The Best Learning Is Active Learning

At age of five, Albert Einstein’s father, Hermann Einstein, gave Albert a compass as a birthday gift. Unlike other boys, who might have tossed the compass aside in minutes and moved to things that seemed more interesting. Einstein had the compass in his hand for months. He investigated and questioned this strange object, asking his parents’ questions like, “ Why the arrow always points to the north?”

Since his parents were normal working-class people, they were not able to give little Albert a good explanation; however, that did not stop him from trying to find out the reality. Those questions later became gunpowder of Einstein’s journey of scientific discovery.

After more than 50 years of devotion in science and contribution to the society, Einstein has become one of the most influential people. All parents wish their newborn to acquire Einstein’s intelligence. A child’s learning style becomes a crucial factor.

I believe the best way for children to learn is by active learning, and there are two primary reasons: first, it will keep the child focused and engaged during the learning process, and second, it will help the child to develop an attitude and personality that best suits the needs of current society.

When describing a child, “energy” and “curiosity” are the two most common adjectives people would use. Indeed, everything around a kid is a question mark. Although, having the motivation for discovering and investigating are good. But for educators, with all the attractions from the natural environment, keep a child’s focus during early education period becomes a big challenge.

Schools have been using active learning method since 1600s-the first establishment of institutions. By letting children learn things step-by-step, will not only keep them focused, but also allow the instructors to evaluate student’s overall performance. That is also why homework is invented. Teachers assign after schoolwork to students in order to minimize the temptation from external factors. And as time progress, once the student reaches to higher education level like college, the importance of homework and examinations are reduced. Because by then, schools are expecting students to have already developed some productive learning habits.

Secondly, active learning will also impact a child’s development of attitude and personality. In 21st century, with the invention of Internet and improvement of technologies, corporations are shifting from local to global. Companies are seeking better employees, workers who are passionate, hardworking and courageous.

However, all those traits the corporate demands are all sub-products of this long-term active learning process. In high school, students are required to write research papers in English and science classes. The school encourages students to choose a topic that would raise their interests; however, the focus here is neither understanding the material that is being investigated nor producing a ten page well written paper. The factual purpose of this exercise is first, to let students be passionate in researching and investigating, and second, to construct a mind-set of risk taking, hardworking, and persistence—to students unconsciously.

In conclusion, yet, there are many parents who prefer a more passive learn style, learning by watching and listening. However, when comparing the benefits a child would receive in the future, active learning is more beneficial. It will not only help a child to become rigorous and hard working, but also develop a personality that most suits 21st century companies demand.