Discussion Based Courses

All courses at African Leadership Academy are discussion-based. Visitors to our classrooms are often surprised to find tables arranged in a circular fashion that allows all students to see each other and converse – rather than a traditional classroom format with rows of tables facing an instructor. 



ALA faculty members are usually seated at the table. Our teachers see themselves as discussion leaders rather than lecturers. They are guides in the learning process, and they seek to draw out the varying perspectives of the young leaders seated with them. This approach to learning gives each student the opportunity to hear and understand varying perspectives on challenging issues. 



A student cannot expect to be silent or passive in an African Leadership Academy classroom. Instead, he or she is actively engaged in the discussion-based learning process.