner Group 1

Nuong Nguyen, Tawn Gillihan, Corey Wallace, & Jeff Kitts

California State University, Monterey Bay

IST522 Instructional Design

Professor Farrington

October 23, 2017

ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 2

Active Learning Design Document

Being a good instructor involves integrating active learning activities into lesson plans.

The research is conclusive, compelling, and reinforces what most teachers seem to know,

actively engaging students in the learning process, active learning, improves outcomes (Freeman

et al., 2014). Lectures and PowerPoint presentations can be very impactful and will remain

appropriate to introduce topics and for specific uses like motivation and emphasis. However,

using lectures as a single source of classroom instruction is outmoded, outdated and inefficient

(Mazur 2014).

One consensus definition of active learning synthesized in from 338 respondents

(Freeman et. al, 2014) is the following, “Active learning engages students in the process of

learning through activities and/or discussion in class, as opposed to passively listening to an

expert. It emphasizes higher order thinking and often involves group work.” The definition of

active learning varies in the literature and is often contrasted with passive learning. Passive

learning is considered to be information we receive without selection or active participation

(MacDonald & Frank, 2016).

The concept of active learning can be used as an introductory construct for discussions

and professional development in the educational community with the objective of increasing

knowledge about the effectiveness of different instructional methods for different situations. This

proposed active learning training will introduce the key research findings and common

frameworks for how to view the effectiveness of instructional methods for integration into lesson

plans.

The key research findings are conclusions from the largest, most comprehensive meta-

analysis undertaken, which included 225 studies of college undergraduate STEM classes
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(Freeman ed. al, 2014). The findings are considered to be conservative by study’s authors as

conservative and rigorous techniques were applied to the data to control for different forms of

bias. The following findings compare active learning to control groups using passive learning.

 35% fewer students fail, getting D’s or F’s.

 Students, on average, score 6% higher on examinations, which equals a 0.3 grade

increase, or from a B- to a B.

 Students score higher on all assessments, but performance increases are greatest on

assessments of concepts.

Having one-third fewer students fail impacts lives. Students who might have otherwise

failed, with active learning, may have the opportunity to become engineers or continue to pursue

whatever path they find most fulfilling. Teachers and professors integrating active learning

instructional methods into their lessons is very worthwhile. Though active learning may seem

like a buzzword phrase, perhaps it is exactly the right buzzword to introduce professional

development for one of the most important challenges in education today.

Analysis

Needs Assessment and Learner Analysis

The intended audience consists of 31 students in the Master of Science in Instructional

Science and Technology (MIST) blended program. The adult learners represent diverse

ethnicities, occupations, and ages with the majority of the students in their 30s. There are more

males than female students in the program (see Appendix A). The majority have worked in

education and have trained others. Also, the students are interested in technology and

instructional design.
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Two methods were used when conducting the needs assessment, including an informal

discussion and a survey to show students’ lack of knowledge on active learning. The informal

discussion amongst the group members showed there was a confusion on the formal definition of

active learning and what it entails. After sharing different resources, like research, videos, and in-

class experience, the group members started to understand that active learning takes place when

the students are engaged in the content and not simply listening to lectures. The students are

using a higher level of thinking and applying, analyzing, and evaluating with the content. As

instructional designers, teachers, and trainers, it is important to know good teaching practices in

order to create effective training and facilitate student learning.

In order to get a more thorough needs assessment the MIST students were surveyed. Two

surveys were created in Google forms and sent out in a link to all the students. The surveys

consisted of 14 questions: six questions about demographics and eight questions about prior

knowledge and their opinion on active learning. Seventeen students responded to the surveys.

When asked to rate their level of knowledge on active learning the majority of the

students indicated they had little to no knowledge on the subject. Twenty-nine percent

infrequently or never use active learning. About half of the surveyed students thought reading

and watching a video were considered active learning. However, simply watching and reading

are not considered active learning unless it was an interactive video and the reading required the

students to interact in some way, like answering questions or discussing it with a partner. 59% of

the students thought that active learning increases conceptual knowledge (see Appendix B).

When it comes to instruction, 41% of the students thought it was possible to have a

course with all active learning. About 65% thought using lectures as the main method was not

considered valid and responsible teaching, and about 35% of the students were neutral on the
ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 5

subject. Overall, the majority agreed or strongly agreed that active learning increased student

performance (see Appendix B).

Performance Context

The active learning training will be in an iLearn Moodle shell, which is familiar and

easily accessible our MIST target audience. There will be videos, pictures, and links to different

resources to show examples of active learning. The e-learning format in iLearn accommodates

the intention for the learners to take the active learning training at a time and place of their

individual choosing preferably on a computer due to screen size.

Content Analysis

From the results of the survey, most students were not knowledgeable about active

learning, and there were misconceptions about active learning. Therefore, the e-learning module

would be beneficial to the students to inform them about active learning and allow them to

practice some of the active learning concepts. The goal is for the learners to get a better

understanding of active learning and apply it to their training or workplace. As trainers,

instructional designers, and teachers, integrating active learning into lesson plans would benefit

their learners and increase student performance as the learners take a more active role in their

own learning.

The presentation will inform the learners of the definition of active learning, compare

active learning in different settings, and have an application component where students are asked

to participate in an activity. The activity for the training will be designed to reflect the terminal

objective, having the learners be able to recommend an appropriate active learning activity for a

given lesson plan. The training, prior to the activity, will give the learners background
ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 6

information and examples to model the process of selecting an active learning instructional

method for a lesson.

Design

Objectives

The goals of the active learning training are defined by the following objectives below.

The objectives are used to design the instructional plan for the training.

 Terminal Objective: After taking the active learning training, learners will be able to

identify and select active learning activities for a given lesson plan to improve student

outcomes.

 Declarative Objective: From memory, learners will be able to define active learning and

order active learning activities by level of involvement.

 Procedural Objective: Given a computer, Internet access, and lesson plan scenario,

learners will be able to select an appropriate active learning activity within 10 minutes.

Instructional Plan

I. Introduction

A. Brief introduction to the training

B. Take the engagement pretest

II. Activation forum post activity: Write a brief description from your life experiences where

learning involved doing. Include your appraisal of whether the experience was an

effective learning activity.

III. Demonstration of objectives:

A. Read the highlighted text from the Freeman study, which includes the definition

of active learning and key findings.

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B. Watch a short video describing active learning:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsDI6hDx5uI&feature=youtu.be

IV. Application

A. With the aid of viewing the involvement pyramid graphic, rank a set of

instructional methods from most active to most passive.

V. Integration

A. Given outlined lesson plan write a brief paragraph about what might be an

appropriate active learning activity.

B. Post-test with built-in feedback on the correct answer, includes definition of

active learning.

C. Returner Group One feedback on forum post, ranking of instructional methods,

and lesson plan active learning activity.

ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 8

References

Adamo, D., Barboza, L., Pitts, E., Weisskirch, P., & Zoboblish, C. (2015). PB & j group

presentation overview. Retrieved from

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9ssNlR9jD7DYmM0TzUwYk9mb28/view

Bajak, A. (2014). Lectures aren’t just boring, they’re ineffective, too, study finds. Retrieved from

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2014/05/lectures-arent-just-boring-theyre-ineffective-

too-study-finds

Freeman, S., Eddy, S. L., McDonough, M., Smith, M. K., Okoroafor, N., Jordt, H., &

Wenderoth, M. P. (2013). Active learning increases student performance in science,

engineering, and mathematics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the

United States of America, 111 (23), pp. 8410-15 . Retrieved from

http://www.pnas.org/content/111/23/8410.full.pdf

MacDonald, K., & Frank, M. C. (2016). When does passive learning improve the effectiveness

of active learning. Retrieved from http://langcog.stanford.edu/papers_new/macdonald-

2016-cogsci.pdf
ACTIVE LEARNING DESIGN 9

Appendix A - Demographic Survey

The demographic survey was distributed to the Cohorts 12 and 13 in the MIST Blended

program is IST 522. The survey had 17 respondents.

Question 1
What is your age?
20-29 years old 5.9%
30-39 58.8%
40-49 17.6%
50-59 11.8%
60-69 5.9%
Total 100%
Question 2
What is your gender?
Female 52.9%
Male 47.1%
Total 100%
Question 3
What is your ethnicity?
Caucasian 64.7%
Hispanic or Latino 11.8%
Black or African American 5.9%
Native American or American Indian 0%
Asian / Pacific Islander 11.8%
Other 5.9%
Total 100%
Question 4
What is your job title?
Assistant Professor
Director of Sales
Instructional Coach
Instructional Technology Specialist
Program Administrative/ATI Coordinator
Student
2 Teachers
Question 5
Have you ever worked in education?
Yes 94.1%
No 5.9%
Total 100%
Question 6
Have you had experience in training others? If yes, please specify.
Yes 88.2%
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No 11.8%
Total 100%

Appendix B - Active Learning Survey

The active learning survey was distributed to the Cohorts 12 and 13 in the MIST Blended

program is IST 522. The survey had 17 respondents.

Question 1
Please rate your level of knowledge about active learning.
Extremely knowledgeable 5.9%
Moderately knowledgeable 29.4%
Somewhat knowledgeable 35.3%
Slightly knowledgeable 17.6%
Not at all knowledgeable 1.8%
Total 100%

Question 2
Please rate your use of active learning.
Very frequently use 5.9%
Frequently use 23.5%
Sometimes use 23.5%
Infrequently use 17.6%
Never use 11.8%
Don’t know or not applicable 17.6%
Total 100%

Question 3
Do you think reading is considered active learning?
Yes 17.6%
No 52.9%
Don’t know 29.4%
Total 100%

Question 4
Do you think watching a video is considered active learning?
Yes 17.6%
No 47.1%
Don’t know 35.3%
Total 100%
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Question 5
Do you think active learning's greatest performance increases for students is declarative
knowledge (facts, equations, details) or conceptual knowledge?
Declarative knowledge 5.9%
Conceptual knowledge 58.8%
Don’t know 35.3%
Total 100%

Question 6
Is it possible to have a course that is all active learning?
Yes 41.2%
No 23.5%
Don’t know 35.3%
Total 100%

Question 7
Using lectures as the primary instructional method for a course is valid and responsible
teaching.
Strongly agree 0%
Agree 0%
Neutral 35.3%
Disagree 58.8%
Strongly disagree 5.9%
Total 100%

Question 8
Do you think active learning increases student performance?
Strongly agree 17.6%
Agree 64.7%
Neutral 17.6%
Disagree 0%
Strongly disagree 0%
Total 100%