I teach Dental Hygiene. It is very easy to make our grading student centered in the dental clinic.
In the classroom I use group discussion choosing student at random to contribute making sure all participate.
Richard,
You make a good point. I think students regardless of age come in all varieties, where younger students may act maturely and be accountability, and older seasoned workers may be the biggest whiners or marginal in their seriously. To me, student centered instruction implies one needs to relate to each student "where they are", and deal with their uniquenesses.
Barry Westling
Unlike several of the other comments, I believe that being an instructor in adult education seems much easier. In the sense that I find it much easier to relate to the students and easier to relay the information that I want to teach because I can relate to the everyday lives of adult students.
Prior to teaching in an adult classroom, I taught in a high school. Although I am only in my thirties, I found that sometimes it was hard to connect with the younger students.
Being a student-centered instructor in an adult classroom makes it much easier to be successful as an instructor. The content typically grabs the students interest in a way that wouldn't in a typical classroom setting. The students are there to focus solely on the content being taught, as opposed to content that they are being told they have to learn as a requirement.
Timothy,
There's something I call "reality quotient", which describes the degree to which a student is grounded in reality, in terms of realistic job prospects, pay, promotions, advancement, opportunities, and of course, the realities of academic achievement which also includes professional development (attendance, punctuality, participation, compliance, etc.). In the better situations, students have a good quotient and I strive to help them succeed, mainly by going the extra mile. I do this for all students, but a lower quotient student is not likely to benefit as much or take advantage of my efforts.
Barry Westling
I have seen that sense of entitlement in my courses I have taught as well, with students giving statements about dollar loss if I failed them, or gave them a poor grade. But I think the important thing they should all understand is, if they were all given degrees with a 4.0 GPA, without putting any effort into it, how will that help them in the real world? Would they expect employers to pay them without doing any work? Would they work at a company for 6 months expect a promotion and quit after 8 months due to "lack of career growth because my boss wouldn't promote me", even though had they put a full year in, a promotion would have been highly likely. Adult learners shouldn't be cheating their degree because they are in turn only cheating themselves.
Arnitra,
Right, and it really doesn't take too much extra effort to give time and attention to students, especially those who are in need of special emphasis.
Barry Westling
I feel that this type of instructor allows the student to feel as if you are engaged. It allows them to feel as if you care about their learning experience and well being and that you are there for them all the way. It helps them to also know that if they have issues or questions, that they can be open freely to ask whatever questions they have.
Diana,
Yes, although we may be training individuals for jobs, what we're also potentially doing is making better lives and futures for our students and thier families.
Barry Westling
It's all about them. When you understand that at the end of the course, every student should feel that the content, delivery and evaluation was just what they wanted.
In other words: a "student-centered" instructor is a "customer-service" instructor. Each customer (i.e. student) comes to class with a vision, expectations, a knowledge base, experiences, a support system (hopefully), and a personal level of motivation. It is the instructor's goal to deliver instruction that is tailored to each student's criteria as part of the normal flow of teaching.
What a great challenge and compliment if done well!
Randolph,
Yes, and I've found that the extra assistance really doesn't take that much time but is nearly always appreciated by the student. This also helps build trust and mutual respect.
Barry Westling
I allow time to help each student that needs help along with tutoring before or after class. This always showes students that you are concerned with how they are progressing in a given course .Extra help can make the differance between passing and failing.
Stephanie,
Yes, I agree a key aspect is awareness of individual needs, however that is discerned (pretesting, one on one chatting, instructor conference, etc). More information about individual strengths and needs generally assists an instructor in customing instruction for a best fit scenario in the classroom.
Barry Westling
As a professional counselor, I have found that being person centered within a few specific theories allows for the best type of therapy for a client. In regards to teaching, being person centered follows the same lines and allows for teachers to look at the needs of the students and apply that to the teaching methods. Each class can be different and require different techniques. I believe being aware of the different needs of different students will help the students succeed in gaining knowledge, thus making you a successful teacher.
Jaime,
Practical application nearly always adds to the learning experience. Giving student "over the shoulder" supervision and constructive feedback contributes to individualized instruction and learning.
Barry Westling
My students want to understand the information and apply it to real world experience in my lab. Students are motivated and excited to learn. Students retain the knowledge much easier and succeed during their test.
Rae Lynne,
I agree being student centered involves active, sustained, personalized engagement. Even in a lecture-oriented session, relating to each student as if it was one on one helps keep the students focused, with the outcome of understanding, thinking, and enriched usually achieved.
Barry Westling
I view a classroom as a theater and the students as the audience. If you do engage your audience within the presentation, the audience will get bored and leave at "intermission" (break). They will also turn you off and drift away into their own world and miss important information. I always try to prepare my lessons to be engaging for the students. I always make a list of objectives with "life outcomes" associated -- I ask myself, how can this information/chapter influence the students lives today and their professional futures in their chosen field. I also work very hard to make sure I am not a talking head in the classroom, but open the floor and involve students as well. Finally, I work to make sure I am not talking at the students, but rather with the students based on tone, language, and general approach to the class session.
Randall,
Your example very nicely demonstrates one method of creating a student centered learning environment. What I particularly like is that your class begins with establishing the format that will carried throughout the course. By setting that layout the students see from the beginning what to expect, and every day the method is reinforced. Thinking takes practice, and daily repetition is a great way to provide an opportunity, without fear of being wrong or penalized for trying.
Barry Westling
At the beginning of each course we have a lengthy discussion about critical thinking and how it is needed versus memorizing in an automotive career. This starts the course putting the learning back in their court. All of my lectures are tailored around their self learning and I often ask them what they think about a certain component as related to it's operation or interaction with other parts before I will tell them about it. This puts the student in charge of the learning and all I do is guide them. We have great many discussions and lots of interactions during the lectures. Most often it is a brainstorming session of the students with me there to just guide them and keep them heading in the right direction. In this format the student is truly the center of it all.
John,
Yes, and really, student centered means we are willing to put aside our regular plan in order to accomodate individual student needs. And students appreciate it when they realize their instructor cares enough to give some individual attention.
Barry Westling
