Being a teacher or a student in a class with a large enrollment can be intimidating. Often, teachers view comforts that are common to small classes as unattainable in a larger class, including knowing students' names, using active learning, employing group work, and creating group discussion. Students in large classes may find that the class size…

Challenge: Courses like introductory calculus are described as "gatekeeper" classes but are required for students across a variety of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. Real applications of mathematics subjects are known to have a positive effect on student motivation and retention. Considering the broad and…

This research study examined inclusive teaching practices, class policies, and course structures in active learning Calculus classes. Analyzing interview data, along with focus group discussions and classroom observations, obtained from 23 students and 4 instructors, themes were extracted through open-coding methodology, employing scholarly…

Instructors often provide feedback to their class in multiple ways. One way is through their follow-up behaviors, which are the specific strategies instructors implement after active learning activities. These behaviors could play an important role in student learning as students receive feedback from the instructor. However, there is little…

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) is an active learning strategy which poses questions to students and supplies them with materials and resources to solve it at their own learning pace. This creates a self-driven atmosphere which promotes collaboration, creativity, cognitive processing, and a curiosity to learn. Three levels of IBL were implemented in…

This study evaluates the effectiveness of inquiry-oriented instruction in introductory linear algebra classes by comparing the performance of students who learned introductory linear algebra concepts in inquiry-oriented settings (TIMES students) with the students who attended other linear algebra classes (Non-TIMES students). We used the…

Plate tectonics is the unifying theory of modern Earth science, but many university students have misconceptions about it that introductory geoscience classes often fail to correct. We developed a 5-to-12-hour-long hands-on active-learning curriculum for an introductory geoscience class for education majors. The curriculum includes: (1) A…

Women are underrepresented among American legislators and political science majors. One explanation is that gender imbalances propagate through space and time. In this paper, we introduce a paired experiment aimed to assess the downstream attitudinal effects of priming the issue of women's representation. At one predominantly male university and…

Critical thinking and scientific communication are common learning objectives in physiology education. However, a lack of realworld application can limit the transfer of these skills to professional settings. For example, health and wellness professionals are often asked to give advice to clients and patients regarding the use of nutritional…

This article describes one approach to flipping an introductory sociology course. To encourage students to practice 'doing' sociology, we designed a flipped classroom that included a 'pay to play' model, small group work and an emphasis on active learning during class time. With this course design, we linked in-class active learning with outside…

A study was done at a mid-sized public university in the Midwest of the United States. At this university, there are three large classes taught in Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies (SCALE-UP) classrooms: algebra-based introductory physics, calculus-based introductory physics, and introductory statistics.…

The authors of this article estimate the learning effects of the flipped classroom format using data from 16 sections of principles of microeconomics over a 4-year period. The experimental design is unique in that two treatment and two control sections were taught during the fall semester in four consecutive years. Further, the instructor switched…

We show how learning can be improved, beyond that shown in actively taught classrooms, by also transforming the homework using the principles of deliberate practice. We measure the impact of transforming the homework on student learning in a course that had already implemented an active approach to teaching in class. We compare performance on the…

The purpose of this study was to explore faculty members' lived experiences with student resistance in a gateway STEM classroom. A comparative investigation was done of the case study population to evaluate differences in experiences in active learning classes that use LAs (LAF) and classes that use more passive methods without LAs (NLA). The…

This work describes the implementation of a hierarchical team model, the Integrated Peer Leadership Program (IPLP), in a calculus-based college introductory physics classroom. Using this model, in which students in the course engage with their peers throughout the semester, we observe a significant increase in the students' likelihood of…