1-Sometimes I think we should change the name active learning to learning agency or something. It's not really about movement, though that can be a part of it. It's about learners having agency to make decisions about their learning experience.
2-You can have students moving all over the classroom and it's not active learning. Students who are sitting still can be very active participants in their learning experiences.
3-So on a very basic level, there's no reason you can't have active learning in a classroom using physical distancing.
4-But. But! What I'm much more concerned about is the impact of toxic stress and trauma on the cognitive loads of teachers and students in the physically distant classroom.
5-Because remembering to stay 6-feet apart at all times is taking up space in your cognitive load. Remembering to keep your mask on...thinking about how you are going to exit the classroom. Thinking about getting through the hallways and to your car...
6-And then there's the fact that we've all been told to stay away from other people (rightfully so) because they are dangerous, or at least stay outside with masks, and now we're asking people to pile into a small room. That is extraordinarily stressful for students and teachers.
7-So my answer is that while theoretically active learning can happen in a physically distanced classroom, our survival brains are going to have other plans this fall. And what survival brains want, survival brains get.
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