Student Engagement
On this page, you will find resources to help you transform your classroom into a space of active engagement and participation. You will discover quick and easy tips in the form of Teaching Tools in a Flash, links and recordings from our Past Events, quick Change in a Minute videos, and opportunities to engage more deeply with a Workshop in a Flash. If you find something you want to try out, consider scheduling a consultation or applying for a Teaching Recognition Award.
Need a space for active engagement? Check out our Active Learning Classroom, a room designed to support innovative teaching approaches with moveable tables and plenty of whiteboards. We also offer additional Educational Equipment. Click here to learn more.
Backward Design is a planning framework in which you start with the end in mind.
The first day is an excellent chance to set the tone, get to know students, provide an opportunity for students to get to know each other, and articulate course expectations.
Students’ motivation to learn course topics is secured and maintained when students perceive usefulness and relevance of their courses to the students’ identity and goals.
A concept map is a visualization of knowledge that is organized by the relationships between the topics. They provide an opportunity for students to make meaningful connections between information.
Critiques can range from information feedback involving peers to a formal graded process led by the instructor.
A fact sheet is a short document that contains the most relevant information about a particular subject in the least amount of space. Students must decide what is most important, organize it, and communicate it in their own words.
Jigsaw is a cooperative group activity in which students are interdependent to achieve a common goal.
An online science laboratory is a laboratory that takes place remotely at home, online via computerized robotics, or virtually through simulations or software.
Eliciting student talk encourages the use oral language to express their understanding of a concept or idea.
An interdisciplinary pedagogical tool that buoys student engagement through the power of subversive, immersive play.
A short activity where the instructor poses a question, students think about their responses then pair with someone near them to discuss their thinking before sharing out to the class.
Engaging an audience in active learning where participants learn from each other, not just from the “sage on the stage”
Smartphone Based Virtual Reality (VR) enables an immersive simulation activity to simulate an environment and teach students a set of concepts that otherwise would be difficult to experience and illustrate in a classroom.
Wait time refers to two specific practices where instructors deliberately pause. This provides students with time to think about the question and develop a response, either to the instructor’s question or a peer’s response.
Group testing is an instructional tool that incorporates a group component to traditional individual testing to assess student learning. After an individual test, students form groups to retake the exam or part of the exam.
Student Response Systems (SRS) allow you to receive immediate feedback on your teaching and their learning. It could take 10 seconds or 10 minutes of your class time but works well in small or large classrooms.
Taking Learning to the Next Level with Metacognition
Have you ever wanted to help your students become more effective/skillful learners? Whether it is a minute question or a more in-depth exercise, metacognitive strategies can help transform student learning.
Cultivating Student Engagement Through Dynamic Lecturing
Discover the art of captivating students through effective lecturing techniques and explore opportunities for incorporating active learning strategies that promote interaction, critical thinking, and knowledge retention.
Thinking Critically about Teaching Critical Thinking
One of the most commonly desired learning outcomes for our courses is that students will be able to demonstrate critical thinking skills. How do we, as educators, provide intentional support for our students in learning these skills?
Gamify Your Classroom: Playful Strategies for Serious Learning
Explore how you can utilize game-design elements in a college classroom. We will discuss why games are an effective means of supporting student learning and consider approaches, both large and small, that can transform your classroom into a playful space for discovery.
Workshops in a Flash are 15 minute mobile mini-workshops, facilitated by CTL staff. They are designed to be delivered to groups of instructors during informal gatherings or departmental meetings. Workshops in a Flash are meant to start exploration of a chosen topic with continued support from the Center as requested.