2nd LEARNING UNIT: Students and learning

Every teacher strives for his pupils or students to be active and to learn as much as possible. This is often not an easy task. How to activate students? First, we need to understand the ways in which students approach learning and completing study-related tasks. Basically, there are two opposing approaches - a surface or a deep approach.

At the surface approach it is highlighted:

• the tendency to reproduce the content, 
• passive and uncritical acceptance of ideas and information, 
• focus only on exam requirements,
• lack of learning goals and strategies,
• emphasis on rote learning and routine procedures. 

The in-depth approach is characterized by: 

• the desire of the student to understand the material himself, 
• active interaction of the student with the content, 
• connecting new ideas with previous knowledge and experience,
• using evidence to make judgments and draw conclusions. 
  

What does it depend on, and which principle does a student approach to learning? A heavy study load (too much material, literature), a teaching method and an exam system that encourages memorization and reproduction, poor or no feedback, etc., encourages a superficial approach. However, if teachers prepare learning activities and tasks that require students to engage with the content (learning material), connect the new material with what they already know about it, if teachers focus on key concepts and devote enough time to them, they implement tests/exams that require higher levels of thinking require this from the student and encourage him to study in more depth and also approach learning.

These are also characteristics of active learning, which also:

• means any learning in which students are actively involved in the learning process, 
• has become learning a general framework for modernizing teaching and learning in higher education institutions in Europe - student-centred.
• is related to various educational theories and concepts, 
• is supported by the knowledge of the science of learning (neuroscience, cognitive psychology, neuroeducational research, etc.),
• diverse active learning strategies, 
• aimed at changing students' conceptual structures, 
• begins with imagining learning experiences (activities and tasks) that lead to learning.