Universities offer the broadcast model of learning, in which the teacher is the broadcaster and the student is the supposedly willing recipient of the one-way message. It goes like this: "I'm a professor, and I have knowledge. Get ready; here it comes. Your goal is to take this data into your short-term memory so that you can recall it to me when I test you.
Universities are trying to update the Broadcast model of learning through essays, hands-on labs, and seminar discussions. Many professors are working hard to move beyond this model. However, it remains dominant overall.