 Good afternoon everybody. For last three days under mission 10x, we have been talking of learner centricity and shifting from teaching to facilitating paradigm, a paradigm shift. If this paradigm shift has to happen, then we need to be doing in the class what we call active learning. In today's class, we look at the process of active learning and what does it mean to do active learning. This is today's agenda, we will articulate the concept of active learning, we will also distinguish between active learning and activity based learning, why do we need to do active learning, what are the challenges for doing active learning and also we will take at least two examples, how to facilitate active learning in the actual classroom situation. Firstly, learning, the question is what is learning? Learning cannot be a spectator sport, nobody learns by being passive by doing nothing. Learning is a very active endeavor, people need to be actively engaged with whatever they are learning, only then learning is possible. There are two kinds of learning, learning could be shallow, learning could be deep. Shallow learning is where facts are learned in a disjointed manner, they are memorized mechanically and therefore learning becomes a burden, nor does it stay with somebody who learns for a very long time, whereas deep learning is when we learn facts in its context, in its interrelationship with other things and therefore it becomes more meaningful and also stays with us for a long time. Active learning generates, facilitates deeper learning, therefore we propose active learning. As we have learned from yesterday's session, in our classrooms we have diversity of students, we have students who have different intelligences and if we have to cater to different intelligences, then we need to have active learning in the class because we need to give opportunities for different students to learn in the way they are very comfortable with, therefore we need to have active learning as an approach to teaching and learning in the class. When we say active learning, it is not a technique, it is rather a broad approach to teaching and learning, it could take different forms, for example it could be problem based learning, it could be learning by doing, it could be group work, cooperative learning, collaborative learning or an enquiry based learning. The basic point in active learning is whether the learner is actively engaged with what one is learning is the central point. When that happens, there is learning taking place and learning is a deeper kind of a learning. So student could be solving a problem, could be answering a question, formulating a question on their own, discuss, explain, debate or brainstorm different ideas during class. All this would constitute active learning. So when we say active learning it is not just one particular thing, it is a rather an umbrella term which has many other things in it. Why do active learning? When we learn, learning could be of different kinds, learning could be simply acquiring facts and reproducing facts, but in active learning students move from lower order thinking skills to higher order thinking skills. Lower order thinking skills are simply remembering or even understanding, higher order thinking skills are you know analysis, application and creativity. So when I use active learning, I am moving from lower order thinking skills to higher order thinking skills. Since students are involved, there is a better retention of what they learn, students feel that they own what they are doing because they are involved in doing it. They are not passive. It is not that something that is done to them by the teacher, but they are involved so they feel more a sense of ownership. Classes obviously become exciting and interesting and I must say both for teacher and the student. There are skills like communication skill, skills of working in a team and creativity. These are very important skills not only in education, but when our students move to the world of work. So it is very important that we use active learning because these employability skills are internalized and that facilitates better employability of our graduates when they pass out. Therefore there is a great need to shift to active learning in our classrooms. At this point we need to be very clear there is a possibility of confusing between active learning and activity based learning. They sound similar therefore sometimes it is thought to be one and the same. Of course they are related, but they have a very distinct meaning. Activity learning is a means. It is a set of activities. It is a means. Means for what? Means for an active learning. Active learning is the end. The end is when student is actively engaged with the content that he or she is learning. Activities are a set of activities which helps students to get in the process of active learning. So activity based learning is means, active learning is an end. If we confuse the two then it is a confusion between means and ends. In fact if we are not careful of making this distinction it is quite possible that somebody a teacher can use activities in the class very mechanically without even realizing why the activity is being used. In fact if we do that then activity perhaps will replace the conventional method of lecture. You know that becomes a mechanical thing. We are moving into activity based learning or active learning because lecture is a very passive way of teaching and learning. And if it is mechanically done without understanding the purpose behind it then activities replace the lecture. Therefore it is necessary to distinguish between the two. So that we know that activities are necessary, but activities are used so that we generate active learning and students are actively engaged in the process of learning. What do we mean by learning? This is a question or what happens in the process of learning? Learning the constructivism is a model which helps us to explain how actually learning happens and it is also the presupposition of all the active learning processes. Learning is a meaning making activity. It is not just simply acquiring facts or reproducing facts. It is a meaning making activity. We just do not simply repeat things when we learn. We actually get the facts. We relate it to what we already know, what we have already learned related to other things that we are aware of and thereby construct a meaning for ourselves. Therefore knowledge is not simply transfer of facts, it is a construction of meaning. Now if this construction of meaning has to happen then students need opportunities to do more than simply receive information. Therefore constructivism as an idea, an idea that knowledge is not simple reception and reproducing, but it is an active process of construction that needs to be appreciated then active learning in the class becomes that much easier. How do we do active learning? These are the different activities through which we facilitate active learning. These are some of the things put up here. Game, role play, quiz, students summarizing the class, brainstorming, students generating the questions, crossword, case study and possibly many more. This is not an exhaustive list. This is just an illustration of how different ways we can generate active learning in the class. We must remember that when I use any of these activities to generate active learning in the class, I must be very clear that all the methods may not suit all topics. I need to be very careful as to which method would suit which of the topics. I need to take care of my students, the situation in which my class is going on, all that has to be taken into account before I decide on a particular activity which will help facilitate active learning among my students. Having said this, let us also look at some possible examples. What does it mean when we actually do this in the class? We have two instances here. At the first instance, let me show a video. Please look at this video and we will come back for the discussion on this. Are you ready for a drama today instead of a class? No. No, alright that's good. We are actually going to enact a role play today, we will not have a regular class. We have had some of it. Now we will shift to enacting a role play. Ready with your team? We will see a role play, then we will see what all that means to us. Congratulations. He will be acting the role of an ATM machine, he will be the connector, this is validator, again a global connector, the banker, again a global connector and me myself acting as an issuer and then the cash tree. So we will have a demonstration of how an ATM machine works with three scenarios. We have three customers for our bank, so why not put a lecture itself as a first customer? Yeah. Okay, so that will be fun. So we have our first customer as a sir and then there are many two customers. Welcome to SPFJC Bank. Please insert the card. Please validate the card. This is an invalid card. Sorry, invalid. Sorry, invalid. Sorry, invalid. Thank you for using the services. SPFJC Bank, please insert the card. Please validate the card. This is the valid card, ask for the PIN. Enter PIN. Enter the four digit PIN number. Validate the PIN. The PIN is validated, ask for the amount. Enter the amount. Please accept the amount. Please proceed with the transaction. Transaction in progress. Please wait. Not sufficient balance in account, transaction rejected. Transaction rejected. Transaction rejected. Sorry. No sufficient balance. Thank you for using the services. To SPFJC Bank, please insert the card. Please validate the card. This is a valid card, ask for the PIN. Enter PIN. Enter the four digit PIN number. Please validate PIN. The PIN is validated, ask for the amount. Enter the amount. Enter the amount. Please accept the amount. Proceed with the transaction. Proceed with the transaction. Transaction in progress. Please wait. Sufficient balance in account, continue with transaction. Please debit 800 rupees for the account. Please issue 1500 and 300 rupees notes. Issuing 1500 and 300 rupees notes. Please receive the cash. You want the receipt. You want the skate? Yes. What did you get in that? I mean what did you learn from this skate? Okay. I'll explain you in few steps. Here we have taken four aspects into consideration. One is security, second data management, then computer connectivity and network management. How exactly we enacted these roles and the importance. So let me explain first with the validation part. In the validation, this is the most crucial part for any transaction because this is something related to amount. If at all the card is not valid and the bank issues the amount, it's a loss to bank. So this security aspect has been taken care here in this specific act which we had right now. The second, the connectivity. You saw two connections here. One, the local connection happening within the ATM and then happening within the ATM and the bank branch. Correct? Did you guys observe? Which was the part which shows that the ATM was connecting to a global branch. The connector over there, the global connectivity. Because the branch may be situated in some part and ATM is in some area. So the connectivity between these two, we have taken care over there, the global connection through satellites. Okay. So connectivity is one aspect here. And the local connectivity is through coaxial cables or any other medium. So connectivity. Then data management. There are two aspects of data management. One, the data which is the cash which will be present in the ATM. Because there are several customers using the ATM at different amounts would be withdrawn from the ATM. So the ATM needs to track all these transactions which is happening and at the end display the amount left. And also the bank should detect the respective amount from the account of the specific person or the specific customer. So we have database management here. Very crucial. Even if it's one mistake, it's again a matter of money. Correct? So we learned security, data, connectivity and validations. Hope you all had a nice time enjoying this game. Correct? Yes. Thank you. You saw this is one example of how an active learning happens in a class. I must give a bit of a background about this particular activity that took place. These were all engineering students. Teacher gave them a short brief on what is role play and what does it involve. It was that group of students who thought over it, who decided the, in fact, the topic. And if I can use the cinematic language, cinema language, they wrote the screenplay. They directed the entire role play. I'm saying this because we tend to underestimate what our students are capable of. They did a job completely on their own and it was done in a matter of two to two and half hours on a particular day. So we need to give that space for students to experiment and have faith in them. And definitely they are capable of producing something much more than what we think they can. One more thing about this, an activity like this in the class, if it's used, it would take around six to seven minutes. However, there would be a lot of preparation required. Because in any role play, I don't think we can think of more than eight or ten students participating. We need to talk to them. We need to make them understand the topic that we are going to teach through this role play, a brief them. They would perhaps rehearse. All this happens before and outside the classroom. In the classroom, it would only take six or seven minutes of the class time. But the amount of clarity that it gives and it engages all the other students, not only those who are participating in it. Moreover, yesterday we were talking of multiple intelligences. This particular activity would touch somebody who's more kinesthetically and spatially intelligent person. It's not just linguistic, mathematical that we are touching, which is what we do normally in a lecture class. An activity like this would touch the other multiple intelligences as well. In that sense, it would be a very useful thing to do in a class. Let's look at another example. This is where a teacher had already taken a class on hydroelectric power plants. The topic is already completed in the class. Teacher wanted to summarize. Summarizing can be done as perhaps done many times by teacher using few sentences or few words and summarizing it. But that would be a very passive way of summarizing. If we need to involve students, then perhaps one of the ways, there could be many other ways, one of the ways is quiz. But quiz also done slightly differently. This is a picture quiz about hydroelectric project. The topic has already been discussed, hydroelectric power plant. These were the key words that the topic, when the topic was being discussed, these are the key words used. These are the concepts through which the whole hydroelectric power plant was understood. Now the summarizing process will start. There are a lot of pictures which will appear on your screen and you need to, picture gives you a clue. And you need to come up with what is that about the power plant the picture is indicating. Because there are already key words and we need to kind of come to the keyword using picture as a clue. My request to all the centers is please talk to your participants and send one reply. Let's see who replies first. We will acknowledge that. There will be a picture appearing first and then there will be a time left in which you have to come to the answer. What does that picture indicate in terms of hydroelectric power plant? And the centers will send the answer and the correct, the first correct answer we will acknowledge here. Any answer for this? Any guess on this? Water hammer, one of the answers that has come is water hammer, spillway? No. Let me show the right answer. This is just simple thing, water which is the first thing that we are talking of. The cheapest source of power, 30% of the power requirement is met by hydroelectric power. Let me look at the next one. Any guess what term in hydroelectric power plant would this picture indicate to you? Excellent. COEP, VNIT, NAG4, PERI-R, all of them have given the right answer. But let's recognize COEP has given it first. Yes, it is catchment area. During monsoon water is collected there. That's the picture of a catchment area. This is the next picture. What does it relate to? Any guesses? Quick. Yes, there is NIT, NIT suratkal has it. Head of the plant, the operating head determines the type of turbine to be used in the power plant. Third one, can we have quick answers from any of the centers? Yes, NIT again, PEN stock. It comes from SICSR Pune, Vellore Institute, SJ. Almost all of them have given the answer. However, the first answer comes from VNIT, NAG4. Yes, that is PEN stock and this is what it actually is in terms of power plant. Close pipe carrying water from dam to the powerhouse. Yes, this is the next picture. What does this picture indicate in the context of what we have learnt about hydroelectric power plant? Yes, Indore gives the first answer. Nozzle, COEP, Vellore, KJ Sumaya, PSG, suratkal, mirma, all have the right answer. But the first one comes from SICSR Pune. Thank you. Congratulations. This is what nozzle is in the context of hydroelectric power plant. Yes, this is the next picture. What does this indicate? Any cases? Yes, VNIT, NAG4 gets the right answer first. First it is a draft. KJ Sumaya, Vellore, Sona College, PSG, SGIT, Indore, almost all of them have got it. VNIT gets it first. Yes, it is draft. That is a picture of a bank draft. A draft tube increasing cross sectioning pipe used to increase pressure head of the outlet. That is the draft tube. Any cases on this? This is one of the most interesting pictures in this slide. What does it indicate in power plant? Yes, everybody has got it but if I have to give full answer, then it is Perrier tail raise. Though others have got it right. They have all put it as tail and Perrier tail raise. Vellore has got it. NIT has got it. Yes, that is tail raise. Water passing over the vein flows to the tail raise. That is the tail raise. This is the easy one. What does this picture indicate? Yes, NIT gets it again. Sona, Nirma, VNIT, almost all of you have got it. Yes, it is water hammer. When gates are closed, back pressure in the penstock leads to water hammer. What does this indicate? A small clue. Yes, Nirma Amdabad gets it. It is governor. This gentleman was governor of Tamil Nadu. Governor used to maintain the turbine at the constant speed when load fluctuates. That is governor. This is an easy one. Let us have it quick. Yes, NIT Suratkal gets it first. So does Somaya, COEP, Perrier, Vellore, VNIT, everybody. Yes, that is generator coupled to the turbine shaft to generate electric power. What does this indicate? Or what does this picture give you an idea about hydroelectric power plant that we have discussed in the class? Yes, VNIT Nagpur gets it first. So does Nirma, PSG, Simvagat, KJ Somaya, Vellore, Perrier, Anna University. Yes, it is spillways which act safety valve and protects the dam due to flood waters and that is spillway. Thank you for participating and that excellent response. These are the key words that we were summarizing. We did it through a picture quiz. Something like this could be used. What we have looked at are two instances of active learning in the class, whether it is a role play or a quiz based on pictures. We need to be very clear that active learning is one where student is actively engaged with the content. Therefore learning is deeper. However, we need to recognize that there are challenges in moving to active learning. Challenge both for the faculty as well as for the students. First is a question of mindset. If I as a teacher believe that my primary function is to transfer facts to instruct, to direct the students, then the shifting to active learning is going to be difficult. It is an issue of my mindset. I need to see that my role is not merely transferring facts. It is actually helping them to construct knowledge. Students also find this challenging because they are used to a conventional classroom where it is full of lectures and perhaps followed by notes. Hence they also find it difficult to make this change over. We need to prepare them. Otherwise though it is meant for them, they are the ones who might resist it. A teacher on the other hand might feel active learning involves lot of activities in the class. Students get involved, they may get overboard and I may lose control. It is a question of discipline. I think if students, if we explain to them, they appreciate once they see the value of learning in it, there could be a little bit of activity in the class, a hustle, bustle perhaps, but it would not be a question of discipline. We also need to, whenever we conduct an activity, we need to debrief because otherwise the challenge for the student is, he feels the class was fun, I enjoyed it, there was an activity, but what did I learn at the end of it? Therefore it is necessary to debrief so that students go home with a certain learning. So friends, what we looked at in this short session was the whole idea of active learning. Why do we need active learning? Active learning means an active engagement with the content, making learning meaningful and enjoyable. We also looked at two examples and as I insist, the list that we showed was not an exhaustive list. I am sure all of you can come up with much bigger list and more innovative ideas. But when we are making the shift, we need to be aware of the challenges in moving to active learning because if we do not address it, then it would be difficult to make that shift. If there are any questions, perhaps we could take two or three questions. There was a question earlier which said, doesn't learning happen also in a passive way? Yes, it can, but we are looking at two things. One, quality of learning is much better when the student is actively engaged. And the learning that takes place when the learner is passive is what we would call a lower order of thinking, which is at the level of simple memorizing the fact or ability to reproduce the fact. If we have to move to higher levels of thinking skills, then active learning is necessary. Indore also has a question. Thank you so much for such a wonderful technique. But the only thing is these techniques, I find they are very suitable for small kids. But when you have to teach to the students of postgraduate level, it becomes really tough. Especially when I teach data mining, I don't know how to go for the role play. Can you suggest some ways in that circumstances? Thank you for the question. The question is the method suggested perhaps suit younger age learners, not adult learners, definitely not at the postgraduate level. That is the question that has come from Indore. The first thing we must appreciate is what is important is active learning, which means we must have a method which will actively involve the student in the learning process. The activity per se is not that important. We need to change depending on the kind of learner we have, kind of situation we are in. But from our own experience in Mission 10x with so many different colleges, I can tell you that it does work even with engineering students, definitely at the undergraduate students. It does work. Whereas the specific issue of teaching a particular course that you mentioned, I think it would be perhaps to short a time here to look at specific issues. But definitely it is possible to address these issues and I for one believe that if you are convinced of the idea as a community of teachers, if you sit together and start discussing, you will be surprised at the number of activities or ideas for activities that you would come up with. In my own experience in Mission 10x tells me that locally produced ideas have been far more innovative than the one that we went and told them as possible examples of these methods. So the time is really short to talk about specific example. But I can tell you that you need to vary the methods depending on the kind of learners you have. But yes, different activities are possible to generate active learning at all different levels. We can go to the next one. Thank you. How to make mathematical subjects like algorithm and complexity in the same way? Yeah, it is slight variation of the other question we had from Indore. The question is how to make teaching of mathematics or mathematical ideas. What kind of activities can we use other than perhaps discussion or question answer? Again, as I said, we shall not get into the specifics. But one must recognize that there could be subjects which are less amenable to different activities compared to some other subjects which are more amenable. That distinction we need to recognize. However, even in a subject like mathematics, it would be possible. My request to all the centers is if there is a query more on general issues of active learning, rather than looking for I am teaching this particular paper or that particular topic, what kind of a technique? Because I think techniques if they would be more sustainable and really meaningful if they come from your own community where it is being taught. Therefore, I request come up with query if there is anything on the general applicability of active learning techniques or the whole idea of active learning. We can go to the next one. Thank you. Yes, Sona, go ahead. Hello, good afternoon sir. We are from Sona College of Technology. Yeah, go ahead. The question is, if this depends on age group, especially the first graduate students, will they appreciate this kind of learning because most of them may be reflective learners? The question is a variation of an earlier question we had. Do these methods depend on age of the learner? Yeah. Definitely, age of the learner is an important factor. The particular activity that you saw of ATM machine through a role play was done with engineering students and it has worked. However, if you feel that a particular method does not suit the age group that you are addressing, perhaps you are talking of post graduate students, then you will have to vary it. See, that is why distinction between activity based teaching and active learning are important. When we said, will adult learners who are more reflective, will they find this useful? If we are very clear that activities are done so that we actively engage the learners, then any activity could be used so that students reflect on what they have learned. But if we look at activity merely as an activity, then there is no element of reflection and students might even just have fun and go back with their anxiety that we have not really learned anything. So the first thing that we need to have is we are not just doing activities for the activity's sake, but we are actually asking them to get cognitively engaged. Activity is just a means of doing it. What we are looking for is a cognitive engagement with the topic. Thank you. Thank you for listening to this particular presentation. Thank you very much. Hope you all use active learning and make your learners more independent and lifelong learners. Thank you very much.