How Will This Course Be Taught and Why, II: Theory -- Active and Collaborative Learning

Studies of university classrooms clearly demonstrate that the highest levels of learning occur in situations in which students are actively involved in the process.  Therefore, this course is designed to offer you the opportunity to make active use of what you are learning and to apply it to concrete problems.  Much of this will occur in the context of five-person teams that will be created at the end of the first week and will continue until the end of the semester.  You will work with the other members of your team both in class and between classes to increase your understanding of the material and your ability to response to the challenges of the course.  In the process you will not only have the experience of a type of learning which has repeatedly been demonstrated to be the most effective, but you will have the opportunity to improve your skills at working within a group, a skill which is absolutely crucial in the contemporary world.

Arthur Radebaugh, "Closer Than We Think: 24-HourDaylight," Chicago Tribune, August 7, 1960