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Topic 5-10 Characteristics of Learner-Centered Experiences

The document outlines 10 characteristics of learner-centered experiences, emphasizing personal connections, agency, inquiry-based learning, collaboration, and authenticity. It highlights the importance of critique, productive struggle, goal-setting, modeling, and reflection in fostering impactful learning. These features aim to create a more engaging and effective educational environment tailored to individual learners' needs and experiences.

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Joryl Shane Matero Ramirez
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7 views

Topic 5-10 Characteristics of Learner-Centered Experiences

The document outlines 10 characteristics of learner-centered experiences, emphasizing personal connections, agency, inquiry-based learning, collaboration, and authenticity. It highlights the importance of critique, productive struggle, goal-setting, modeling, and reflection in fostering impactful learning. These features aim to create a more engaging and effective educational environment tailored to individual learners' needs and experiences.

Uploaded by

Joryl Shane Matero Ramirez
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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10 Characteristics of Learner-Centered Experiences

teachingcommons.lakeheadu.ca/10-characteristics-learner-centered-experiences

"10 Characteristics of Learner Centered Experiences" (post) outlines


the following features of "impactful learning experiences" (each more
fully developed in the post):

1. "Are Personal"

"[P]ersonal learning connects to learner’s beliefs, strengths, experiences, and passions


to start from where the learner is and move forward from the towards the desired
learning goals."

The goals may be the same with the difference being "in the flexibility and resources to
learn in ways that met ... unique goals and needs ..." as students work at their own pace
and "set milestones to reach along the way."

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Note that, in the post, the final product (and the working time-frame) was the same for
all: it was the process that differed.

2. "Allow Users to Exert Agency"

"[W]e can’t control the learners and simultaneously expect them to be motivated
without opportunities to exert agency in the learning process."

"Agency comes from the power to act and requires learners to have the ability to make
decisions and take ownership of their own behaviors in the process."

3. "Are Inquiry-Based"

"[W]hen learners are posing questions and seeking answers, they are more invested
than if they are being told what to think or do."

"When challenges are presented or learners can find their own to solve, they are often
more intrinsically motivated to seek answers to questions that they are genuinely
interested in figuring out."

4. "Are Collaborative"

"Creating opportunities for learners to build on the strengths of others and work
together allows for new and better ideas to emerge."

"When we are exposed to diverse ideas and perspectives, we grow in our own practice
and impact others as well."

5. "Are Authentic"

"[C]reat[e] opportunities for students to share their work beyond the classroom."

"Connecting students with experts, peers and other learners allow[s] for a different
level of accountability and authentic feedback than one gets from simply handing
something into a teacher for a grade."

"Experiences, where learners get to solve a challenge that is meaningful and relevant to
their context, can empower learners to take action and do something that matters to
them and others."

6. "Ensure Time for Critique and Revision"

"Feedback, by nature, will unearth some things that need to improve and is not always
easy to hear."

"But if we don’t create conditions where feedback is part of the process, how can we
expect real growth in our learning?"

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"[D]eliberately create the conditions where learners feel valued and can openly share
challenges to grow and improve as a critical part of the learning process."

7. "Allow for Productive Struggle"

"Creating an environment where learners are encouraged to take risks in pursuit of


learning and growth rather than perfection is absolutely foundational to shifting
practices."

"The learning task has to be within the right zone and allow for a productive struggle or
some learners will shut down if they feel it is too far out of reach, even if you threaten
them with a failing grade."

"This also means that the right task or product will likely be different based on the
learners in the class."

8. "Have Goals and Accountability"

"[B]ecause it is easier to measure, we hold people accountable for standardized tests,


grades, and other data that is easy to capture."

"[S]et goals and hold others accountable for developing the skills that we say we
actually care about like creative thinking, complex thinking and problem solving,
communication, and innovation."

9. "Provide and Use Models"

"There is a lot of talk about creating rather than consuming but to create something
better, I relied on models to inspire new ideas, build off of and stimulate my own
thinking and creativity."

"Models are so powerful in the learning process but so often in school, we have this fear
of copying or cheating."

"If an assignment has only one right answer or final product, maybe there are some
opportunities for it to be revised."

10. "Ensure Time for Reflection"

"[T]aking time to pause and reflect can easily get cut when we lack time but it is often
the most valuable part of the learning process."

Tags

Best Teaching Practices

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