What is student-centred learning?

Student-centred learning is a learning approach that places great value on engaging students in the learning process. This is through providing them with choices and opportunities to discover and create their own learning.

This means that student-centred learning requires changes in the roles of both teachers and students which differ from those in the traditional, teacher-centred classrooms.

In a student-centred classroom, students have more control over their learning as they can decide not only what they learn, but also how and why it might be of interest.

They also integrate what they have learned with prior learning, and construct new meaning.

Cooperation and self-assessment are necessary for the student-centred model. Students need to cooperate with other students and involve in peer teaching, self-assess and monitor their learning progress.

Teachers’ aim in students centred learning is to boost students’ engagement by making learning more meaningful and appealing to their interests. So, their role is to encourage students to do more discovery learning and to learn from each other; focusing on constructing authentic, real-life tasks that motivate their involvement and participation (Weimer, 2002).

In addition, the student-centred model requires that teachers recognize and accommodate individual learning differences (different backgrounds, interests, abilities, experiences, feelings, and learning attitudes) while making instructional decisions. They model and facilitate problem-solving and provide support throughout the learning process

Student-centred instruction also focuses on nurturing social and emotional learning skills. So, teachers need to create a learning environment where students are encouraged to interact through team learning and feel appreciated, acknowledged, respected, and validated.

Student-centred learning benefits

Since student-centred learning focuses on engaging students in their own learning, motivation, and achievement are likely to increase. Indeed, studies have found that students who had a student-centred education demonstrate higher achievement as they can attribute success to their own abilities and effort instead of luck (North Central Regional Laboratory, 2000).

The positive effect on students’ achievement varies among schools.

Schools and classrooms with significant support for student-led learning had the greatest and most consistent positive effects. This included providing socio-emotional resources to their students, encouraging the development of meaningful relationships between students and teachers, and allowing students to work on exploratory or project-based learning for longer periods of time (Pane et al., 2015).

Further, when students’ names or interests were included in instruction, there was a direct increase in positive attitudes toward learning, motivation for learning, and demonstration of learning.

Also, teaching students self-regulation and metacognitive strategies showed improvement in their performance and engagement.

Student-centred learning strategies

The strategies suggested here will help you afford all students the best opportunities to achieve their maximum potential. For effective implementation, focus your instruction on skills and practices that enable students to engage with experiences and information for becoming lifelong learners, critical thinkers, and independent problem-solvers.

# Develop students’ ownership

In a student-centred classroom, teachers and students are partners in the learning process.

Students have some opportunities to make choices and they feel responsible for their learning. But this cannot happen if we still have control of everything.

This does not mean students are supposed to decide what they learn and how all the time, rule over the classroom and we teachers stand there watching them.

Our role in students centred learning is different, but still important.

Sometimes we need to provide instruction, and direct learning through scaffolding and feedback, while in others it is necessary to stand back and watch out for how students indulge in creativity and critical quests.

So, unlike the teacher-centred approach where we have to do most of the talk in class and dictate what students must do to learn, in student-centred learning we are more flexible, not always informing and examining, but also encouraging and inspiring.

Hence, helping students to take control of their learning and develop their agency is a process that requires time, ongoing guidance, and support. Students need to learn how to set effectively their learning goals, make the right choices, monitor and self-assess regularly their learning progress, and make decisions to further improve.

So, we should nurture the necessary metacognitive strategies that can help students overcome the challenge of mastering their learning. Through modelling and practice, we will help them learn how to learn and take increasingly ownership of their learning.

# Promote interaction

Creating a student-centred learning environment is also about increasing the frequency and quality of student-teacher and student-student interactions. The more students interact: think, participate, and contribute to their learning, the more skills they develop and confident they become about their own abilities.

So, introducing tasks such as group work, class discussions, peer feedback, and partner projects is necessary for every class. Although these can be done in a teacher-centred learning environment, with student-centred learning student-led learning is more emphasized.

Teachers’ role is to facilitate, create a comfortable classroom environment and act as a member of the team.

# Differentiate instruction

Meeting individual students’ needs is the core aim of the student-centred learning approach. For this purpose, to provide ample opportunities for students to express success, teachers need to differentiate instruction effectively.

Differentiation is not only about understanding students’ differences but also designing the course so that students can work at a level that is appropriately challenging to them for maximum progress and individual success.

There are different ways to differentiate instruction. You can provide a variety of tasks, and materials, offer choices, change your instructional delivery, and your classroom space, and vary the kind of support you provide for your students.

To learn more about the differentiation process and the necessary tips here is a post that can help: How to Differentiate Instruction More Effectively?

# Foster Higher-order thinking

A student-centred classroom prepares students to think critically to understand and apply skills and knowledge. So, promoting active learning is a necessary condition for creating student-centred education.

Thus, to get students actively learning teachers’ goals have to include fostering higher-order thinking among students.

Involving students in problem-solving and thought-provoking tasks that connect them to the world outside the classroom can help hone one of the most significant life skills which is critical thinking.

By integrating higher-order thinking strategies into your instructions, you will ignite students’ curiosity and interest in experiencing things themselves, solving problems, creating and improving their critical thinking skills.

# Integrate ongoing formative assessment

In student-centred education, assessments should serve as evidence of learning, reflecting what a student knows, can apply, and can create. To this end, we need to create meaningful student assessment processes to accompany required standardized tests, using formative assessment methods. These can include:

Self-assessment: Students reflect on their learning, identify their strengths and weaknesses, set their goals and monitor their learning progress. They can use self-assessment tools such as portfolios, learning logs, journals, checklists, etc.

Peer assessment: This involves students giving constructive feedback to one another on an assignment based on clear standards.

Performance-based assessment: These are performance demonstrations that require students to exhibit their knowledge, understanding, and proficiency.

Teacher observation: Recorded classroom observations about individual student performances can help provide evidence of learning. A checklist can be used. In addition, there are helpful note-taking apps for more efficiency.

Individual student conferences: Here the student shares what he learned, and communicates learning needs and difficulties. The teacher writes his report; a narrative about each individual student, describing what he has accomplished, how he is doing, and what he would like to see each student focus on for development.

There are different formative assessment methods you can choose from for your students. Yet, remember that this assessment’s aim is to feed forward in the instruction and help close any learning gaps. So, reflect on your assessment methods, gather students’ feedback to decide on the right instruction, and increase their engagement.

To conclude, a student-centred classroom can be hard to create because of teachers’ and students’ beliefs about learning, limited resources, the school culture, and unfamiliarity with the concept and strategies necessary to put it effectively into practice.

However, placing students at the heart of learning and meeting their needs is certainly the goal of 21st-century education.

Therefore, shifting toward student-centred practices requires a change in mindsets, roles, and attitudes. Yet, this change is ongoing and requires patience and commitment.

So, introduce the process gradually, focus on one or two strategies initially, collaborate with your colleagues, and keep reflecting to learn more. You will create more student-centred instruction.

References

Lea, S. J., D. Stephenson, and J. Troy (2003). Higher Education Students’ Attitudes to Student Centred Learning: Beyond ‘educational bulimia’. Studies in Higher Education 28(3), 321–334.

North Central Regional Educational Laboratory. (2000). Critical issue: Working toward student self-direction and personal efficacy as educational goals.

Pane, John F., Elizabeth D. Steiner, Matthew D. Baird, and Laura S. Hamilton. (2015). Continued Progress: Promising Evidence on Personalized Learning. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation.

Weimer, M. (2002). Learner-centered teaching: Five key changes to practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.