ABSTRACT
The educational practices professors implement in their classrooms factor into student retention, persistence, and success. This chapter examines the practice of using lectures and interactive lectures. Differences in class participation between Black and White students that existed in traditional lecture classes completely disappeared in classes that moderately used active learning methods. Implementing interactive lectures does not mean sacrificing academic rigor. It also does not mean that lectures have to be abolished, or that they are “no longer an appropriate instructional approach”. Interactive lectures are simply lectures that have breaks within the class meeting time to give students opportunities to interact with the professor and with classmates in meaningful educational activities. Individual accountability is a must; therefore, the in-class activities must be part of the students’ final grade. Some class activities might take the form of a guided practice where students have an in-depth exploration of key concepts.
