Exploring Active Learning Strategies Through the TV Series Glee: Enlivening Class Discussion

抄録

This paper attempt s to ensure that students are deeply involved in the learning process in oral communication classes. It describes revisions to an active learning approach to teaching English and reports the changes observed in student involvement in class activities. Despite its recent popularity, interpretations of the term active learning vary widely among teachers and there are different levels of it, depending on the degree of student engagement. Thus, adopting active learning approaches in the class room does not necessarily guarantee that students will participate deeply in the learning process. In this study, episodes of the TV series Glee were used to motivate learners, and formed the foundations of the active learning approaches presented in this paper. The intended effect was to involve learners more actively and make class discussion more productive. A one-year experiment was conducted to verify the effectiveness of the strategies. The results revealed that the revisions, including the introduction of a think-pair-share (TPS) activity and a flipped classroom approach, helped secure sufficient time for class discussion and led students to play a more active role in the learning process.