Okuzeka
Education & Teaching vocabulary · Teaching Methods and Approaches

Active learning

Meaning in education & teaching, with examples

nounCore term

In education & teaching, active learning means: Learning in which students do things and think about what they are doing, such as discussing, solving problems or explaining ideas, instead of only listening.

In Turkish: aktif öğrenme, etkin öğrenme

How it is used

Common in schools and universities, especially as a contrast to traditional lectures. Teachers use active learning strategies or techniques, such as think-pair-share, quick polls and problem-solving tasks.

Example sentences

  1. Even in a fifty-minute lecture, you can add short bursts of active learning.

  2. Our active learning workshop showed teachers how to replace long explanations with tasks.

Common collocations

  • active learning strategies
  • active learning techniques
  • promote active learning
  • active learning classroom
  • student-centered learningAn approach in which students take an active role in their learning, for example by discussing, investigating and making choices, while the teacher guides rather than lectures.
  • pair workA classroom activity in which students work together in twos, for example to discuss a question, practice a dialogue or check each other's answers.
  • cooperative learningA structured form of group work in which students depend on each other to complete a shared task, while each student is still responsible for their own learning.
  • student engagementHow involved, interested and active students are in their learning, shown by their attention, effort, participation and curiosity.

More terms: Teaching Methods and Approaches

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: