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Student Centered Learning: Robert Wilson

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Student Centered Learning: Robert Wilson

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There are different strategies to allow students to take ownership of their learning. As education evolves over time, our practices as teachers change as well.

The Classroom

Students can take ownership of their learning in the classroom, by allowing flexible seating in the classroom. This can "release the power" of the classroom, meaning that there is less focus on the teacher and more focus on the students, hence inspiring learning. Having flexible seating allows autonomy in the classroom. Students may opt for a bean bag, or a traditional desk, however this choice was theirs, that of the teacher. Being flexible also allows for students to learn from one another. A looser classroom seating arrangement promotes student-student learning.

Collaboration in Student Centered Learning

Collaboration in student centered learning can be done by inquiry based group projects. Inquiry based learning is when the teacher is more of a guide, and the students are required to complete the task at hand with their own set of skills.

Some examples of Inquiry Based strategies:

Design Thinking - is a strategy of learning with five stages, which is typically used to "solve" world problems. For example, students will use the first stage "empathize" and think of issues that may or may not effect them as students. They then will think of practical modern solutions for those problems.

Genius Hour- This is a strategy where students are able to dedicate some period of time in the classroom to study anything that they want. In my classroom I have used a similar strategy where groups of students are able to work together, learn about what they want, have to lead an activity an give a short presentation. Generally speaking this gives the students the chance to come together, agree on a topic, and decide how this topic will be presented to their classmates.

Assessment

Introducing different methods of assessment in the classroom can create a student centered learning environment. We as teachers can assess students on a skills based quotient vs. a knowledge base quotient.

Assessing skills instead of knowledge will prepare students to be a part of a society where knowledge is easily accessible.

Differentiation

Personalized goal setting can help address each students' different needs. Each student is different, and will have different goals for the class.

You can also include teams in your classroom. Instead of grouping students with similar levels, you can identify different students that learn in similar methods to address their learning styles.

Movement in Student Centered Learning

Teachers can use a variety of methods to get students moving.

White board meetings can be used to have students learn, then teach their classmates about a topic. This can be used for students to explain a theory or idea, and share it with their classmates as if they were giving a lesson. For older students, this promotes students to learn what they are interested in, and share the information in a mature manner.

Reading

Student centered reading activities can include book clubs and workshopping.

Different students can have their choice of what to read.
In groups they then will come together to answer different questions per the book of their choice.

Having workshops, students can read about an interesting fact or theory, of their choice. Give the students rules on what needs to be shared in their workshop. Students can then share their findings with each other.

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The power of student-driven learning: Shelley Wright at TEDxWestVancouverED

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Student-centered learning, Matthew Smith 

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Student-centered learning, Matthew Smith 

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Student-centered learning - refers to a wide variety of educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches, and academic support strategies  that are intended to address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students and groups of students. To accomplish this goal, schools, teachers, guidance counselors, and other educational specialists may employ a wide variety of educational methods, from modifying assignments and instructional strategies in the classroom to entirely redesigning the ways in which students are grouped and taught in a school.

Design of the Classroom-

The desks should be arranged in a way that promotes student collaboration. You can put the desks in groups, you can use Kidney tables and have it student led. The Class should have technology that range from Smart-Boards, Computers, or iPads. All of these can make learning more interactive

Technology

-Helps connect students to the real world- Students can work with others that are not physically with them, can work with a more diverse population and get different insights.

-Encourages collaboration: Students can use different apps to work together, where they can bounce ideas off each other and problem solve together

-Supports different types of learners: Each learner can work at their own pace, which will increase their rate of progression.

Benefits of Student-centered learning Collaboration

develops problem-solving skill.

Achieves higher level of understanding.

gives different prospective of same problem.

helps students to explore real life problems.

promotes student centered learning.

Can put students in teams or pairs

Give them tasks and problems where they need to work together

How can you implement assessment so that it enhances student-centered learning?

-Self assessment

Students evaluating their work and learning process

Self-grading – Students grade their assessment and other school work on their own without any involvement of the teacher.

purposes of self-assessment and self- grading and how these concepts can help students in their education.

Help Students Reflect

Immediate feedback

Promote Self- Centered Learning

Peer assessment -

Peer evaluation is an integral part of Team-Based Learning that leads to an environment wherein students not only help each other improve but also deeply reflect on their own work. But, what are the specific advantages that peer evaluation brings to the table in a Team-Based Learning context? We outline the 5 most important benefits in this post.

KeyBenefits
Judgment by peers is a good motivator
- Group cohesion
- Students improve by assessing each other’s work
- Opportunity to grow
- Better informed grade

What student-centered approach techniques can you use to address differentiation?

Differentiation comes in many varieties. Teachers can differentiate into four classroom components based on student readiness, interest, or learning profile:

Assessment – Understanding what students know and still need to learn

Content – What the student needs to learn or how the student will access the information

Process – Activities in which the student engages in order to make sense of or master the content

Products – culminating projects that ask the student to rehearse, apply, and extend what he or she has learned in a unit

Different learning Stations - Promoting moving by visiting different areas of the classroom

Interview Work- Where students go around interviewing other students

Project based Learning- To make sure students are having hands on activities and problem solving while collaborating with each other.

What are some student-centered approaches or techniques for reading?

create spaces in the classroom specifically for reading

have students create their own reading goals

students choose what kind of books and topics they'd like to read

give students the opportunity to discover their own pace for reading

have students collaborate with others

encouraging discussions about the text

Refrences
https://explorance.com/blog/7-reasons-students-need-technology-classroom/

https://ar.cetl.hku.hk/self_peer.htm

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Student Centered Learning - a take by Fabian Lemuel Pillay

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Student Centered Learning - a take by Fabian Lemuel Pillay

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Student-Centered Learning takes a step back from the traditional setting of the teacher-led instruction. Rather, this approach seeks to provide students the platform to find, access and develop their own individualized direction of learning whilst using the teacher as support only.

Design of the classroom:

The classroom should be set up to promote student-to-student interactions. Having desks set up to allow students to face each other would increase the chances of collaboration and teamwork. However, differentiation should also be considered and ideally (depending on the size of the space), there should be isolated, quieter areas too for students who want to work alone for a specific tasks. Creativity is key in terms of addressing the students’ unique learning styles. The setup should match the type of activity, which they will be doing.

Reading techniques:

Students should be encouraged to think critically about a text rather than just reading fluently and speedily. Some techniques that could be introduced to allow for this expanded thinking capacity include but are not limited to the following:

1.     Questioning – thinking critically to look for motivates and agendas in a text

2.     Comparing and contrasting _ using different pieces of information simultaneously to work on analytical skills to find strengths and weaknesses.

3.     Determining importance – finding key ideas to develop a main idea

4.     Summarizing – using one’s own words to check if they understood the just of the text.

5.     Visualizing – as a form of differentiation, this can allow for students who are less confident with their writing skills to illustrate their comprehension of the reading.

6.     Predicting – finding trends and reasons in the story that could justify a subsequent action or occurrence.

7.     Evaluating – using reasons (subliminal or embedded in the text) to substantiate one’s own opinion/response to the text

Technology in the Classroom:

Flexible technological devices should be available for the students so that they can access different modes of creativity and/or presentation. The use of technology should not be teacher-led but the use should be a result of the student’s own personal convictions – there should be no ‘micro-managing’.

Assessments:

With student-centered learning, there is a defined shift away from summative assessments to assessments where the students get to decide how to show their learning. This formative outlook is intended to help students identify their strengths but also their areas that need to be developed. The students learn by receiving feedback, which they can use to build on, in the future.

Examples of Student-Centered Learning Strategies:

1.     Flipped Classroom. For example, like giving out a pre-reading exercise before class so that students must read on their own. In class, the teacher and students will expand on the discussion points and learning skills.

2.     Project Based Learning (PBL). This allows for more collaboration and allows students to determine the outcomes of their learning. It is important that the task/question should be open-ended to allow for broader answers.

Sources:
1. https://xqsuperschool.org/rethinktogether/what-is-student-centered-learning/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Student-centered_learning#CITEREFCrumly2014
3. https://www.teacheracademy.eu/blog/student-centered-learning/
4. https://michiganvirtual.org/research/publications/student-centered-learning-in-principle-and-in-practice/
5. https://www.iste.org/explore/ISTE-blog/4-myths-about-student-centered-learning?articleid=47

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Student-Centered Classroom Design:

The classroom would be broken up into different centers/areas with various types of seating. For example, perhaps there are desks/tables that are for standing, some traditional with chairs, and others where the students could sit on cushions on the floor. There might be couches or bean bags as well. Students would be allowed to choose their own seating, encouraging their autonomy and voice in the classroom. Instead of traditional rectangular desks, using round tables instead to foster discussion and collaboration. Instead of store-bought posters, everything in the classroom would be made by either the previous year’s students or the current students. There would be a computer center where students could go to research questions. Some computers would be for individual work, and others set up for collaborative work. The different centers would be easily moveable, so that the classroom design could change to accommodate the learning needs of the students across diverse projects.

Student-Centered Approaches for Collaboration

1. Inquiry-based learning: Students will work in groups to answer a specific question. The structure can be changed to accommodate for differentiation, as it can be either guided or open in format.

2. Jigsaw: Students are placed in groups, but each student is given a separate task or learning goal. The students go off to complete their assigned task and then reassemble and teach each other what they have learned.

3. Debate: In groups, students research a certain topic from a “for” or “against” vantage point. The class then comes together to discuss and argue the topic. Debate is a wonderful way to bring real-world topics into the classroom. As well, it can help students learn how to see things from different perspectives.

4. Competitions: As we saw in the Power of Student Driven Learning Ted Talk, when students have a goal that they are invested in, it is amazing what they can do. The class could work together or in small groups to compete in a local, national, or international competition. This allows students to demonstrate skills that they might not reveal in the traditional classroom setting.

5. Experiments: Students work in groups to complete an experiment, or they can be asked to design their own to share with the class.

6. Create Multimedia Projects: Students work together to create multimedia projects surrounding specific topics or interests. Multimedia covers any form of communication like images, music, sound, video, animation, text, etc. that is brought together via the computer. Students can contribute their own unique talents to the projects, whether it is with, writing, drawing, computer programming, animation, etcetera. They are a great way to teach students new technologies and skills that will be useful for them in the real world.

Student-Centered Approaches for Physical Movement

1. Role Play: Role Play is a wonderful way to get the students up and moving. It involves the imagination as well as shifting  perspective to think about what they might do if they were faced with the real-life scenario they are acting out. The students or teacher can lead.

2. Field Trips: Taking the students out into the world, leaving the classroom behind, is a wonderful way to include physical movement in the learning environment.

3. Flexible Seating: Students are allowed to choose and change their seats whenever they want throughout the day. This is further facilitated by having the learning centers as mentioned above in the classroom design.

Student-Centered Approach to Differentiation and Assessment

If the definition of student-centered learning is “a philosophy or an approach to education that is designed to meet the needs of each student individually,” then differentiation naturally occurs within a student-centered learning environment. When thinking about differentiation and assessment, it is important to think to keep in mind Bloom’s taxonomy for teaching, learning, and assessment. In the traditional classroom, the teacher lectures, the students take notes, they have a test or a paper at the end. The only learning occurring is within the bottom two tiers: remember and understand. In the student-centered classroom, the goal is to engage in the higher order critical thinking skills: apply, analyze, evaluate, and create.

1. Asynchronous Learning: By allowing students to learn at their own pace, pressure is taken off those students that need more time to learn some concepts. As well, for those students that learn quickly, they don’t have to wait or succumb to boredom.

2. Varied Learning Materials: It is important that students have different ways to access information in the classroom, hence the importance of having classroom centers as mentioned above. There should be access to books, audiobooks, videos, music, computers to allow the students to choose the way they will learn about the subject.

3. Assessment Choice: Allowing students to choose what kind of final product they will create to show that they have met the learning goals, allows for differentiation as students will be able to create, design, or produce something that aligns with their personal interests or strengths. For example, for an assessment of a history module, students could create a podcast, build a miniature model, create a play, create a v-log, paint a scene, etcetera.

4. Self or Peer Assessment: This kind of assessment allows for students to reflect upon their own learning journey and that of the other students in the classroom. With a clearly defined rubric, the student learns how to self-critique and critique the work of others in a constructive manner, an important real-world skill to learn. For peer assessment, it could be given anonymously through an online platform, it or could take the form of an exhibition where students are asked to act as judges for each other’s work.

Student-Centered Approach to Reading

A student-centered approach to reading will incorporate many previously mentioned strategies. Students will be able to choose their own books to read, at least most of the time. They will read at their own pace. There will be time for individual as well as small group reading. The focus will be on questions and discussions that get the students excited about reading.

1. Book Circles or Book Clubs: Students are organized into small groups by the genre or style they like. They read the book together and discuss and ask questions about it together.

2. Book Exchange: Students pick a book they like and exchange it with another student’s book. They then discuss what they like and did not like about the books, and any questions they have. This way, they can be introduced to different genres of books without it coming from the teacher.

3. Question Mapping: As a group, students create question map posters for before reading, during reading, and after reading. Then, as the questions are answered, they are added to the posters. At the end, the class makes sure that all questions have been answered.

4. Visualization: Students will draw, paint, build scenes or moments from the books from which class discussion can take place.

Links to Sources:
Michigan Virtual

Facing History and Ourselves

TED: Power of Student Driven Learning

Teach Hub

The Learning Center - UNC

Eileen Heller

Teach Thought

Psyche Learning Curve

Teachology

Cornell Center for Teaching Innovation

Edutopia

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Student Learning Strategies (By: Abigail Choi)

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Student Learning Strategies (By: Abigail Choi)

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Designing the physical environment of the classroom

1. Flexible seating - helps create a sense of community for students. Students can get the option to sit where they want and create a more open environment. Students feel empowered by having some degree of choice and control over their environment which leads to benefits like:

Physical Health

Comfort

Collaboration in community

Communication

2. Desk rearrangement in groups - makes it easy for students to collaborate on projects. This places the focus on the students and their collaboration instead of the desks facing the teacher desk. It will have benefits such as:

Engagement

Relationship building

Communication

3. Technology - provides educators with essential tools to create a student-centered learning environment. The use of technologies can increase educational productivity by accelerating the rate of learning; reducing costs associated with instructional materials or program delivery, and better-utilizing teacher time.

1-to-1 Computing

Personalized learning

Open educational resources are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain and are freely available to anyone over the Web

Electronic whiteboards

Online testing is evolving aligning with the Common Core State Standards

4. Classroom displays - add the educational value. Overall displays can be used effectively to stimulate and support student-centered learning and create student interest and engagement. They can include:

Classroom Rules or Essential Agreements

Growth Mindset Posters

Art or Writing Displays

Daily routine

Choice Display

Learning Objectives

Subject/Timetable

Designing the learning tool kit of online learning environment for students

An online whiteboard or a shared working space such as Google Docs, Google Jamboard, Padlet, Flipgrid, or VoiceThread) will be beneficial for students to “hear” each other’s ideas. Google slides offer teachers opportunities to capture students’ attention in the lesson by providing pictures, animation, voices, and videos.

For older students, Pear Deck can be interactive and it allows teachers to instantly have one-on-one feedback. Also, Edpuzzle can be used to make video clips to motivate students to respond interactively.

Student-centered approaches or techniques that are based on or require collaboration

1. Project Based Learning (PBL)

PBL is an excellent approach for collaboration but also develops critical thinking, communication, and creativity skills. Students develop higher-order thinking skills and learn how to work in a team.

PBLworks.org states the seven essential project design elements:

Challenging problem or question

Sustained Inquiry

Authenticity

Student voice and choice

Reflection

Critique and revision

Public product

2. Think-Pair-Share

A collaborative learning technique that encourages students to approach a question with a partner or small group using three distinct steps:

Think: Students form their own ideas about the question.

Pair: Students discuss with their group to share and refine their ideas.

Share: Students present their ideas to the class.

3. KWL Charts

A KWL Chart is a visible learning technique where students record what they already know (K), what they want to know (W), and what they have learned (L) throughout the unit. Although this learning may take place individually or in a group, student's can see each other's questions and acquired knowledge and add to the chart as a class.

Implementing assessment that enhances student-centered learning

1. Conduct self-assessment

Effective self-assessment involves students comparing their work to clear standards and generating feedback for themselves about where they need to make improvements. Ending the assignment with a reflection is another idea so they can recognize areas that need improvement before moving on.

2. Assess 21st-century success skills

If we assess the success of 21st-century skills, we can provide experiences and instructions that foster those skills and allow our students to grow in areas that are more than simply content knowledge or skills. For example, teaching verbal communication using various technologies would be beneficial for students.

3. Conduct a formative assessment of content and skill

Teachers can use formative assessments to assess students' content knowledge and skills. This way, teachers can learn which concepts and skills need to be retaught, and which ones students have mastered. These assessments are not graded. Instead, teachers can use them to create a learning environment that is more student-centered.

4. Conduct an online formative assessment

Using online assessment sites like Kahoot! or Quizizz will help to assess student learning gaps and understand content learned in class.

Student-centered approaches or techniques to address differentiation

1. For a higher-end group of students, you can use acceleration that allows a student to study material at a faster pace and challenge them by using higher-order thinking variations.

2. The use of technology allows individualizing instruction and differentiated tasks.

3. Learning centers or stations allow students to move around and review while the teacher has the freedom to help struggling students.

Student-centered approaches or techniques to include physical movement as a central element

1. Role Play

Acting out a scene from a story or role-playing would help how to respond in a given situation.

2. Brain Breaks

Particularly with younger students, having active brain breaks in between more structured learning is essential. This could take the form of games (i.e. Simon Says, Musical Chairs, Freeze Dance) to dance/sing along with a video found online. It allows students to move around and release pent-up energy from sitting for too long.

3. Interview Activities

For older students, giving them a paper that they need to fill out according to information from other students in the classroom requires them to stand up and move around. They have to talk to their peers and complete the worksheet in order to finish the activity, such as Human Bingo.

Student-centered approaches or techniques for reading
1. Close Reading Protocol: The Close Reading Protocol strategy asks students to carefully and purposefully read and reread a text. When students “close read,” they focus on what the author has to say, what the author’s purpose is, what the words mean, and what the structure of the text tells us.

2. Shadow Reading: The Shadow Reading strategy provides a structured way to expose students to various perspectives on a complex topic, often through first-person accounts from individuals who experienced a particular event or era. It also provides an opportunity for students to practice analyzing the concept of point of view.

3. Readers Theater: Students are encouraged to add drama, flair, and even humor to their readings. It is a great way to start and build discussions. This method is used often in elementary schools to encourage new readers to improve their reading confidence, fluency, and comprehension. It encourages participation, especially from quiet shy students who may lack confidence in their knowledge.

4. Online tools & platforms: Students have a choice of what they read based on their interests. They can use Epic! Books or Raz Kids. They can listen to reading if they need extra support.

References:

https://blog.edpuzzle.com/teaching-today/complete-guide-station-rotation-mode

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/student-centered-learning-environments-paul-bogdan

https://www.learnupon.com/blog/learner-centered

https://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/a-choose-your-own-adventure-model-of-learning/

https://www.pblworks.org/

https://studentsatthecenterhub.org/resource/assessment/

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Student-centered learning is in which individual students are independent work their education. Students have their ownership of learning. But many teachers have misconceptions about what it is and how to achieve it. Here are some tips which could help teachers have a better understanding of Student-centered learning.
Design the physical environment of the classroom
In a truly student-centered learning environment, students have voice, choice, competency-based progression, and continuous monitoring of student needs (Harrington & DeBruler, 2019).Student-centered learning environments are kinds of different degrees of technology blended learning.

For example:

Give the students the chances to learn at their own pace

Organize class activities and make elaborate plans

Subjecting students to regular evaluation

Design the learning tool kit

Powerpoint: Powerpoint offers teachers opportunities to capture students' attention in the lesson by providing pictures, animation, voices and videos.

Pear Deck: Slides are interactive and allow teachers to insistently have feedback one-to-one.

Edpuzzle: Teachers use it to make video clips to motivate students to respond interactively which are easy to collect data and assess.

Approaches that base on collaboration

Mentimeter: A collecting feedback from the class. The most advantage of it enables everyone's voice to be heard.

Kahoot: Team mode allows each team player can use their own device collaborate with their peers. teamwork, and communicate effectively that allow everyone to contribute to the collective wisdom of the group.

Quizlet: A good way to enable students collaborate and peer review. its flashcards, online games and learning tools-all for free.

Assessment that can enhances student-centered learning

“Assessment can be formal or informal, summative or formative, observational, anecdotal, via portfolios, rubrics, or projects, but ongoing monitoring of student progress is key to personalization of the learning experience” (Harrington & LeBlanc, 2019).

Formative Assessment: By observing students and helping them identify their strengths and weaknesses and to gauge student comprehension of the contents.

Assessing Student Interests: We can use a variety of assessment tools like student surveys and one-on-one conversations to know more about our students, to engage them of learning process and to learn what drives them to learn.

Assessing Skills: Foster students' multiple skills, such as, critical thinking, creative thinking, communicating, and collaborating. It's important that young people can analyze, question and challenge what they are being told.

Assessing for Instruction: It is a process of data collection rather than an assessment instrument. We can increase student engagement by it.

Tools:

Gimkit: Allowing questions to repeat on a random loop, allowing for repetitions. It accepts various of ways for students to earn points, students remain engaged as they work at their own pace, but it is a pay service.

Flipgrid: It effectively supports peer and teacher feedback.

Techniques can be used to address differentiation
You can differentiate instruction across four main areas: content, process, product, and environment.

Differentiate content: provide flexible options about the content

With process differentiation: various ways- visual, auditory, or kinesthetic lessons

Product differentiation: a written report, a story, a song, a speech, or an art project. Varying the types of assessments could be taken.

The classroom environment: Changing physical things, routines and habits in the classroom.

Techniques for reading (TEAL, 2010)

1. Create quiet spaces for reading.

2. Set reading goals, use strategies, and set own pace for reading.

3. Collaborate with others.

4. Encouraging discussions and fostering critical thinking, creativity and personal perspective about the text.

References:
https://wakelet.com/wake/2VxdbvwEiIf9jYLauPORr
https://www.learninga-z.com/site/company/what-we-do/differentiated-instruction
https://www.edutopia.org/article/10-teacher-picks-best-tech-tools
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/assessment-create-student-centered-learning-andrew-miller
https://edtechreview.in/trends-insights/insights/743-using-technology-for-student-centered-learning-environment

https://michiganvirtual.org/research/publications/student-centered-learning-in-principle-and-in-practice/

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The Power of Potential: Student Centered Learning | Ayla Postelnek | TEDxYeshivaUniversity

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Student-Centered Learning (Timothy Freeman Jr.)

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Student-Centered Learning (Timothy Freeman Jr.)

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What is Student-Centered Learning?

Student-Centered learning focuses on putting students more in the driver's seat when it comes to the pace of their education. Teachers act more as consultants or mentors and allow students to make decisions on the best strategies for learning that fits their needs. With this approach, students are involved in the decision-making process and feel more empowered. This leads to more successful outcomes since the instruction is focused on the student rather than the teacher.

Designing the classroom to be conducive to student-centered learning.

1. Amplify learning objectives through guided inquiry-For example, a teacher may assign a project and offer students the choice of filming a video, presentation, writing an essay, or creating an alternative demonstration of learning.

2. Plan backward to show you where you need to go-Educators can include students in both their long and short-term vision for their class by framing lessons with open-ended essential questions or by posting a daily learning objective to highlight expectations for students through each lesson.

3. Offer a variety of assessment opportunities-Educators can redefine criteria to be more explicit about what they are looking for within an assignment. For example, are students collaborating in a way that both contributes to the group and encourages others to participate effectively? Are students creating outlines and timelines before submitting the final work?

4. Support transparent scaffolding through simplified, single-point rubrics-Students can also use rubrics to grade past student samples and exemplars before submitting their work, as they are often more critical of work produced by their peers than they are of their own. By using this rubric to grade other students, they will become more familiar with how the rubric works about the assignment — allowing them to be more reflective about how their work might compare to the rubric.

5. Create a collaborative culture of curious thinkers-Speaking protocols and thinking routines can help foster a comfortable and collaborative learning environment for students. The goal of these protocols is not to limit speaking or thinking, but to provide a framework that offers explicit strategies for teaching collaboration and enables each student to feel seen, heard, and valued in the classroom.

6. Create an asynchronous learning tool that uses tablets, laptops, and devices-Asynchronous learning allows students to learn on their schedule, within a certain timeframe. They can access and complete lectures, readings, homework, and other learning materials at any time during a one- or two-week period.

“A big benefit to asynchronous classes is, of course, the flexibility.  Asynchronous online classes mean that you don’t always need to be online at the same time as your instructor or classmates,” said Instructional Designer John Muir, who works with faculty to develop classes for Ohio State's online programs.

Student-centered teaching approaches.

1. Project-based learning-focusing on a project allows students to see how each lesson culminates in the final project or objective they need to reach. With this transparency, students have the autonomy and control to work at their own pace within a set amount of time while having a clear goal in mind. This makes it easier for them to break down the project into specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals.

2. Small group collaboration-having students collaborate and work in small groups allows them to learn from their peers. This also gives them more autonomy and accountability with assignments, assessments, etc. Students are more likely to complete assignments successfully when they can collaborate and share their ideas.

3. Asynchronous learning tools-not all students learn at the same pace. Giving students access to prerecorded lectures and guided note materials allows them to access and review the content at any time. Those that need more time with the material will have it, and those that can move more quickly will be allowed to. This also gives the teacher more time in the classroom to act as a guide and mentor rather than a director.

Implement assessments to enhance student-centered learning.

Allowing students to take mastery assessments at their own pace will foster a student-centered learning environment. Also, teachers can collaborate with students to determine the best way for them to display their mastery of content. Giving students various ways that they can be assessed accommodates students that may have learning disabilities or different learning styles. This puts students in a leadership role when it comes to their education and focuses on what the student needs while allowing them to be successful with learning course content.

A student-centered approach to address differentiation.

Weekly/Biweekly Reflections
Teachers need to provide students with weekly or biweekly open-ended questions that allow students to reflect on what they have skills they have learned and how well they applied them. Through these reflections, students will have an opportunity to critically think about their capacity to learn the material and how best to improve their mastery of the content. Through these reflections, teachers can ascertain student strengths and weaknesses and determine how best to differentiate for each student.

Transparency for goals and growth.

"By setting clear expectations and fostering transparency for learning goals, teachers and students can work together to create impactful student-centered learning experiences that help enhance learning outcomes. As teachers focus on developing content and explicit skills throughout the learning process, students are allowed to develop an iterative and growth-oriented mindset as they build toward long-term goals. The result: they can grow as critical thinkers and reflective learners" (goguardian.com).

Student-centered approaches or techniques include physical movement as a central element?

A student-centered model of blended learning allows for more physical movement in the classroom. As seen at Eastern Senior High School. Kareem Farah an IB Mathematics teacher implemented the following strategy:

1. Blended Instruction-students access content through teacher-designed blended instruction. Some students are starting off by watching instructional videos with their guided notes.

2. Self-Paced Structure-students learn at their own pace within each unit of study. You have other students using whiteboards and devices collaborating to complete assignments.

3. Mastery-Based Grading-Students progress through content only when they have demonstrated mastery. Other students are working on mastery exit tickets to show they have learned the desired skill sets.

Student-centered approaches for reading.

Reading should be taught both individually and in small groups.

Make reflection an important part of the process.  This phase allows the student to review the lesson objectives and reflect on things that worked as well as what did not work.

Students should be encouraged to browse the books and make choices on which books to read

Use the “saturation” approach to reading by encouraging students to read for pleasure as well as for information, but also to read a variety of formats such as; paperback books, textbooks, magazines, catalogs, comic books, literary novels, plays, poems, etc. (Acquavita, 2016).

Keep records of the student’s progress

Allow time for independent reading

Plan units that are product-driven in nature and have an essential question that instruction seeks to answer.

Use an effective pre-reading strategy to build schema.  One good strategy is “What I know, what I want to know, and what I learned (KWL).  This is useful for tapping into students’ prior knowledge while helping them make connections in learning (Mansaray, 2013).

Provide instruction in basic reading strategies by using reciprocal teaching practice which includes; predicting, visualizing, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing (Mansaray, 2013).

Sources:

https://www.edutopia.org/video/student-centered-model-blended-learning

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/student-centered-learning-starts-with-teacher-john-mccarthy

https://www.goguardian.com/blog/5-tips-for-designing-a-student-centered-learning-environment

https://online.osu.edu/resources/learn/whats-difference-between-asynchronous-and-synchronous-learning

https://www.amle.org/student-reflection-a-tool-for-growth-and-development/

http://tnjune17cohort3.pbworks.com/w/page/119008734/Student-Centered%20Approaches%20and%20Techniques%20for%20Reading

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Student-Centered Learning: It Starts With the Teacher

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Teachers encourage student-centered learning by allowing students to share in decisions, believing in their capacity to lead, and remembering how it feels to learn.

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What is Student Centered Learning?

Student centered learning is a teaching approach that puts the focus onto the students rather than the teacher in the classroom. The goal of this approach is to give students more freedom and control over their own learning environment and give them more confidence and responsibility for their studies going into the future.

A student centered classroom and techniques for teachers

Classrooms for student centered learning should allow the students more freedom to move around and interact with each other. Rather than using straight lines of desks facing the front, the classroom environment should be more fluid so that the seating and set up can change depending on what activity is being worked on. Students can set up the desks to work in small groups or as a whole class. The teacher should be encouraging students to collaborate and should act as a coach, providing feedback, conferencing and guidance to help them achieve their goals. Technology can play a big role in a student centered classroom and can help students to explore new areas and give them opportunities to present their ideas in different ways. Using tablets and laptops gives students the freedom to research topics and can be an opportunity for them to be creative in the presentation of what they discover.

Assessment and differentiation

Assessment in a Student Centered classroom should be broad and varied depending on the students. Learning goals, agreed with between the teacher and student, can be used to make sure that students are accountable for their own progress. By giving students more freedom to choose their own way of learning the teacher should be able to identify where differentiation is needed. Through constant formative assessment teachers can see where students are excelling and struggling and adapt those students learning goals to accommodate for that and provide any extra guidance and support wherever it is needed.

Activities that use physical movement in a student centered classroom

Gallery Walk - Students walk around and explore multiple texts and images that are placed around the classroom. This turns the classroom into more of a gallery experience for the students and they can choose in what order or with whoever they want to explore the information with.

Human Timeline - Students are asked to learn about a particular event or sequence that they need to know. First, they are introduced to the topic, and assigned a part of it to remember and rewrite in their own words. Then have to organize themselves into the right order in class to present back to their peers and teacher.

Activities to help with Reading in a student centered classroom

Close Reading Protocol - students are asked to carefully rad a text. When students close read they focus on what the author has to say and what the purpose of the text really is. This helps them to really understand what they are reading and can aid them in future tasks like discussion or writing assignments connected to their reading.

Introducing a New Book - Students are asked to think about and create questions and prediction about a book before they start to read it. By previewing the cover, contents page or blurb of a book students interest can be sparked and discussions can be held before books are opened to help students to better understand the context of what they are about to read and help them engage with the material.

Sources:

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/how-student-centered-your-classroom-rebecca-alber

https://www.gcu.edu/blog/teaching-school-administration/student-centered-strategies

https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/teaching-strategies/gallery-walk

https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/teaching-strategies/human-timeline

https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/teaching-strategies/close-reading-protocol

https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/teaching-strategies/introducing-new-book

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Student Centered Learning: Why, How, & What

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o   Designing the physical environment of the classroom, including technology: For student-centered learning environment, teachers and students needs to collaborate. Just because it is called student-centered learning, it does not mean teachers don’t have voice. On the contrary, they do. Especially those teachers who work with young learners still need to guide the kids and provide them different options. Also, it is important to include the technology into student-centered learning since it helps teachers create personalized learning and enables student engagement. Also, different websites and/or apps can provide variety of learning approaches where students who have different learning methods. A student-centered learning model has four main characteristics: voice, choice, competency-based progression, and continuous monitoring of student needs. In order for students to have a voice, they should be able to ask what, how, and why. “Competency-based progression acknowledges the fact that all students learn differently and should be allowed to progress at different paces while still demonstrating their knowledge”.  Lastly, “…ongoing monitoring of student progress is key to personalization of the learning experience” (Harrington & LeBlanc, 2019).

o   Student-centered approaches or techniques:

Choice Boards: They will help students to choose the activities that they want to complete in order to improve a skill or understanding.

Jigsaw/Stations/Centers: This is a cooperative learning strategy which enables students work into small groups and then all these small groups gather to put the puzzles together.

Inquiry-Based Learning: This helps students obtain critical thinking, problem solving, and evidence-based reasoning by questioning and analyzing.

Project-Based Learning and Problem-Based Learning: Both of them create collaboration, communication, and creativity. However, while project-based learning includes longer projects, problem-based learning includes shorter ones. Also, both of them provide real-life connections to the outside world.

Flipped Classrooms: In this learning format, students are exposed to a topic outside the classroom and they practice improving it at school. In this way, teachers can use classroom time for higher order thinking activities.

o Implement assessment:

Snapshot Assessments: “…an integral process of learning rather than a single anticipated moment. Snapshot assessments empower learners. When a student demonstrates learning and growth areas in multiple ways throughout a process--rather than just at the end--teachers and students gather information about what learners can do next”.

Process Portfolios: “Process portfolios are systems friendly, meaningful, and useful assessment tools that invite conversation, feedback, and engagement on learning”.

Self-Assessment: “Moments of self-assessment throughout a learning experience invite students to tell the story of their learning -- where they started, where they are, and where they want to go. And when paired with diversified modes (peer-to-peer, student-to-teacher, student-to-self) and tools (reflection protocols, automated quizzes, feedback prompts), they also invite agency and access as students leverage strengths and interests to own their learning stories”.

o   Differentiation: It will help teachers to understand their students’ learning ways and help them see their teaching approaches, strategies and techniques. First, we can start with the learning context which will tell us which space we are going to use (classroom, playground, garden etc) and how we use it (sitting on a chair or carpet, standing, walking around etc). Then we can start to observe the students carefully. We can ask them some questions, spend time together while playing, and observe what kind of decisions and choices they make. We can also see how they use the materials in the class, and how they react to different speaking, writing, reading and listening skills. Lastly, when you believe that you gather enough information about each student, then you can start to plan how you approach each child.

o   Physical movement: Letting students sit on their chair or a carpet continuously and expect them to show some interest may not be an ideal way for the learning process since it will be boring after a while. So, it is important to allow students to move around the class. Especially for kinesthetic learners this is quite crucial because they need some physical movement for their learning process. Also, for other students, it will help them re-focus since it is not easy for them to stay still for a long time, especially for young learners.

o   Approaches or techniques for reading:

Monitoring, previewing, self-questioning, making Connections, visualizing, knowing how words work, summarizing, and evaluating. For more information, click here.

Sources:
https://www.edutopia.org/article/differentiation-preschool
https://globalonlineacademy.org/insights/articles/three-quick-wins-student-centered-assessment-strategies   https://michiganvirtual.org/research/publications/student-centered-learning-in-                              principle-and-in-practice/
https://old.ed.psu.edu/pds/teacher-inquiry/2008/cranages.pdf
https://www.teachhub.com/teaching-strategies/2020/07/student-centered-learning-strategies/
https://travelinginasia.company/2018/03/03/how-can-i-incorporate-physical-activity-into-student-centered-learning-module-3-unit-2-activity/

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Differentiated Instruction

Once teachers get to know preschool students well, it's possible set up learning experiences that keep them all appropriately challenged.

Differentiated instruction allows us to tailor our teaching to the needs of individual students. Is it possible to offer very young children differentiated learning contexts and challenges? Does it involve too much extra planning, materials, or space?

From my experience, it's not only possible but absolutely necessary to give these young students the chance to enjoy the learning experience fully. We need to offer learning contexts, tasks, and activities that carry the appropriate challenge and involve the child's interests. We must also set reachable skills development goals, so that every child can participate in the learning experience feeling self-assured.

First, decide on the learning context. For example: Will all the children be in the same space-the playground, the classroom, the science lab? Will you ask them to sit at tables, on a carpet, or will you allow them to walk around?

Second, observe the children carefully. Notice the decisions they make while playing and, when possible, ask them why they've made a particular decision or choice. Also observe how they relate to one another. If they're playing with another child, how are they playing? If not, why? For example, is one child "teaching" the other how to play? Or are they both learning from each other and making decisions together? Also, watch how they interact with the learning environment and the materials-if they use the materials with proper care, if they creatively give the materials different uses. Lastly, notice how they use their oral language and how they react to written language, if applicable.

Once you've collected enough information to make a decision about how to approach each child, start planning the differentiation process.

How to Begin

To decide when and how to differentiate your teaching approach, techniques, and strategies, you need to get to know your learners and, from there, plan your lessons accordingly. Here are some guidelines:

2 Examples of Differentiation

3-year-olds using blocks in the classroom: Offer the children construction blocks and observe them playing. Ask them questions like these as they play: Why are you making this tower? How many blocks have you used? What colors have you used? Why?

Counting: Ask the students to make groups of two blocks, three blocks, four blocks, and so on. See what number they can reach grouping the blocks.

Counting and attributes: The grouping might also be two blocks of the same color or three blocks of the same size. Ask, How do you know the size of a block? Is this block bigger or smaller than this other block? How do you know?

Storytelling: Using a tower you build with a learner, or a small group of learners who seem ready for this step, start a story and let the child develop it-for example, "Many years ago, in this tower, lived a ___ (witch, fairy, girl, boy, monster, robot... let the child choose)"-and then provide prompts for them to continue expanding on the story.

Use the blocks to construct beds for dolls, or assign the blocks different roles-turn them into microphones or mobile phones, or even make a family with the blocks.

Some children will struggle to make a tower of more than five blocks. Others may start putting different towers together to make a large wall. Allow them to do this, and even offer them other materials and toys for them to integrate if they choose.

Some children may not be interested in building walls or towers. In that case, offer them other ways to work with blocks:

Ask the learners interested in the topic to touch the plant and name the different parts they can see. Then ask what part of the plant is in the soil (roots), what those are for, how big they are, and what color they are.

If a number of students show that they know enough about the parts of the plant, ask them to choose a label (that you've prepared beforehand) with the name of each part of the plant, and ask how they were able to read the labels, to check if they're aware of their decoding and reading process.

Some children may not be interested in manipulating the plant and the soil, but they might want to draw a diagram of the plant or make a representation using modeling dough or clay. Later, the other children who were able to read the labels can place them on the diagram and show their peers how to determine where to put each label.

For those who might be ready for deeper research work, ask them, What color is the plant? Why do you think this is? And from there, make a list of the different hypotheses the children come up with and develop an inquiry-based project.

Children love to connect their learning with music, so ask them to come up with a simple song that includes, for example, the parts of the plant, the needs of the plant, and how to take care of the plant.

5-year-olds using planting materials and tools in the playground or classroom: A good question to get started working on this topic is, How do we know if a plant needs a bigger pot or a bigger spot to live in? Invite the learners to observe plants in pots in the classroom or outside on the grounds and figure out if the plant needs to be transplanted to a bigger place. This gives you the chance to work on the different parts of a plant and their functions, what a plant needs to grow and why, and what each resource provides the plant. You can also teach about the soil-the texture, smell, and color, and even the composition.

To differentiate the tasks you offer the learners, it's important to interact with them while they walk around and observe the plants.

Differentiating learning opportunities so that children can have an effective and inspiring developmental experience shows the commitment of the school and the teachers in respecting the children and addressing their needs, interests, and skills development with equity.

While differentiation isn't as difficult as it may seem at first, it's a good idea to start small. Choose a task or one part of a task to differentiate the activities or questions. Give yourself the chance to learn how to handle this together with the children. They will guide you. Trust yourself and trust your learners.

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Differentiated Instruction Once teachers get to know preschool students well, it's possible set up learning experiences that keep them all appropriately challenged. Differentiated instruction allows us to tailor our teaching to the needs of individual students. Is it possible to offer very young children differentiated learning contexts and challenges?

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When we empower students, we give them the task to improve their own learning through student center learning approaches.

Student Centered learning can be defined as the approach whereby the teacher puts the student first in the learning process. The instruction is shifted from the teacher to the student in this learning process.

Design of Classroom:
We can aid in the design of these classrooms by allowing student choice and autonomy. This design can involve allowing students to choose their own seating as they see fit for themselves. Additionally giving students downtime after class to use as they would like.
Educators can also utilize open ended questions to enhance student discussions and ideas. This allows for more creative thinking and debated discussions.
Teachers can also encourage more collorboration and group work. This will foster students ability to work with each other and create ideas as a team. Additionally they can bounce their ideas with other members of the team and it can develop into something greater.
Teachers can also encourage student reflection. In this process teachers will allow students to take a few moments to stop and think of what they are doing and make it connect to the greater picture.

Student-centered techniques:
Teachers can employ several techniques that can add value to a student centered classroom.
The teacher can start by stop being the expert of the subject material. The teacher can transform into an active participant rather than acting as the expert in the classroom.
Allowing students to explore is also another way which teachers can enhance student centered classrooms.
Planning strategic questions is another technique teachers can use. In this method teachers can create open ended questions that allows students to think and be creative.
Using Cooperative strategies is a useful technique that can be used. In this method students can stay on task with the subject material. Teachers can use structures like  Quiz-Quiz-Trade,  Round Robin  and Think Pair Share.

Assessments that can be used:

Teachers can use a combination of the following assessments:
Creating quizzes and exams that capture information  we think that are most relevant for students to have known.
When we give assignments to students we need to ensure that they are clear and well understood.
Work with students to create goals and provide ways to reach these goals.
Create a frame that assesses students' performance.
Tell students what exactly they need to learn.

Assessment to address differentiation

We can address differentiation by students skill and ability. Students can then be put in groups or work on tasks that takes their skill and ability into consideration.
Differentiation by students' choice. In this approach students choose the material they way to learn based on their interest.
Differentiation by learning style. Since students have different preferences for learning we can differentiate by this method. Some will prefer audio learning wile others prefer visual.

Physical Movement
Physical movement in leaning is important, more for some than others. Some students are better at using their hands than others. Adding some movement and exercise can allow students to be active participants in the class and less distracted. This can therefore enhance classroom management.

Reading
Good student approach methods for reading can include:

Questioning: students use purposeful questions  during and after the readings to better understand the material.
Imaging: Students use their imagination to imagine the sounds, smells, and shapes as they read.
Predicting: students can make their assumption on what they think will happen next in the reading.
Summarizing: students can give their summary of the material as they read.
Evaluating: students can evaluate if they liked the material they read or not and what stood out.

https://xqsuperschool.org/rethinktogether/what-is-student-centered-learning/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Student-centered_learning

https://www.hindustantimes.com/education/7-ways-to-create-a-student-centered-classroom/story-tdXg0obXV5ixsaSx7ZeubN.html

https://www.gcu.edu/blog/teaching-school-administration/student-centered-strategies

https://sites.google.com/view/student-centered-learning/question-6-student-centered-reading-writing-listening

https://wakelet.com/wake/NI8bV1VoKUXlR68mpevv5

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What Is Student Centered Learning and Why Is It Important? | Rethink Together

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Too many students describe high school as boring—but it doesn’t have to be. Here’s how we can put students at the center of their education.

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No human has the same finger print. Everyone is unique in their own right! Celebrate differences!

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Developing a Student-Centered Classroom
Focus of instruction is shifted from the teacher to the student, with the end goal of developing students who are autonomous and independent, by placing the responsibility of learning in the hands of the students.

Classroom into a community - By involving students directly in the education process, and by enabling them to interact with one another, students begin to feel a sense of community.

Develop trust and communication - communicate to students that what they say matters, and that you trust and value their input.

Integrate technology - given the opportunity to integrate existing web tools and technology into the learning process, they become eager, anxious participants in just about any learning activity.

Mutual respect and a quest for knowledge guide behavior–not rules - Engagement! If you keep activities engaging, behavior will rarely be an issue.

Project-based learning activities - providing students with various project choices allows them to demonstrate what they're learning.

Share decision making - by allowing them to be involved in deciding why, what, and how their learning experience will take shape.

Opportunity to lead - fosters engagement, growth and empowers students to take ownership of the learning experience.

Performance evaluation - learning, feedback and evaluation encourages students to resubmit assignments and work on projects until mastery is achieved.

Student-Centered approaches or techniques

Stop Being the Expert - The goal is for students to learn and grow, and since self-discovery is a large part of that process, try prompting and guiding them rather than telling them.

Let Students Explore - Teacher’s input comes after the students have a chance to explore, think and discuss their ideas. This is a powerful way to help the content stick.

Plan Strategic Questions - Teachers should try prompting and guiding students to self-discovery through strategic questions.

Use Cooperative Learning Structures Think-Pair-Share - This strategy is helpful for giving students opportunities to work individually and brainstorm
Quiz-Quiz-Trade - allows students to review information with other students by asking and answering questions.
Numbered Heads Together - holds each student accountable for learning the material.

Let the move - makes students less fidgety and more focused on learning.

Student Centered Approaches/Techniques for Reading

1. ​​Questioning -encouraging students to ask good questions is to engage them in taking a position on a concept or big idea from the reading.

2. Imaging (Visualizing) - helps your students create a picture in their head of what they're reading.

3. Predicting - activates their prior knowledge about the text and help them make connections between new information and what they already know.

4. Inferring - Helps students understand when information is implied, or not directly stated, will improve their skill in drawing conclusions and making inferences.

5. Making Connections - allows students to relate what they read, see, do, and experience to themselves, to the world around them and/or to other things they have read, seen, or experienced previously.

6. Monitoring - When students monitor their comprehension, they check to make sure they are visualizing, pay attention to unknown words, and notice when they do not understand text or are even not paying attention to what they are reading.

7. Summarizing - teaches students how to discern the most important ideas in a text, how to ignore irrelevant information, and how to integrate the central ideas in a meaningful way.

8. Evaluating - evaluate whether they liked the text or not and how they did as readers.

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Student-Centered Learning

The term student-centered learning refers to a wide variety of educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches, and academic-support strategies that are intended to address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students and groups of students.

Technology In The Classroom: A Student-Centered Approach

In traditional classroom settings, teachers lecture while their students sit passively listening and watching, perhaps one student at a time might be called upon to reflect or answer a question. Today, this is known as a “teacher-centered” approach to learning. This typically occurs when there is no use of technology in the classroom.

In contrast, a “student-centered” approach shifts the focus of activity from the teacher to the learners. The teacher moves into a facilitator role and pays close attention to each student’s interests, abilities, and learning styles. Common student-centered learning activities include:

active learning (problem solving, answering questions, discussing, formulating questions, debating)

cooperative learning (collaboration with classmates)

inquiry-based instruction

project-based learning

These approaches personalize the learning process and significantly increase student involvement in two dimensions: breadth of individualized activities, and number of students participating concurrently. It encourages flexibility and adaptability, and fosters individual growth and development.

Technology provides educators essential tools to create a student-centered learning environment. The careful integration of technology into the classroom provides teachers and students with a limitless amount of educational resources that transform learning – inspiring creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking.

Research shows that a blended or hybrid approach to instruction is ideal for the 21st century learner. A blended approach takes advantage of the best features of both face-to-face and online educational resources. It is achieved through the careful balance of a variety of instructional approaches.

Successfully integrating technology and creating a blended, student-centered learning environment is no easy task. It requires a thorough analysis of curriculum and a critical examination of pedagogy. While there is no best way to create this environment, determining which tools to use and how to use them requires elements of creativity, experimentation, collaboration, and patience.

Today’s instructional technologies are extremely dynamic – constantly evolving to strengthen the educational impact on students and teachers. Teachers need to be flexible to this reality, trying different tools and assessing student learning and engagement as they do. This type of experimentation initially can be discomforting to teachers. It is important that schools provide the necessary support to help them be successful in this experimental process.

Partnering with the right instructional technology coach is a definitive way to provide this structured support and guidance to teachers. The integration of technology then becomes less daunting, and teachers gain confidence. This confidence provides the essential fuel to transform their pedagogical approaches and in turn create a more student-centered, blended learning environment for their students.

Collaborative Learning Tips & Strategies

1. Establish clear group goals

Effective collaborative learning involves the establishment of group goals, as well as individual accountability. This keeps the group on task and establishes an unambiguous purpose. Before beginning an assignment, it is best to define goals and objectives to save time.

2. Keep groups midsized

Small groups of three or fewer usually lack enough diversity and may not allow divergent thinking to occur. Groups that are too large create ‘freeloading’ where not all members participate. A moderate size group of four or five is ideal.

3. Build trust and promote open communication

Successful interpersonal communication must exist in teams. Building trust is essential. Deal with emotional issues that arise immediately and any interpersonal problems before moving on. Assignments should encourage team members to explain concepts thoroughly to each other.Studies found that students who provide and receive intricate explanations gain most from collaborative learning. Open communication is key.

4. Create a pre-test and post-test

A good way to ensure the group learns together would be to engage in a pre and post-test. In fact, many researchers use this method to see if groups are learning. An assessment gives the team a goal to work towards and ensures learning is a priority. It also allows instructors to gauge the effectiveness of the group. Changes can be made if differences are seen in the assessments over time. Plus, you can use Bloom’s taxonomy to further hone in on specific skills.

5. Consider the learning process itself as part of assessment

In terms of assessment, it may be beneficial to grade students on the quality of discussion, student engagement, and adherence to group norms. Praise younger groups for the following (for digital collaborative learning, for example) standards. This type of learning is a process and needs explicit instruction in beginning stages. Assessing the process itself provides motivation for students to learn how to behave in groups. It shows students that you value meaningful group interactions and adhering to norms.

6. Consider using different strategies, like the Jigsaw technique.

The jigsaw strategy is said to improve social interactions in learning and support diversity. The workplace is often like a jigsaw. It involves separating an assignment into subtasks, where individuals research their assigned area. Students with the same topic from different groups might meet together to discuss ideas between groups.

7. Establish group interactions

The quality of discussions is a predictor of the achievement of the group. Instructors should provide a model of how a successful group functions. Shared leadership is often useful here. Students should work together on the task and maintenance functions of a group. Roles are important in group development. Task functions include:

Initiating Discussions

Clarifying points

Summarizing

Challenging assumptions/devil’s advocate

Providing or researching information

Reaching a consensus

8. Focus on enhancing problem-solving and critical thinking skills

Design assignments that allow room for varied interpretations. Different types of problems might focus on categorizing, planning, taking multiple perspectives, or forming solutions. Try to use a step-by step procedure for problem-solving. Mark Alexander explains one generally accepted problem-solving procedure:
1. Identify the objective
2. Set criteria or goals
3. Gather data
4. Generate options or courses of action
5. Evaluate the options using data and objectives
6. Reach a decision
7. Implement the decision

9. Use scaffolding or diminished responsibility as students begin to understand concepts.

At the beginning of a project, you may want to give more direction than the end. Serve as a facilitator, such as by gauging group interactions or at first, providing a list of questions to consider. Allow groups to grow in responsibility as times goes on. In your classroom, this may mean allowing teams to develop their own topics or products as time goes on.

10. Technology makes collaborative learning easier

Collaboration had the same results via technology as in person, increased learning opportunities. Try incorporating free savvy tools for online collaboration such as Stixy, an online shared whiteboard space, Google groups, or Mikogo for online meetings. Be aware that some research suggests that more exchanges related to planning rather than challenging viewpoints occurred more frequently through online interactions.

A Student-Centered Assessment

1. Assessing Student Passions and Learning Styles

One key way to create a more student-centered classroom is by assessing
students for their passions and interests. All of our students come with powerful
experiences that have driven their lives, such as family stories, favorite books,
hobbies, and trips. We can use a variety of assessment tools like one-on-one
conversations, journals, and graphic organizers to learn more about our students and what drives them to learn. Tools like learning profile cards can allow us to
differentiate appropriately, leverage our students' strengths, and push them to learn in different ways. Assessing for passions and interests can also push us to know our students more deeply and create a classroom designed for them.

2. Assessing 21st-Century/Success Skills

We know that some of our students collaborate better than others, just as some
students have more global empathy than others. If we assess for these success or 21st-century skills, we can provide experiences and instructions that foster those skills and allow our students to grow in areas that are more than simply content knowledge or skills. Teachers can use rubrics and other assessment tools to let students know what these success skills look, sound, and feel like. In addition, they can use these assessment tools for self, teacher, and expert assessment.

3. Formative Assessment of Content and Skills

Test data lets us know how students are progressing toward learning content
and skills from the standards. However, these standardized tests may only assess the bare minimum (if that) of the level of rigor that we want and expect from our
students. Also, these assessments do not provide us with just-in-time data that we can truly use. What we get from them often comes too late for our purposes. While we can look at the data for trends, we may not be able to use this information in the immediate moment to meet the needs of individual students. Teachers instead should use low-stakes formative assessments to assess students' content knowledge and skills. This way, we can learn which concepts and skills need to be retaught, and which ones students have mastered. These assessments are not graded. Instead, we can use them to create a learning environment that is more student-centered.

FORMATIVE STUDENT-CENTERED ASSESSMENT AT THE
CLASSROOM LEVEL:
- Self-assessment
- Peer assessment
- Portfolios

SUMMATIVE STUDENT-CENTERED ASSESSMENT AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL:
- Exhibitions

Differentiated Instructions

Four ways to differentiate instruction

1. Content

As you already know, fundamental lesson content should cover the standards of learning set by the school district or state educational standards. But some students in your class may be completely unfamiliar with the concepts in a lesson, some students may have partial mastery, and some students may already be familiar with the content before the lesson begins.

What you could do is differentiate the content by designing activities for groups of students that cover various levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (a classification of levels of intellectual behavior going from lower-order thinking skills to higher-order thinking skills). The six levels are: remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating.

2. Process

Each student has a preferred learning style, and successful differentiation includes delivering the material to each style: visual, auditory and kinesthetic, and through words. This process-related method also addresses the fact that not all students require the same amount of support from the teacher, and students could choose to work in pairs, small groups, or individually. And while some students may benefit from one-on-one interaction with you or the classroom aide, others may be able to progress by themselves. Teachers can enhance student learning by offering support based on individual needs.

Examples of differentiating the process:

Provide textbooks for visual and word learners.

Allow auditory learners to listen to audio books.

Give kinesthetic learners the opportunity to complete an interactive assignment online.

3. Product

The product is what the student creates at the end of the lesson to demonstrate the mastery of the content. This can be in the form of tests, projects, reports, or other activities. You could assign students to complete activities that show mastery of an educational concept in a way the student prefers, based on learning style.

Examples of differentiating the end product:

Read and write learners write a book report.

Visual learners create a graphic organizer of the story.

Auditory learners give an oral report.

Kinesthetic learners build a diorama illustrating the story.

4. Learning environment

The conditions for optimal learning include both physical and psychological elements. A flexible classroom layout is key, incorporating various types of furniture and arrangements to support both individual and group work. Psychologically speaking, teachers should use classroom management techniques that support a safe and supportive learning environment.

Examples of differentiating the environment:

Break some students into reading groups to discuss the assignment.

Allow students to read individually if preferred.

Create quiet spaces where there are no distractions.

Differentiated instruction strategies for reading

Tiered assignments can be used in reading to allow the students to show what they have learned at a level that suites them. One student might create a visual story board while another student might write a book report.

Reading groups can pick a book based on interest or be assigned based on reading level

Erin Lynch (2020) suggest that teachers scaffold instruction by giving clear explicit explanations with visuals. Verbally and visually explain the topic. Use anchor charts, drawings, diagrams, and reference guides to foster a clearer understanding. If applicable, provide a video clip for students to watch.

Utilize flexible grouping. Students might be in one group for phonics based on their assessed level but choose to be in another group for reading because they are more interested in that book.

Resources

https://knowingtechnologies.com/technology-in-the-classroom/

https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/collaborative-learning-tips/

https://www.moe.edu.kw/teacher/Documents/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D8%BA%D8%A9%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AC%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%A9/learner%20centered%20teaching/5-Assessment%20in%20LCT%20.pdf

https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/examples-of-differentiated-instruction/

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Education in the 21st Century - Student Centered Learning

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Every single one of our students is different from one another - their interests, their aspirations, their learning styles, their strengths and weaknesses. So how can we possibly reach each student where they are?

Student-centered learning is a philosophy or an approach to education that is designed to meet the needs of each student individually.

This philosophy focuses on the equity of what is being taught and learned rather than the historical 'one-size fits all' model of education.

It has 4 main characteristics:

1. Voice

2. Choice

3. Competency based

4. A continuous monitoring of students

Design - The reconfiguration of the traditional classroom where the teacher has historically been the focus (neat rows facing the teacher), and shifting the spotlight to student collaboration and discussion (circles, small groups, pairs of students on the ground, groups of desks, face to face etc.) Using technology as a tool allows students to explore and delve deeper into their interests, oftentimes allowing them to form new ones. Allowing students to research, create models, and use online platforms either individually or collaboratively, engages students so much, they forget they are actually learning!
Techniques and approaches - Students co-construct their goals and have ‘voice and choice’ in determining what, how, when, and where the learning occurs. The learning environment is competency-based where students demonstrate mastery (through various means based on choice) before moving onto the next concept. Students are encouraged to collaborate and share ideas through discussion or researching via technology producing a group poster, project, video, song etc. that demonstrates their knowledge.

Assessments - Competency based assessments acknowledge that students are progressing through a concept and allows students to demonstrate their knowledge at the level at which they are at. This allows students to move at different paces within the same parameters until they prove mastery in a concept before moving on. Again, they are demonstrating their knowledge through an avenue which they chose according to their own interests (student-centered). Students are also monitored continually receiving feedback as they work. Not only are there discussions between students collaborating, but there is ongoing conferencing between the teacher and the students.

Differentiation - Differentiation will come naturally in a student-centered classroom. With voice and choice being the main driving force behind a student-centered approach, teachers can understand each student's learning profile and differentiate in the following ways: assessments (understanding what students know and still need to learn), content (what the student needs to learn or how the student will access the information), process (activities in which the student engages in order to make sense of the concept), and product (asking the student to apply and extend what they have learned through an avenue of their choice).

Reading - An example of a student-centered approach to learning to read would be the Workshop model. The teacher spends a grand total of 5 minutes doing a mini-lesson, introducing a method or concept using a mentor text. Then students mimic what the teacher just taught but with books of their own choice. Again, whatever the teaching approach, if it takes into the consideration student voice, choice, individual competency, and continuous monitoring and feedback, it would be considered student-centered.
References:
The power of student-driven learning: Shelley Wright
4 Ed Tech Ways to Differentiate in the Student-Centered Classroom
Student-Centered Learning: In Principle and in Practice

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Implementing assessment to enhance student centered learning

There are ways to include students in the assessment process.

continuous formative assessments: different and frequent chances for students to show and teachers to evaluate improvement towards a goal

Open-ended tasks: tasks that allow students to study, process, and produce in non-prescribed directions and depth

Offering texts and materials: a way of matching materials to the needs and abilities of different learners

Tiered activities and assignments: tasks that get all students to work towards the same goal but with different levels of knowledge and abilities

self- assessment by students: evaluating a student’s performance by the student and the teacher

Using technology to enhance student centered learning
There are many websites and apps that allow students to work independently by themselves with minimum supervision from teachers. A good example of this is Quizlet. The teacher creates a set of cards with vocabulary words and meanings for instance. Students study them and take small quizzes. They will redo the quizzes until they can remember all the definitions.

Important features of a student-centered classroom

Open Space and Access to Resources:

It’s important that as teachers we decorate the classroom in a way that allows students to move around to communicate with each other and have access to the bookshelves and resources.

Workstations and designated areas:

We can divide the class into different workstations so students know where each task is done. We can also allocate each workstation for a specific type of activity or even a school subject. Students can collaborate in each workstation to finish a task or help each other out.

Access to technology:

Having access to a good wifi network and device can allow students to work together in pairs and teams to finish tasks using websites and apps.

Best Tools for Virtual and Distance Learning

There are many websites and apps we can use as teachers to facilitate assessment. For instance Quizziz can be used for the teacher and the students to follow the progress and see the results in real time. There are websites that can be used for the students to collaborate like Padlet. We can use Microsoft Teams to deliver lessons, assign homework, create school calendars and for the students to chat.

Student Centered strategies for Reading

1. Predicting –It’s important to teach the students to predict the answers using the provided pictures, headings and scanning the text before reading.

2. Questioning – It’s essential to teach the students to come up with questions before, during and after reading to help them better understand the text.

3. Making Connections – It’s a good idea to teach the students to make connections with their real life experiences and stories to better understand the reading.

4. Summarizing – It’s important to teach the students the skill of summarizing. They need to know paraphrasing, choosing the main ideas and how to write a short summary.

5. Involvement: We can involve the students in all stages of reading. From predicting information to pre teaching vocabulary words, from skimming and scanning to answering reading comprehension questions, It is a good idea to help students feel involved and productive in the reading process. (Cranage, 8)

Differentiation techniques to enhance student centered learning

Acceleration: A strategy that allows a student to study material at a faster pace

Complexity and challenge: the use of higher-order thinking and skills

Computer based instruction: The use of technology to individualize instruction they already know part or all of the material to be studied to work on alternate activities

Flexible grouping: a purposeful reordering of students into temporary working groups to ensure that all students work with a wide variety of classmates and in a wide range of context during a relatively short span of classroom time

Group projects and investigations: activities in which students are grouped by interest to investigate a topic related to something being studied in class

Independent study: activities in which students use their unique abilities and talents to explore areas of special interest on their own

Intelligence preferences: modes that reflect different ways a student expresses intelligence as in systems described by Howard Gardner and Robert Sternberg

Learning centers or stations: collections of materials and activities designed to teach, reinforce, or extend students knowledge understanding and skills

Learning contracts: formalized agreements between the teacher and student that delineate the independent learning tasks a student will do during a unit of study

Learning style: the way student learning is affected by personal and environmental factors

Mentorships: utilization of community and business resources, abilities, and talents to support students in exploration of areas of special interest.

Multimedia presentation and projects: products that require the development of 21st century skills.

On-going formative assessments: varied and frequent opportunities for students to demonstrate and teachers to evaluate progress towards a goal

Open-ended activities: tasks which allow students to take content, process, and product in non-prescribed directions and depth

Scaffolding: any support system that enables students to succeed with tasks they find genuinely challenging

Student self- assessment: a strategy that, in combination with teacher assessment, enriches the pictures of student performance

Student choice: a strategy that strengthens performances by increasing student ownership.

Tiered activities and assignments: assignments in which all students work toward the same standards or objectives but at different levels of readiness or ability

Varied questioning: designing questions that would challenge different types of students

Varied texts and materials: Choosing texts and materials with different levels of difficulty

Including physical movement

The following is a list of games, tools and activities we can use to help kinesthetic learners.

Quiz quiz trade

The teacher has cut up cards with a question on each. The teacher asks the students to come to the center of the classroom. When the teacher says ‘’partner up’’ the students find a partner. When the teacher says ‘’start’’ student A asks student B their question and then student B asks student A their question, When the teacher says switch the students switch cards and partners. This will go on until all students have been partnered up together and have answered all question cards.

Chopstick game:

The class is divided into small groups. Each group stands in a line. The first member is holding chopsticks. When the teacher calls start the first student runs to the cup filled with half words and grab s one with their chopstick and brings them back to their group. The rest of the group take turns grabbing and bringing half words while the other group members put the half words together to make full words.

Brainstorming walk:

The teacher has put up blank papers each including a topic in all corners of the classroom. The teacher will divide the students into pairs. The pairs walk and take turns brainstorming ideas on each paper.

Learner-centred assessment. Centre for Teaching Excellence. (2017, June 27). Retrieved July 12, 2022, from https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/teaching-resources/teaching-tips/assessing-student-work/grading-and-feedback/learner-centred-assessment

Virtual Lab School. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022, from https://www.virtuallabschool.org/preschool/learning-environments/lesson-2

Student-centered approaches and techniques for reading. tnjune17cohort3 [licensed for non-commercial use only] / Student-Centered Approaches and Techniques for Reading. (n.d.). Retrieved July 12, 2022, from http://tnjune17cohort3.pbworks.com/w/page/119008734/Student-Centered%20Approaches%20and%20Techniques%20for%20Reading

Miller, A. (2016, January 8). 6 strategies for differentiated instruction in project-based learning. Edutopia. Retrieved July 12, 2022, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/differentiated-instruction-strategies-pbl-andrew-miller