To be effective, active learning needs to be examined in the larger context of student learning, and by taking a metacognitive approach, faculty can prepare students make the most of active learning experiences. This session explores approaches to use metacognition to design and implement active learning in an online environment.
Although existing research documents the impact of active learning (Ambrose et al., 2010; Bonwell and Eison, 1991; Freeman et al., 2014; Stains, 2018), the focus is often on collecting and implementing techniques. While it is tempting to “plug and play,” to be effective, active learning needs to be examined in the larger context of student learning (Weimer, 2018). Taking a metacognitive approach to active learning can help faculty prepare students to make the most of these learning experiences while helping them become self-directed learners (Pelley, 2014). This session will focus on strategies and approaches faculty can take to use metacognition to design and implement active learning in an online enviroment.
The session will include a brief introduction to metacognition and active learning through a summary of some of the recent research and best practice literature from across the disciplines and in online learning. Following the introduction, the presenter will describe the relationship between metacognition and active learning, emphasizing the connection between these concepts in fully or partially online teaching and learning environments.
Next, the presenter will provide several short case study examples that demonstrate some of the ways in which metacognition might be used to develop, design, and implement active learning in courses across the disciplines and in fully or partially online environments. Specifically, the case studies will help participants begin to consider the following questions:
- How, specifically, can they design active learning in their classes to foster metacognitive awareness in their students;
- How they, in their role as faculty members, develop their own metacognitive awareness;
- How they can draw on and from their metacognitive awareness to develop meaningful active learning activities and prepare their students to maximize these powerful learning experiences in and beyond the online classroom.
Finally, the presenter will emphasize opportunities to redesign or revise existing active and collaborative activities and assignments drawing on and from metacognition, as well as revisiting some of the ways in which participants might take an evidence-based, metacognitive approach as they design and implement new forms of active learning in their fully or partially online classes to truly make these learning experiences different by design.
Participants will leave the session with several different approaches they can take to engage online students in active learning that fosters metacognitive awareness.