Student Centered Teaching

One of the key elements of a 21st century education is the shifting of focus from a teacher-centered classroom to a student-centered classroom, a classroom that gives students “voice and choice” as they engage in real world problem solving through creative critical thinking, collaboration, and use of technology. According to Weimer (2013) there are five elements of the learner-centered classroom, they are lessons that focus on students as active learners   rather than passive receptacles that teachers need to fill. They empower students by giving them control over their learning, teaching that encourages collaboration. In the student-centered classroom students have the opportunity to reflect on their learning and engage in explicit learning skills instruction.

In the article New Learning Environments for the 21st Century: Exploring the Edge , Brown points out that 21^st century schools should be cross disciplinary in nature. That today’s learners need access to multiple ways of knowing and that a one size fits all curriculum is counterproductive, as today’s learners have been conditioned to expect choice in the things they consume. Today’s students want to create and learn at the same time, and by doing this they will bridge the gap between knowledge and knowing (Brown, 2006). One of the best pedagogical approaches to create the learner centered classroom is the implementation of project based learning or PBL. In a study of the educational outcomes of PBL, Pedro Hernandez-Ramos and Susan De La Paz found that students who engaged in project based learning activities in a middle school social studies classroom learned more than students in a traditional classroom setting (Hernandez-Ramos and De La Paz, 2009). Project based learning requires students to engage in real-world 21^st century skills and elicits greater overall learning. In addition students learn the skills they will need to be competitive in the modern economy. A 21^st century education must take advantage of the revolutionary changes brought by computer technology and the internet. According to Harry Pence (2010) teachers must become acquainted with the technological environments of which their students are familiar. This approach will enable teachers to connect with their students and build upon their interests using technology. This approach will not only hook students, but will engage them throughout the lesson leading to greater student learning.  

                  My educational system is still rooted in the industrial error but is desperately trying to move forward. Unfortunately, one of the biggest problems facing my school district are teachers who do not recognize the need for change. Many teachers I know, still cling to antiquated notions of education such as the need to cover tremendous amounts of content, overreliance on multiple choice tests, and lectures. These approaches are not serving the needs of our students as students want a more active role in their education. However, I believe that a paradox exists in that our school district wants to see growing participation in advanced placement courses, which are often taught in a rote way, but emphasize the  need for 21^st century skills and approaches this raises the question is the advanced placement curriculum and 21^st century approaches compatible? Is it possible to teach the AP curriculum in a PBL or other student-centered format?

Brown, J. S. (2006). New Learning Environments for the 21st Century: Exploring the Edge.

            The Magazine Of Higher Learning, 38(5), 18-24.

Hernandez-Ramos, P., & De La Paz, S. (2009). Learning History in Middle School by Designing

            Multimedia in a Project-Based Learning Experience. Journal Of Research On

            Technology In Education, 42(2), 151-173.

Pence, H. E. (2010). Teaching in the 21st Century. Journal Of Educational Technology Systems,

            38(2), 103-110.

Weimer, M. (2013). Learner-centered teaching: Five key changes to practice (2nd ed.). San
            Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Why Schools Must Change

The Clark County School District, the fifth largest district in the nation, resembles in many ways the factory system of the industrial era. In the 19^th century, industrialist experimented with ways in which to make their factories more productive, thus lowering costs and raising profits. At the same time, they had to contend with assimilating immigrants who had little experience of industrial and urban life. Work was structured around a bell system that signaled workers when it was time to start, break for lunch, and when it was time to end the workday. Complex tasks were divided into parts, so that each worker was responsible for only a small part of the finished product, they had very little autonomy and were under the constant supervision of their immediate supervisors. The factory system worked well for the time in which it was implemented. Educators, faced with the same challenges of assimilating immigrants and educating large populations of students turned to the factories for inspiration as to how to most efficiently educate their students. Schools were structured around individual subjects, students were grouped by age, and a bell system let students know when it was time to change classes. Schools and factories operated in a similar fashion for the last one hundred and thirty years or so.    

Unfortunately, the schools designed for a 19^th century economy are still ubiquitous today.  These factory school are anachronisms that seem woefully out of place in our modern technologically rich environment. One of the most problematic vestiges of the old factory model of education  is the teaching of subjects in isolation. A century ago an educated person was someone who had memorized massive amounts of information and could recall it at will, in an age when access to knowledge was reserved for a small minority of educated elites, this made sense. But today, thanks to personal computing and internet technology, students have instantaneous access to information once only dreamed of. This has called into question the relationship between learners and knowledge (Wiles & Bondi, 2014, p. 65). In addition, schools still function like factories in that they have standardized almost every aspect of education. While most education leaders talk about the importance for differentiation of instruction and giving students voice and choice, the school’s infrastructure impedes these very things. Teachers are locked into teaching by quarters and semesters, they must teach in such a way that denies the interdisciplinary nature of knowledge. Teachers themselves continue to work in the isolation of their classrooms, interacting with their colleagues intermittently or not at all.

While many schools across the country approach education in the manner previously described, there are some innovative schools that are forging ahead and reimagining what school could be. One such school is High Tech High located in San Diego California. What makes HTH different is that they base their curriculum on Project Based Learning, students work collaboratively to solve problems and design projects across the curriculum (Robinson & Aronica, 2015, p. 129). At HTH teachers are facilitators of student learning, not the sole source of all knowledge. Students are encouraged to take risks, ask questions, collaborate, evaluate and think outside of the box, all traits that will help them be successful in the world of work and college in the 21^st century economy.    

  

Robinson, K., & Aronica, L. (2015). Creative schools: The grassroots revolution that's
            transforming education. New York, NY: Viking.

TED Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2010). Ken Robinson: Changing education paradigms
            [Video file]. Retrieved from
            http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_changing_education_paradigms

Wiles, J.W., & Bondi, J.C. (2014). Curriculum development: A guide to practice (9^th ed).
            Boston, MA: Pearson.