Books

Wilson-Medhurst, S. & Horrocks, J. (Eds.). (2026). Making active learning happen for all: Practical Ideas for Developing and Sustaining Active Learning. Open Press @ University of Sussex

How can we make active learning the norm for all in higher education? Making Active Learning Happen for All offers a bold and timely answer from the Active Learning Network and its members. Bringing together educators and practitioners from around the world, this guidebook demonstrates how active learning can be embedded meaningfully, sustainably, and inclusively across entire institutions. Through practical tools, case studies, and research-led insights, this book offers a roadmap for enabling every learner to engage, and every educator to succeed at active learning. Practical, uplifting, and rooted in a systems thinking framework, Making Active Learning Happen for All is an essential companion for anyone committed to creating learning experiences that are engaging, equitable, and future-focused.

Betts, T., & Oprandi, P. (Eds.) (2024). From Lab to Laptop: Case studies in teaching practical courses online. OpenPress @ University of Sussex.

The ability to teach online makes learning content accessible to all with internet access. However, in the process of moving our courses online it is crucial that educators continue to provide students practical experiences to learn from. Hands-on learning in courses such as nursing, dance, and chemistry is challenging to adapt for online learning and significant ingenuity is needed to make them suitable for an online setting. That is why it is crucial that, as a broader community, we share ideas on how to overcome the challenges faced. This book aims to address this need by providing a range of case studies from higher education students and staff on how practical learning can be redesigned for online teaching.

Garnham, W., Gowers, I. (2023) Active Learning in Higher Education: Theoretical Considerations and Perspectives. Routledge

Active Learning in Higher Education: Theoretical Considerations and Perspectives explores active learning as creative discovery, examining learning spaces and the transition from theory to practice. Drawing on the experiences of academics, learning technologists, and NHS practitioners, it challenges readers to move beyond proving effectiveness to rethinking active learning itself. It addresses three themes: active learning as creative play, the role of theoretical models in its design, and the shift from theory to practice.

Betts, T. & Oprandi, P. (Eds.). (2022). 100 Ideas for Active Learning. OpenPress @ University of Sussex.

100 Ideas for Active Learning is a practical handbook to inspire innovative educational experiences. In this book, practitioners from around the world have come together to author one hundred short chapters, each with an idea designed to help educators encourage their students to take an active learning approach to their studies.

We have a podcast discussion between Tab Betts and Santanu Vassant about how the book was produced.

Betts, T., Garnham, W. & Oprandi, P. (2019) Disrupting Traditional Pedagogy: Active Learning in Practice. OpenPress @ University of Sussex.

Disrupting Traditional Pedagogy: Active Learning in Practice is a collaboration between colleagues at the University of Sussex which explores ways that active learning can be used to challenge existing educational paradigms and empower learners as co-creators of the learning experience.