the use of classroom activities, field work, Internet-based demonstrations, and other assignments to construct engaging learning environments that integrate coursework with societal issues. Similar to action research but in an educational context, action teaching turns textbook lessons into interactive experiences in which students learn not only topical information but also ways to address important social problems. Examples of this teaching method include an exercise in which students from an introductory psychology class learn about persuasion by using different strategies to solicit donations from community residents for a particular charitable organization or cause, and an exercise in which students from a research methods class learn about experimental design by creating and conducting their own study on the reasons many commuters do not take public transportation to work. [coined in 2000 by U.S. social psychologist Scott L. Plous
(1959– )]