Магистр филологии, Лучкова Г.Д., к.ф.н., доцент Торпакова Е.А.

Университет «Туран», Алматы, Казахстан

Active teaching versus traditional teaching

The world is changing from an industrialized society to a knowledge-based society. Unlike workers of the industrial age, who were expected to acquire most of the necessary knowledge prior to performing a job, information-age workers are expected to process large amounts of information on the job and develop the knowledge needed to solve problems or make decisions. The complex skills that define success for workers of the information age include critical thinking and doing, creativity, collaboration and teamwork, crosscultural understanding, communication using a variety of media, technological fluency, and continuous learning of new skills (Trilling & Hood, 1999).

One way for schools and classrooms to address complex skills is by deploying technology in the classroom to support active, student-centered learning. In student-centered classrooms the goal of education is to create independent, autonomous learners who assume the responsibility for their own learning (Weimer, 2002).Weimer identified seven principles of teacher behavior in classrooms that are student-centered (see Figure 1–1).

Current research on learning suggests that the real power of technology in the classroom is its potential to facilitate basic changes in the way teaching and learning occur. Based on teaching and learning theories that focus on students exploring, manipulating, and generating knowledge, teachers can build student-centered learning environments supported and enabled by the information and communication technology resources available through the Internet.

What makes the Internet advantageous for supporting teaching and learning in the classroom is not only its capability of supporting a number of media features—such as text, graphics, animation, audio, video, or hyperlinks—but also its support of a number of pedagogical methodologies that can provide teachers with valuable and necessary tools for teaching and learning (Reeves & Reeves,1997). Principally, Internet technologies can function as cognitive tools for researching and representing knowledge. Cognitive tools are both mental mechanisms and digital devices that support, guide, and extend the thinking processes of users (Derry, 1990). Cognitive tools function as intellectual partners to stimulate and facilitate critical thinking and higher order learning in students ( Jonassen, 2000). Some examples of computer-based cognitive tools include databases, spreadsheets, multimedia software, graphic organizers, graphing and charting programs, and computer programming languages. Using Internet technologies as cognitive tools has the potential to augment teaching and learning in several ways (Oliver, Omari, Herrington, & Herrington, 2000):

■ Student-centered learning—Learning activities enhanced by Internet technologies can create powerful learning environments that facilitate independent and collaborative student-centered learning.

■ Collaborative learning—The communication features of the Internet provide meaningful ways for students to learn with and from one another.

■ Student engagement—The multimedia features of the World Wide Web motivate students to work with information and content, to reflect on the material, and to articulate their knowledge and understanding.

■ Scaffolding—Web-enhanced learning activities provide multiple methods for teachers to support student learning without relying primarily on direct instruction.

■ Authentic settings—The information features of the World Wide Web provide authentic or real-world contexts to support transfer of knowledge to other contexts.

■ Lifelong learning—Learning activities that utilize Internet technologies can motivate students and help them learn to manage their own learning.

For students to learn, they must do more than just listen to a lecture or a presentation from a teacher—they must do something. And then they must think about what they are doing. Active learning occurs when instructional activities involve students in doing things and thinking about what they are doing.

A highly active (and interactive) learning environment has always been one aspect of the classroom of effective teachers. Technology can enhance and extend instructional activity (and interactivity) to stimulate students to engage in learning even as it makes teaching a more enjoyable experience. Table 1–1 compares the attributes of new, active learning environments facilitated by technology with the traditional classroom learning environment.

Active learning environments are characterized by meaningful or relevant activity that is directly related to the curriculum and supported by knowledge-building collaboration with peers and tutors and by the expert guidance of a teacher (see also Bruce & Levin, 1997; Collis, 1997). For example, a teacher elicits prior knowledge from students through discussions about the content and then legitimizes the content and related concepts by making it relevant to the lives of the students. Discussion is a common strategy for promoting active learning, as are approaches based on a problem-solving model, such as role playing, simulations, debates, and dramatic presentations. In active learning environments, teachers and students assume roles that are fundamentally different from those in traditional learning environments.

The implementation of technology-enhanced, student-centered learning environments requires teachers to change their beliefs about classroom practices and, in some cases, change their actual classroom practices (Pedersen & Liu, 2003). In a student-centered learning environment, the role of the teacher shifts from directing decisions about learning to guiding, facilitating, and supplementing instruction. In the new learning environments facilitated by technology, the role of the teacher becomes much more diverse and multifaceted.

■ The teacher as learner—In a student-centered learning environment it is no longer necessary for the teacher to know all there is to know about a particular subject or topic being discussed, studied, or researched. Instead, teachers shift from teaching their students to learning with their students and sometimes learning from their students (McCain & Jukes, 2001). Teachers maintain relevance in the classroom by modeling the process of learning that they are asking their students to

perform.

■ The teacher as instructional designer—Proficiency in instructional design methodologies is necessary to effectively apply student-centered learning principles in learning environments using the Internet (Tennyson, 2001). The usual approach is based on principles of knowledge transmission (Vermunt & Verloop, 1999) and focuses on the elaboration and structuring of domain content (Hoogveld, Paas, Jochems, & van Merrienboer, 2001). The instructional strategies that support student-centered learning require teachers to design activities that enable students to master complex cognitive skills used to construct knowledge. Thus, teachers must learn how to teach their particular content or subject matter—something Shulman (1986) calls pedagogical content knowledge (PCK)—so that students understand the way that knowledge develops and can apply that knowledge flexibly and in multiple contexts (Davis & Krajcik, 2005).

■ The teacher as instructional facilitator and coach—In a student-centered classroom students are actively engaged in aspects of learning that are generally performed by the teacher in a conventional classroom (Brush & Saye, 2000). Instilling in students the responsibility for their own learning is probably one of the most important lessons a teacher can impart. The teacher should model the interpretation and extrapolation of information by guiding, consulting, providing feedback, and even colearning with the student.

■ The teacher as evaluator—In a student-centered learning environment product and process are both important aspects of learning. Therefore, the teacher not only evaluates final student performance on a central task or problem but also designs measures to evaluate the underlying activities and procedures (Brush & Saye, 2000). These process measures can be derived from observations, interviews, student logs, outlines, presentations, and ratings from team or group members.

■ The teacher as technologist—For students to become knowledge constructors, problem solvers, and critical thinkers, technology must be an integral part of the learning process. In student-centered learning environments, technology is a tool the teacher uses for teaching and learning. The teacher does not have to be a technology expert but must be confident in using technology and in supporting student use of technology.

Although technology can support teachers and students in accessing, managing, analyzing, and sharing information (Riel & Fulton, 2001), a well-developed understanding of how to fully exploit the features and resources of the Internet in an educational context has not fully emerged ( Jukes, Dosaj, & Macdonald, 2000).

The instructional tasks a teacher assigns have a lot to say about that teacher’s theories and beliefs about teaching and learning (Christie, 2002). Different approaches to teaching the same content can represent very different theories. For example, paper-and-pencil activities in which students choose a correct answer or solution may indicate that getting the right answer is what matters most, whereas instructional activities that have students construct a solution may indicate that learning how to solve a problem is just as important as getting the right answer.

Changes in the roles of teachers and students in active, student-centered classrooms can also influence the way instructional materials are designed, developed, and delivered. This lesson will provide you with some basic tools to help you determine the appropriate Internet technologies for particular subject matter and learning goals. These tools will also help you select teaching methodologies that are appropriate to meet the multiple learning needs of students.