Active Learning Strategies
Updated May 28, 2026
Active learning is often presented as a teaching technique. In this paper, it is also an equity issue. The authors focus on STEM classrooms where underrepresented students can be left at the edge of participation unless the course is deliberately structured to bring them in.
The US context in the article is specific, but the teaching problem is familiar. Women earn a majority of bachelor's degrees in the United States, yet a much smaller share of STEM degrees. Hispanic and African American students are also underrepresented in STEM compared with their share of the population. Better teaching will not solve those gaps on its own, but classroom design can either widen or narrow them.
The paper concentrates on two levers: active learning and increased structure. Active learning gives students opportunities to practise, discuss and apply ideas during class. Structure makes expectations clear before, during and after class, so students know how to prepare and how participation connects to assessment.
What the study shows
The techniques are deliberately practical. Name tents reduce anonymity in large classes and help students feel seen. Randomising student names before asking questions can widen participation, as long as instructors use it carefully and avoid turning participation into public embarrassment.
Student response systems can also work well when questions are hard enough to prompt discussion. The strongest use is not simply polling for an answer. It is asking students to think, vote, discuss, vote again and then hear why the options were right or wrong. That sequence makes reasoning visible.
Exam-style multiple-choice questions can be used in class for the same reason. Students get low-stakes practice with the kind of thinking they will need later, while staff see where misconceptions are forming. Two-stage exams extend this idea by asking students to answer individually and then work through the same or related questions in groups. Individual accountability remains, but students also learn by explaining and challenging one another.
The structure techniques focus on what happens before class. Students can be given concise pre-class tasks with clear accountability, such as short questions or quizzes. Short videos can also help when they are focused, visual and tied to guiding prompts. The point is not to move work out of class indiscriminately. It is to free class time for the difficult concepts students cannot master alone.
What universities can do with this
Active learning should not rely on the most confident students volunteering. Instructors need participation routines that distribute attention more fairly. That might mean structured pair discussion before whole-class answers, randomised calling with opt-out safeguards, written responses before speaking, or polling that lets every student commit to an answer.
Structure is just as important as activity. Students need to know why they are preparing, what they should do with the material and how it will appear in class. If preparation tasks feel disconnected, active learning can look like extra work rather than better teaching.
For programme teams, the useful question is not "are we using active learning?" It is "which students are participating, and what evidence do we have?" Attendance, clicker data, short reflections and open-text comments can all show whether the approach is broadening participation or simply giving more airtime to students who were already confident.
Student voice work is especially important here. Students may not use the language of active learning or increased structure. They may say the class feels supportive, confusing, intimidating, useful or hard to prepare for. Those comments can show whether the design is producing inclusion in practice.
Limits of the evidence
The examples come from STEM and from a US equity context. UK teams should adapt the details to local cohorts, disciplines and class sizes. The wider lesson still holds: active learning is more effective when it is structured, explained and checked through student experience data.
FAQ
Q: Is active learning mainly about making classes more interactive?
A: Interaction is part of it, but the stronger aim is better thinking. Students need structured chances to practise reasoning, compare answers and receive feedback while they are still learning.
Q: How can instructors avoid putting students on the spot?
A: Give students time to think or discuss before answering, use polling or written responses, and explain why participation routines are being used. Fair participation should not mean surprise exposure.
Q: What should student feedback teams look for?
A: Look for comments about belonging, clarity, preparation workload, confidence and whether classroom activities helped students understand difficult material.
References
[1] Bauman K, School Enrolment of the Hispanic Population: Two Decades of Growth, U.S. Census Bureau, 2017, p. 28. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/blogs/random-samplings/2017/08/school_enrollmentof.html.
[2] Cooper KM, Haney B, Krieg A, Brownell SE, What’s in a name? The importance of students perceiving that an instructor knows their names in a high-enrolment biology classroom, CBE Life Sci. Ed. 16 (1) (2017). DOI: 10.1187/cbe.16-08-0265
[3] de Brey C, Musu L, McFarland J, Wilkinson-Flicker S, Diliberti M, Zhang A, Wang X, Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Groups 2018, NCES 2019-038. National Center for Education Statistics, 2019.
[4] Eddy SL, Brownell SE, Wenderoth MP, Gender gaps in achievement and participation in multiple introductory biology classrooms, CBE Life Sci. Ed. 13 (3) (2014) 478–492. DOI: 10.1187/cbe.13-10-0204
[5] Eddy SL, Hogan, KA. Getting under the hood: How and for whom does increasing course structure work? CBE Life Sci. Ed. 13 (3) (2014) 453–468. DOI: 10.1187/cbe.14-03-0050
[6] Freeman S, Eddy S.L., McDonough M, Smith MK, Okoroafor N, Jordt H, Wenderoth MP, Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 111 (23) (2014) 8410–8415. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1319030111
[7] Heiner CE, Banet AI, Wieman C, Preparing students for class: how to get 80% of students reading the textbook before class, Am. J. Phys. 82 (10) (2014) 989–996. DOI: 10.1119/1.4895008
[8] Jang H, Lasry N, Miller K, Mazur E, Collaborative exams: cheating? Or learning? Am. J. Phys. 85 (3) (2017) 223–227. DOI: 10.1119/1.4974744
[9] Moravec M, Williams A, Aguilar-Roca N, O’Dowd DK, Learn before lecture: a strategy that improves learning outcomes in a large introductory biology class, CBE Life Sci. Ed. 9 (4) (2010) 473–481 DOI: 10.1187/cbe.10-04-0063
[10] Nicol D, E-assessment by design: using multiple-choice tests to good effect, J. Furth. High. Educ. 31 (1) (2007) 53–64. DOI: 10.1080/03098770601167922
[11] Roberts JA, Olcott AN, McLean NM, Baker GS, M¨oller A, Demonstrating the impact of classroom transformation on the inequality in DFW rates (“D” or “F” grade or withdraw) for first-time freshmen, females, and underrepresented minorities through a decadal study of introductory geology courses, J. Geosci. Educ. 66 (4) (2018) 304–318. DOI: 10.1080/10899995.2018.1510235
[12] Smith MK, Wood WB, Adams WK, Wieman C, Knight JK, Guild N, Su TT, Why peer discussion improves student performance on in-class concept questions, Science 323 (5910) (2009) 122–124. DOI: 10.1126/science.1165919
[13] Stockwell BR, Stockwell MS, Cennamo M, Jiang E, Blended learning improves science education, Cell 162 (5) (2015) 933–936. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2015.08.009
[14] U.S. Census Bureau, Quick Facts, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045218.
[15] U.S. Department of Education, Digest of Education Statistics, 2017, 2017a. Table 501.10. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_501.10.asp.
[16] U.S. Department of Education, Digest of Education Statistics, 2017, 2017b. Table 318.45. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_318.45.asp.
[17] U.S. Department of Education, Digest of Education Statistics, 2017, 2017. Table 322.30. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_322.30.asp.
Request a walkthrough
Book a free Student Voice Analytics demo
See all-comment coverage, sector benchmarks, and reporting designed for OfS quality and NSS requirements.
- All-comment coverage with HE-tuned taxonomy and sentiment.
- Versioned outputs with TEF-ready reporting.
- Benchmarks and BI-ready exports for boards and Senate.
UK-hosted · No public LLM APIs · Same-day turnaround