Our purpose was to develop a profile of the frequency and duration with which different teaching techniques are used in the university classroom. Student observers recorded the time spent in different teaching activities in 58 separate classes across a variety of disciplines. Teaching activities were placed into one of eight categories. Instructors also provided estimates of time spent in each category. Results showed that lecture continues to be the primary method of instruction, that males lectured more than females, and that time spent lecturing was positively related to class size. A significant portion of class time involved no learning and the profile determined by student observations was generally similar to that determined by instructor estimates. This study provides both a methodology and a profile upon which to build further research.
A B S T R AC T Our purpose was to develop a profile of the frequency and duration with which different teaching techniques are used in the university classroom. Student observers recorded the time spent in different teaching activities in 58 separate classes across a variety of disciplines. Teaching activities were placed into one of eight categories. Instructors also provided estimates of time spent in each category. Results showed that lecture continues to be the primary method of instruction, that males lectured more than females, and that time spent lecturing was positively related to class size. A significant portion of class time involved no learning and the profile determined by student observations was generally similar to that determined by instructor estimates. This study provides both a methodology and a profile upon which to build further research. K E Y WO R D S : active lear ning, lecturing, teaching styles, teaching techniques, university teaching active learning in higher education
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.