Abstract

Traditional classroom lectures are increasingly being replaced by other leaning approaches which allow learners to be actively involved in the learning experience. This paper adopts a mixed methods research design and reports on the findings of a study investigating participants’ perceptions of their teaching and learning experiences in an undergraduate science course featuring active learning. The sample consisted of 428 students and 20 academic staff in a higher educational institution in Saudi Arabia. The findings show that students found the astrophysics courses that adopted active learning approaches encouraged creativity and innovation than traditional lecture-based courses. The active learning strategies reflect that the faculty were familiar with active learning methods and that they supported an active learning culture. The results are expected to help faculty to better understand students’ perception and experience of active learning.