What Is Active Learning?
Active learning—the direct
and immediate experiencing of objects, people, ideas, and events—is a necessary
condition for cognitive restructuring and hence for development. Put simply,
young children learn concepts, form ideas, and create their own symbols or
abstractions through self-initiated activity—moving, listening, searching,
feeling, manipulating. Such activity, carried on within a social context in
which an alert and sensitive adult is a participant-observer, makes it
possible for the child to be involved in intrinsi- cally interesting
experiences that may produce contradictory conclusions and a consequent
reorganization of the child’s understanding of his or her world.
While children interact with materials, people,
ideas, and events to construct their own understanding of reality, adults
observe and interact with children to discover how each child thinks and
reasons. Adults strive to recognize each child’s particular interests and
abilities, and to offer the child appropriate support and challenges. This
adult role is complex and develops grad- ually as the adult becomes more adept
at recognizing and meeting each child’s developmental needs. Basically, adults support
children by . . .
•
Organizing
environments and routines for active learning
• Establishing a climate for positive social interactions
• Encouraging
children’s intentional actions, problem solving, and verbal reflection
• Observing
and interpreting the actions of each child in terms of the developmental
principles embodied in the High/Scope key experiences
• Planning
experiences that build on the child’s actions and interests
For more information go to: http://www.ecdgroup.com/download/gh1eycxi.pdf
