The Effect of Active Learning Professional Development Training on College Students’ Academic Outcomes

Extensive literature emphasizes the promise of active learning instruction in engaging students in college classrooms. Accordingly, faculty professional development (PD) programs on active learning have become increasingly popular in postsecondary institutions; yet, quantitative evidence on the effectiveness of these programs is limited. Using administrative data and an individual fixed effects approach, we estimate the causal effect of an active learning PD program at a large public institution. Findings indicate that the training improved course performance and subsequent persistence in the same field. Further analysis of classroom observation data identifies a positive association between training and active learning teaching practices. These findings suggest that active learning PD, when implemented with high fidelity, has the potential to improve teaching quality and student outcomes.