Active Teaching and Learning Methodologies: Some Considerations

Drawing the students’ attention and keeping them engaged are essential points to the learning process. Active methodologies place the students at the center of this process and make them the protagonists of discovery, rather than just passive information receivers. There are different teaching strategies to create an active learning environment and to engage the students to it. Current evidences indicate that active learning improves understanding and information retention. It is also effective in developing higher-order cognitive skills. Nevertheless, the adoption of active methodologies is still low. The authors of the current paper encourage the reflection on the traditional teaching practices and suggest that the active methodologies are an education option for secondary and higher education level courses as a way to meet nowadays needs in education.