Educator's Forum

Engage your Students with Active Learning in the Classroom

Marg Forbes, MSc, CA
marg@forbessolution.com

Recent studies have confirmed that to be better accountants, students need to learn to apply the technical content they’ve learned from texts in real world simulations.  They also need to learn to integrate material across various areas rather than the current functional silos that dominate many higher education models.  And they need guidance in the development of competencies such as communication, interpersonal skills, leadership and team work.  

Post secondary institutions have, in some cases, done a less than stellar job teaching students how to apply and integrate technical knowledge. Colleges and universities have also fallen short in the development of “soft skills” such as communication and leadership.  As a result, the accounting professional bodies have called for the creation of a learning environment which facilitates the development of these work specific skills.   

The CICA, in 2001, proposed a change to competency based education, which has been defined as:  

“ ... an approach…that specifies expectations in terms of learning and outcomes, or what an individual can do or accomplish, rather than in terms of knowledge acquired.  It focuses on the application of knowledge in the workplace and not on the acquisition of knowledge alone”.  

All three Canadian accounting bodies have released competency maps which outline the skills they believe students need to develop to be able to effectively apply and make use of their knowledge in the workplace.  Common among all three are:   

• Analytical and problem solving skills  
• Decision making, integrative thinking and judgment  
• Managing, planning, and organizational skills
• Leadership, adaptability and group dynamics
• Clear, concise  efficient and effective communication
• Professionalism and ethical behavior  
• A lifelong learning focus.  

These characteristics go by different names, including “soft skills”, “pervasive qualities” or “enabling competencies”.   

Evidence supports the need for education that delivers more than memorization of technical content.  Studies too numerous to ignore have shown that students’ attention will wander after 15 minutes of lecture. After just 24 hours, students’ recollection of what was said in the lecture can be insignificant and in some cases wrong. On the other hand, students retain knowledge that they have had to use to solve problems and make decisions much longer than material learned using the more traditional lecture/reading approach (Meyers and Jones, 1993).  Students also develop superior thinking and writing skills when they learn using cases or problems based on realistic settings (Felder and Brent, 1999).  

As a group, the pedagogical techniques that deliver content while encouraging the development of soft skills are called active learning. They require more planning on the instructor’s part and more participation on the students’ part, but the payoff is a stimulating learning environment for both. Given the push from the profession to produce students who can apply what they know, and evidence that indicates that students will retain more if instructed using real world examples, it is clear that change to active learning is needed in post secondary education.  

At the CAAA Annual Conference in Halifax in May of 2007, Dr. Vianne Timmons, Vice President Academic Development, University of Prince Edward Island entertained and informed audiences with active learning strategies she’s been using in the classroom. Timmons is part of a team that for 25 years has been offering the UPEI Faculty Development Summer Institute on Active Learning and Teaching.  The only one of its kind in Canada, this week long professional development program aims to improve post secondary teaching and learning by training faculty in active learning techniques and assessment strategies.  More information on the Summer Institute is available at http://www.upei.ca/extension/FDSInstitute.htm 

Over the next few months, this column will feature ideas from Dr. Timmons’ session in Halifax, beginning with negotiating the course outline on the first day of class.  

Setting the stage for Active Learning on Day 1 

Today’s students grew up being surveyed and test marketed on everything from diapers to iPods.  The education system has kept them involved in activities and working in groups from primary school.  As a result, they expect that their post secondary education will be tailored to meet their needs – an attitude some faculty are finding a bit off-putting!   

To meet their needs to be involved, and your needs to set the curriculum and the standards, consider having students negotiate parts of the course outline on the very first day of classes.  For example, you can select 15 topic areas that you’d like to cover during the term and allow students to choose 10; or you can choose the assessment tools (midterms, finals) and allow them to negotiate the percentage each will be worth and the due date.  

Getting students involved in personalizing their course outline sends the message that they are responsible for their learning. It insures that every student has gone through the outline, and in the longer term, increases attendance on the first day. It develops negotiation, communication and problem solving skills and creates teams that can be used all term for other activities.  

Start by forming teams of four to six by numbering students off – don’t allow them to choose.  This encourages them to mingle more quickly, and reduces the risk of one or two students being left without a group. Give the teams 15 minutes to discuss the options and agree on what they’d like to see; then have them select a representative who will be part of the final negotiations.  

While the group reps gather outside the class and negotiate the final choices, get the remaining group members to find a group name.  These groups can be used throughout the term for other group activities.  

The final course outline can be posted on the class webpage for downloading after the first class.    

References

• Felder and Brent, “Effective Strategies for Cooperative Learning” Journal of Cooperation & Collaboration in College Teaching, 10(2), 69-75, 2001.
• Meyers and Jones, Promoting Active Learning, Jossey-Bass Inc., 1993.