Active learning strategies have proven to be highly effective in enhancing student engagement and improving learning outcomes, when combined with the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI), these strategies can be even more impactful. AI tools offer personalized learning experiences, instant feedback, and data-driven insights, allowing educators to tailor active learning techniques such as peer discussions, problem-solving activities, and interactive simulations to individual student needs. Educators can create dynamic and responsive classrooms by integrating AI into active learning environments that encourage deeper understanding, critical thinking, and collaboration.
Using an active learning strategy creates a memorable experience for a student. That experience is what the current forms of artificial intelligence cannot mimic. It is also the part that allows a student to engage with the content and become invested in digger deeper. Using some of the strategies is the starting point for you as an instructor to all students to drive the explorations of the content and take ownership of their learning.
Think-Pair-Share is a simple, collaborative activity that promotes critical thinking and encourages all students to engage in discussions. Students first think individually about a prompt, then discuss their responses with a partner, and finally share key points with the whole class, creating a safe environment for verbal expression. (Padlet is a great tool to capture these ideas when using cards or the columns feature.) Each student takes 1-3 minutes to independently reflect and develop their idea. Then, they move to work in pairs for 3-5 minutes to synthase the two ideas. Randomly, select groups to share or have each group share a 2-minute version of what their group came up with.
Experience: Have each student enter the question in prompt form into an AI platform or multiple platforms to generate the answer. Have students compare this answer to what their group came up with. The students can include any experience that directed them to the response. Have students look for any bias that may be in the AI-generated responses. This can be in a written form or a video form.
The 2-4-8 active learning strategy promotes collaboration and critical thinking by progressively increasing group sizes to refine ideas. Students first work individually or in pairs for 2 minutes to brainstorm or solve a problem. They then join another pair for 4 minutes to discuss and compare their ideas, followed by an 8-minute discussion in larger groups to further refine and expand their thoughts. The activity concludes with a class-wide discussion to share insights and solutions. (Padlet is a great tool to capture these ideas when using cards or the columns feature.)
Experience: Have each student enter the question in prompt form into an AI platform or multiple platforms to generate the answer. Have students compare this answer to what their group came up with. The students can include any experience that directed them to the response. This can be in a written form or a video form.
Experience: Have students enter a question in a prompt form about the assigned reading.
Jigsaw is a cooperative learning strategy where students become "experts" on one aspect of a topic, allowing them to learn from each other rather than solely from the instructor. The topic is divided into pieces, with each group focusing on one part. After becoming experts through reading, discussion, or research, students share their knowledge with their group to collectively solve a problem, followed by a whole-class discussion to synthesize their learning.
Experience: Split the chapter up into sections for each group to have a responsibility. Assign a part of the chapter to each group. (This would also be a good experience if you want to give a review before a test.)
This collaborative activity encourages students to work in groups of four to create a visual representation of a concept discussed in class. Each group receives a blank piece of paper to draw their collective interpretation of the concept, fostering active engagement and synthesis of material. If desired, completed images can be projected for the class to view and discuss using a document scanner or camera. This process promotes self-directed learning, increases comfort among peers, and enhances learning outcomes. Remind students that artistic skill is not the focus; contributing ideas is key to participation.
Experience:
Four Corners is an engaging activity where students choose a position—strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree—by moving to designated corners of the room. After selecting their corner, students discuss their reasoning with others who share their stance. Representatives from each group then summarize their discussions for the class, and students are allowed to change corners if they’ve reconsidered their position. This activity promotes critical thinking and articulation of opinions, and can be adapted to a "Value Line" format for larger classes.
Experience: