In Defense of Continuous Exposition by the Teacher: Definitions of “Lecture” and “Active Learning”

One of the pushbacks that I got in response to my proposal to encourage active learning in teaching statements for hiring, promotion, and tenure was the question, “What are you calling lecture?  What is active learning?”  The below-linked blog post does a good job of defining each.

While we’re at it, here’s the consensus definition of active learning that Freeman et al. used:“Active learning engages students in the process of learning through activities and/or discussion in class, as opposed to passively listening to an expert. It emphasizes higher-order thinking and often involves group work.”The research seems pretty clear to me. Lecturing, as defined as “continuous exposition by the teacher,” is, in general, on average, less effective at promoting student learning than active learning instruction.

Source: In Defense of Continuous Exposition by the Teacher