What is Learner- Centred Education?

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What is Learner- Centred Education?

• Paul Stephenson M.Ed, M.App.Ling.
• ESL Instructor, Learning Centre Professional,
  former High School and Elementary teacher
• Reference Learner-Centred Teaching
• by Maryellen Weimer

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Learner-Centred Education

• Focuses attention on learning
• WHAT is the student learning?
• HOW is the student learning?
• HOW does present learning prepare for future
  learning?

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What Happens?

• the spotlight moves from the teacher to the
  student

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Learner-Centred Education

• promotes, encourages, expects, requires
• that students take more and more responsibility
  for their own learning

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total faculty control of learning processes can
be

• restrictive
• confining
• unmotivating

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Students can become

• passive, uninterested
• dependent
• unwilling to assume responsibility for their own
  learning

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Solution is not to give up faculty power but

• redress the power imbalance
• find ways to responsibly share power with
  students

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Learner-Centred Education involves re-assessing 5
important areas

• 1. balance of power
• 2. function of content
• 3. role of the teacher
• 4. responsibility for learning
• 5. evaluation

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1. The Balance of Power

• power is responsibly shared
• goal is to equip students with the ability to
  teach themselves

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for example

• Let students decide
• Class, this semester there are 20 assignments
  but you only need to complete 15 of them
• This semester we have two elective topics. Lets
  make a list of areas you are interested in and
  then you will vote to make our selection

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2. The Function of Content

• content is a vehicle for learning how to learn
• constructivism students actively construct
  their own knowledge rather than passively
  receiving

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more content

• in a learner-centred context, content is used not
  covered
• content is used to establish a knowledge
  foundation
• content is used to develop learning skills

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for example

• The Learning Centre comes to class
• Invite a Learning Centre professional to class
• Present a short lecture students and the
  Learning Centre representative take notes
• Students give their notes to the Learning Centre
  professional who returns to the next class with
  some suggestions

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3. The Role of the Teacher

• the teacher becomes a guide, facilitator,
  designer
• lectures less and is more often around the class
  rather than in front of it
• action in the classroom features students

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for example

• wherever possible, design tasks so that students
  discover ideas for themselves
• be flexible as students may reach conclusions you
  had not considered
• encourage students learning from each other

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4. The Responsibility for Learning

• students must develop a responsibility for
  learning
• students need the learning skills to function as
  independent, autonomous learners

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for example

• Empowering students
• Choosing which assignments to do
• Establishing participation policies
• Agreeing on a deadline timetable

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5. Evaluation

• evaluation should be used to promote learning as
  well as generating grades
• assessment should be seen as another chance to
  have students interact with content

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for example

• Students should learn how to assess their own
  work and that of their peers
• Leave a test question blank and have students
  write and answer a question they expected to see

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Next Steps

• 1. Get beyond techniques think and reflect
• 2. Approach change systematically
• 3. Approach change incrementally
• 4. Try, revise, re-use
• 5. Set realistic expectations

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What is Learner-Centred Education?

• Energizing
• Humbling
• Sophisticated
• Satisfying
• Needed

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Learner Centred Excellence Project Website

• Located on the Okanagan College website
• Click on Faculty
• Click on Designing Our Future
• Click on Learner Centred Excellence Project
• The purpose is to encourage an on-going dialogue
  about Learner-Centred Education

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Questions for discussion

• Do you have any passive learners?
• What should/could we do?
• Do you have any dependent students?
• What should/could we do?

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Thank you

• Paul Stephenson M.Ed, M.App.Ling.
• ESL Instructor, Okanagan College
• Learning Centre Professional
• Former High School and Elementary teacher
• Please contact me with any questions and/or
  comments at
• ext. 4684
• pstephenson_at_okanagan.bc.ca
• The Learner Centred Excellence Project on OCs
  website