Active Learning

“Online discussion boards create positive growth in class community, which is reflected through
a sense of cohesion with other students, a higher degree of trust among students, an increased
number of inquiries and questions between students and the instructor, and a general sense that
the class is valuable and applicable to student needs.”
One of the critical goals of higher education is to cultivate critical thinking among
learners. Critical thinking entails being fair-minded and open-minded and having the propensity
to be inquisitive, seek reason, have the desire to be well-informed, and demonstrate flexibility,
willingness, and respect for other people’s viewpoints (Haghparast et al., 2014). Through e-
learning, students have an advanced platform to acquire, demonstrate, and exercise critical
thinking skills. Through e-learning, students use the technology tools and the internet to access
materials that are web-distributed, web-based, or web-capable for educational purposes. Digital
content is transferred to students for purposes of equipping them with education. E-learning
provides a platform for learners to acquire education. The environment is learner-oriented, and
the idea of life-long is made a reality through online learning environments. Students
demonstrate a high sense of self-esteem when using the e-learning platform. They are able to
demonstrate their familiarity with technological tools. The online learning environment fosters
their creativity and keeps them active as they get prepared for modern society.
E-learning, accompanied by critical thinking, encourages learners to acquire skills that
make them ready for the 21 st -century job market. Some scholars are of the opinion that e-learning
saves on time and achieves much as it is student-oriented and creates an environment that
encourages students to think deeply (Haghparast et al., 2014). As students take part in discussion
forums and assignments, they think critically and interact with learning materials already

provided to them. Learning is self-paced and can happen every time. Students have a platform to
share their opinions with their peers and with the instructor. Thus, students have a greater
opportunity to engage with each other, make inquiries, and ask questions. Students engage with
each other, and this fosters a great sense of cohesion.
Today’s technology-enabled classroom creates an environment for students to engage in
active learning. The classroom is facilitated by information technology, and learners interact with
a wide range of information. Through critical thinking, they discern biased and unbiased
information. In the process, they acquire and improve certain skills such as critical thinking that
are important to them both in the academic world as well as in workplace environments
(Haghparast et al., 2014). Critical thinking in the learning environment and in the workplace is a
key and central theme. Online learning provides students with various opportunities to use
information technology. Due to the changing nature of technology, students are engaged in the
process of active learning and thinking on how to integrate new mechanisms into their learning
processes.
Online learning enhances critical thinking in various ways. First, students are asked
questions that can only be answered through information seeking. As they search for answers,
they engage in active critical thinking. Most of the questions need students to research in
scholarly articles. While at it, students have to critically go through articles and differentiate
those that are scholarly and those that do not meet the criteria (Haghparast et al., 2014). Besides,
instructors require that students read provided materials and then describe their meanings in their
own words. As students formulate answers to asked questions, they develop the habit of mind,
logical reasoning, flexibility, and are encouraged to use their cognitive skills to analyze the
information. If students decide to use an author’s words, then they are required to use quotation

marks and cite the work using page numbers or the year of publication. As students form their
own opinions based on provided course texts, their thinking abilities are improved.
Students are provided with the grading criteria; thus, they are motivated to use their
efforts to meet the necessary requirements as per the grading criteria. Research has shown that
personal effort enhances one’s abilities to think. Online learning also enhances students’ abilities
to think critically when instructors ask them to give examples of concepts (Cattaneo, 2017). The
exercise stimulates their cognitive abilities, and they engage in analyzing and discriminating.
Through increased reflection, the habits of mind of flexibility are enhanced. Students are able to
connect the content that they are learning with past personal experiences and knowledge. Also,
through discussion posts, students get to know about their peer’s experiences. They share past
knowledge, and they learn more as opposed to where students’ responses are not shared among
their peers.
The discussion forum through which students interact with each other has a section where
students are required to ask each other questions. The section helps students generate additional
information from their peers. Students ask questions that trigger and guide their peer’s critical
thinking. Sometimes questions from peers require additional research. As learners engage in
additional independent research and reading, their cognitive skills are improved (Cattaneo,
2017). Students have to provide answers and clear rationales based on the readings. The process
is effective in that students to have an opportunity to engage in active critical thinking.
Online learning also provides a platform where students get tailored responses and
feedback from the instructor. Reinforcement is important for critical thinking to take place.
Educators who use online platforms to instruct, encourage, and reinforce critical thinking
(Lunney et al., 2008). They achieve this by establishing an online platform that is conducive for

learners to seek the truth, explore what they do not know, engage in logical reasoning, and open-
mindedness. When students take part in discussions, and the instructor responds with words of
affirmation, they are encouraged to put in more effort because the positive reinforcement
encourages them. Also, learning periods extend up to a specified time. Students take courses that
are five to six weeks long. Within these time frames, students get weekly responses from their
instructors based on the tasks they have accomplished. Getting timely feedback also reinforces
critical thinking. Learners are encouraged to put in more effort as what they are writing is being
read.
Overall, e-learning fosters critical thinking. The online environment permits learners the
opportunity to review discussions and re-review lecturers and reading materials, and this
provides them with additional time to engage in critical thinking. Their ability to reflect, learn,
and solve problems is enhanced as they interact with their peers and the instructor. Instructors
make skillful use of techniques such as focusing, coaching, re-directing, and skilled questioning.
These techniques enable them to keep students engaged throughout the learning process. Thus, it
is evident that online discussion boards foster positive growth as learners create a community of
critical thinkers.

References

Cattaneo, K. H. (2017). Telling active learning pedagogies apart: From theory to practice (Links
to an external site.). Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 6(2), 144-152.
doi:10.7821/naer.2017.7.237
Haghparast, M., Nasaruddin, F. H., & Abdullah, N. (2014). Cultivating critical thinking through
e-learning environment and tools: A review (Links to an external site.), Procedia—Social
and Behavioral Sciences, 129, 527-535. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.03.710
Lunney, M., Frederickson, K., Spark, A., & McDuffie, G. (2008). Facilitating Critical Thinking
through Online Courses. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 12, 85-97.