1 Theme: According to Baldick, a theme may be defined as âa salient abstract idea that emerges from a literary workâs treatment of its subject-matter; or a topic recurring in a number or literary worksâ (Baldick 258). 2  Themes in literature tend to differ depending on author, time period, genre, style, purpose, etc.
Active Learning. Active learning is any activity that allows students to engage the course materials during instruction so that the teacher and the student can ascertain the students' mastery of the materials and adjust the instruction to facilitate further learning.
1 David Kolb's Experiential Learning Theory (see: Kolb, D. A. 1984. Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. 2  Active Learningâthere is a growing body of evidence that active learning works. See an overview of other active learning strategies from the Starting Point project.