Are You a Student-Centered Teacher?

Understanding Student-Centered Learning

• Student-centered learning is a teaching approach that places students at the center of the learning process.
• The approach is informed by the work of theorists like John Dewey, Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky, Carl Rogers, and Maria Montessori.
• In student-centered classrooms, active learning is encouraged, and the teacher acts as a facilitator rather than an instructor.
• The goal of the teacher in student-centered classrooms is to guide students into making new interpretations of the learning material.
• Collaborative thinking and peer-to-peer interaction can lead to an abundance of knowledge, benefiting the student and classroom overall.
• Student-centered learning environments have been shown to be effective in higher education, promoting transferable skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, and reflective thinking.
• The revised European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance encourage institutions to ensure that programs are delivered in a way that encourages students to take an active role in creating the learning process.
• A research university in Hong Kong successfully promoted student-centered learning across the entire university by analyzing good practice, providing teacher training courses, funding projects, and conducting program-level quality enhancement initiatives.
• The success of student-centered learning can be evaluated by surveying the students' perception of the quality of the teaching and learning environment.
• Student-centered learning encourages self-discovery, self-motivation, and self-determination, leading to a higher degree of intrinsic motivation.
• Student-centered learning prepares learners for the future by creating a classroom environment in which students can learn to think critically and solve real-world problems.
• Inverting the traditional teacher-centered understanding of the learning process can help to create a more effective and engaging learning experience for students.