When lecture is necessary, provide frequent opportunities for students to solve problems and discuss issues in small groups, where they will feel less inhibited. Integrate personal reflections on course issues into your curriculum, through journalizing assignments and essay questions on examinations. Finally, provide opportunities for students to teach each other, by encouraging the formation of study groups, and allowing them to give more presentations to the class, especially by forming non-threatening panel discussions, role playing, and debate formats. Students can be asked to prepare three to five minute lessons on their reading assignments which they then have to teach the class. This exercise is especially useful when the reading contains concepts that are totally new to them, such as what a phoneme is, or what lateralization in the brain is.
Students find that by explaining to others, they come to a better understanding of the concept.
Your integration of active learning into your teaching should aid in better retention of the course material, and also should make your role more interesting and rewarding. It will certainly change your relationship to your students. Unlocking Your Brain's Untapped Potential. Fromm Publishing, pp. 3 Marchese, Theodore. 1997.