Active Participation and Interaction, Key Performance Factors of Face-to-Face Learning

During the last decade and, particularly, from the restrictions on mobility brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, online and digital teaching is positioning itself as an alternative to face-to-face teaching. As of today, however, the soundness of this alternative teaching in terms of learning outcomes and students’ success is not yet clear, even though it is particularly important, since it may determine future teaching plans, strategies and methodology. This article presents the results of a teaching research project analyzing the impact of active participation and face-to-face interaction of students on their performance from a quantitative approach. Through an empirical study carried out with several groups of university students in financial accounting over a four-year period, we analyze the effect of including face-to-face techniques of participation and teaching innovation on students’ success and performance. The quantitative results indicate a significant improvement in all the indicators of the “experimental” groups, compared to face-to-face standard teaching groups and streaming teaching groups. By enhancing active participation, better marks and performance are achieved, especially in the continuous evaluation system. The qualitative results, based on the opinion of the students, also indicate their preference for models of active participation and interaction, as well as their positive perception of the success of the initiative. The advantages derived from innovative face-to-face teaching are evidenced since it favors group interaction and active participation of the students, which are crucial elements for performance and academic success.