Özet:

Active learning is a frequent topic in higher education, typically resulting in questioning the type of empirical data on the effectiveness. Skeptics point to the lack of time for ‘covering’ material, a major challenge for the ever growing knowledge base ubiquitous in every discipline. Sound research begins with exploring the unknown to better understand the possibilities. The authors explore three teaching methods to determine their effectiveness in a freshmen seminar course. The methods are concept mapping, commercial story-boarding and educational wikis. The assessment tools used included pre- and post-concept maps, as well as a disposition survey. The outcomes revealed that in for a class size of 23 second semester freshman at a small private liberal arts institution, all methods were shown to increase engagement. Quantitatively, the concept mapping activity demonstrated the largest increase in mean scores across all areas, though the wiki group most often referenced material from the most recent out of class readings.

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