Who is at the Center of Your Classroom?

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The stereotypical classroom of years past typically featured the teacher as the primary expert and sole source of information, with forward-facing desks in neat rows in which students sat dutifully scribbling down every word from the teacher’s mouth in their notebooks. This type of classroom is no longer the norm. The positive impact of student-centered learning has become clear, and many educators have begun to shift their mindsets and their classroom environments to implement this recent curriculum trend. The Glossary for Education Reform⁽¹⁾ defines student-centered learning as the variety of educational structures and strategies that are “intended to address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students and groups of students.” Student-centered learning seeks to place the students and their interests at the forefront of the planning, design, implementation, and evaluation of the environment and learning activities in the classroom.

What Is Student-Centered Learning?

Student-centered learning is a systemic approach to education which impacts nearly every aspect of the classroom environment. Rather than using a curriculum that is designed by teachers and applied to students without their input, the students guide the planning of the curriculum based around their interests. The classroom environment and layout become more collaborative. Learning activities and assignments will vary greatly from student to student as each is encouraged to implement final learning products which make sense to them. Assessment becomes a joint effort between the teacher and the students. The teacher is seen as a guide for investigative learning, rather than the sole source of correct information.

Student-centered learning allows for a great deal of student choice and is said to greatly increase both student learning and engagement. Allowing students to be involved in the decision-making process provides them with the opportunity to “buy-in” to the learning and increases their motivation to engage more deeply with the content. Finding the balance between teacher direction and student input is critical to student-centered learning. Students are still required to demonstrate proficiency of skills, but are encouraged to communicate with the teacher and their peers about what this proficiency means.⁽¹⁾

Student-Centered Learning in Mrs. B’s Classroom

Check out this video for a Student-Centered learning Idea that I used in my summer school classroom!

The Research

As student-centered learning has grown more popular in recent years, a variety of qualitative and quantitative research and several case studies have been done on the value and impact of this trend. Some of the critical points from these studies include:

• Students in the schools with student-centered learning had higher graduation rates than the state average for Latino, African American, and low-income students, as well as for English Language Learners^.(2)
• Graduates of these schools had higher success rates in four-year colleges than the national average, especially for first-generation college students.⁽²⁾
• Teachers believed that “students in student-centered environments explored the curriculum with more depth and retained knowledge more effectively than in traditional settings.”⁽²⁾
• The teachers also reported higher engagement and more relevant learning.⁽²⁾
• Students made “significantly greater gains in math and English language arts than a comparison group of similar students.”⁽²⁾

Student-Centered Learning and 21^st Century Skills

One of the big topics in education right now is the implementation of 21^st Century Skills. Each of the 21^st Century Skills can be found in the student-centered learning approach. These skills are frequently grouped into the 4 Cs: Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Creativity, and Communication. Student-centered learning is often very open-ended, which encourages creativity in students’ demonstration of their understanding. Furthermore, the very nature of student-centered learning is collaborative, as students must work with their teachers and their peers when participating in this investigative approach. Critical thinking is especially important when students are required to evaluate the efficacy of their project or plan. Finally, while communication among students and teachers is critical, students are also encouraged to practice this skill by regularly presenting their final learning to the larger educational community.

Preparing for the Future

The integration of 21^st Century skills means that student-centered learning is one of the most effective methods for preparing students for success in the ever-changing world; this is at the center of the goals and mission for this district. The work environment is shifting from the cubicle to the collaborative office, where team members are in charge of their own productivity and must contribute to the overall success of the company. Student-centered learning mirrors this environment. Student-centered learning not only teaches students applicable content knowledge, but – perhaps more importantly – provides them with the learning skills needed to navigate any environment in which they may find themselves in the future.

Get Started with Student-Centered Learning

If you’re interested in implementing student-centered learning in your classroom, check out some of the resources below!

• “Student Centered Learning: It Starts with the Teacher” Article by John McCarthy
• “8 Things to Look For in a Student-Centered Learning Environment” Article by Emily Liebtag
• “Student Centered Learning: Why, How, and What” Video by Teachings in Education
• “4 Shifts to Move from Teacher-Centered to Learner-Centered” Article by Katie Martin
• The Student Centered Learning Podcast with Arthur E Baraf
• “The Power of Potential: Student-Centered Learning” TED Talk by Ayla Postelnek
• Learner-Centered Instruction: Building Relationships for Student Success Book by Jeffrey H.D. Cornelius-White and Adam P. Harbaugh 

NEXT WEEK… Teaching Your Middle Schoolers about Digital Citizenship!

References

1. Student-Centered Learning. The Glossary of Education Reform. (2014). Retrieved 3 April 2020, from https://www.edglossary.org/student-centered-learning/.
2. Kaput, K. (2018). Evidence for Student-Centered Learning [Ebook] (pp. 11-20). Education Evolving. Retrieved 3 April 2020, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED581111.pdf.