Broadly speaking, student-centered learning is an approach to education that is rooted in a constructivist theory of learning and prioritizes attention to the learning experience and students’ existing knowledge (Weimer, 2013; Brookfield, 1995). This approach can be contrasted with a more traditional instructor-centered classroom, often typified by the lecturer-audience relationship. This teacher-centered approach is often enacted and exemplified through five key areas: power balance, content, the role of instructor, who is responsible for learning, and the purpose of evaluation (Weimer, 2013).
A student-centered classroom disrupts a traditional power structure where the instructor is seen as the holder of all knowledge that students passively receive, and it reforms the classroom to place the student at the center of each process (Weimer, 2013; Wright, 2011). A student-centered classroom provides opportunities for students to take leadership roles in their own learning and be actively engaged in the process of how they will learn and how their learning will be assessed (Slunt & Giancarlo, 2004; Wright, 2011). The student-centered classroom is also often characterized by the use of more formative assessments versus the summative assessments which are more traditionally used in teacher-centered classrooms (Crumly, 2014).
Additionally, the role of the teacher in student-centered classes is more akin to a facilitator than a traditional instructor. In this way, students become responsible for their own learning and participate in the shared development of knowledge in the learning community and develop transferable skills and problem-solving abilities (Attard, Iorio, Geen, & Santa, 2014; Hoidn, 2017). Furthermore, student-centered learning not only lowers the power barrier but, especially in higher education, also pays attention to and respects the various experiences, needs, and perspectives that individual students bring to the classroom. The activities, lessons, and assessments for this unit have been designed to reflect a student-centered approach to learning.