Introduction
•A Learner-centered approach is the acknowledgement of the diversity among learners.
•Teachers need to understand that each learner has a unique way of accessing, processing and applying information.
•It involves many varied intentionally designed instructional experiences; provides multiple ways of learners to access, process, interpret and apply information.
Learner- Centered Activities
•A “learner-centred” activity focuses on the learner’s needs, experiences, background, perspectives, preferences, and interests as they relate to learning.
•A learner-centred activity helps the learners make the connections between what they already know and new information.
• It provides the learner with opportunities to set goals, provide input into the learning process, and collaborate.
•It provides opportunities to share interests, perspectives, and opinions in a safe, supportive environment.
Learner Centered Approaches include:
- Cooperative learning:
This is a teaching strategy that involves learners working in small groups to complete a task or project. The tasks are structured so that each member contributes to the completion of the task.
- Group Discussion:
This is a teaching strategy that enables learners to articulate their views and respond to opinions from their own. The group may be structured as either a large or small group.
- Independent study:
This is a teaching strategy that promotes an individualized learning experience allowing the learner to select a topic of focus, define the problem, gather and analyze the information, apply skills and create a product to show and tell
- Portfolio development:
This is a teaching strategy where learners are supported to gather, organize and illustrate examples of their learning experiences and accomplishments. It is a process of creating, collecting, reflecting on and selecting work samples that engage learners continuously
2. Journaling:
This is a teaching strategy that provides learners with an opportunity to record their thoughts, feelings and reflection on a variety of learning experiences. The journal enables learners to explore ideas and clarify their thinking. It promotes reflection and higher-level thinking.
3. Venn diagram:
This is a graphic organizer that is used to compare and construct information about two or more objects, concepts or ideas. It allows learners to organize information and see a relationship.
4. Community service-learning:
This is a teaching strategy in which a teacher designs a project where the learner will participate in service within a community that has a learning component and reflection.
5. Inquiry-based learning:
This is a teaching strategy that provides learners with an opportunity to examine issues systematically that involves identifying the issues, planning action, evaluating the action and reporting the experiences for further action.
6. Project-based learning
This is a teaching strategy in which learners are guided to identify a project which is undertaken systematically and reported.
Pitfalls
•Telling the learners what they need to know through lecturing is not learner-centred. Lectures should be short, and most often, a preface to an activity that is meaningful.
•Having the learner simply read a chapter or a paper is not learner-centred activity unless we focus their reading by asking questions that help create links between the theory and the learner’s jobs or interests or experiences.
