DIMENSIONS OF LEARNER-CENTERED TEACHING

The Five (or Six) Dimensions of Learning

Learning theorists have argued that learning and development are not like an assembly-line which can be broken down into discrete steps occurring with machine-time precision,
but an organic process that unfolds in complex ways according to its own pace and rhythm. Teaching and learning occurs in complex ecosystems, dynamic environments where
teachers, students, materials and supplies, texts, technologies, concepts, social structures, and architectures are interdependently related and interactive. Using the Learning
Record, the teacher (and student) is actively searching for, and documenting, positive evidence of student development across five dimensions: confidence and independence,
knowledge and understanding, skills and strategies, use of prior and emerging experience, and critical reflection. These five dimensions cannot be "separated out" and treated
individually; rather, they are dynamically interwoven. Our goals for a particular class should describe a trajectory of learning across multiple dimensions, and our measurements
should be able to identify the paths taken by students and their progress from their individual starting points along that trajectory.

Individually, learners can expect to make progress across these five dimensions:

Confidence and independence

We see growth and development when learners' confidence and independence become congruent with their actual abilities and skills, content knowledge, use of experience, and
reflectiveness about their own learning. It is not a simple case of "more (confidence and independence) is better." In a science class, for example, an overconfident student who
has relied on faulty or underdeveloped skills and strategies learns to seek help when facing an obstacle; or a shy student begins to trust her own abilities, and to insist on
presenting her own point of view in discussion. In both cases, students are developing along the dimension of confidence and independence.

Skills and strategies

Skills and strategies represent the "know-how" aspect of learning. When we speak of "performance" or "mastery," we generally mean that learners have developed skills and
strategies to function successfully in certain situations. Skills and strategies are not only specific to particular disciplines, but often cross disciplinary boundaries. In a writing class,
for example, students develop many specific skills and strategies involved in composing and communicating effectively, from research to concept development to organization to
polishing grammar and correctness, and often including technological skills for computer communication.

Knowledge and Understanding

Knowledge and understanding refers to the "content" knowledge gained in particular subject areas. Knowledge and understanding is the most familiar dimension, focusing on the
"know-what" aspect of learning. In a psychology class, knowledge and understanding might answer a wide range of questions such as, What is Freud’s concept of ego? Who was
Carl Jung? What is “behaviorism”? These are typical content questions. Knowledge and understanding in such classes includes what students are learning about the topics;
research methods; the theories, concepts, and practices of a discipline; the methods of organizing and presenting our ideas to others, and so on.
Use of prior and emerging experience
The use of prior and emerging experience involves learners’ abilities to draw on their own experience and connect it to their work. A crucial but often unrecognized dimension of
learning is the capacity to make use of prior experience as well as emerging experience in new situations. It is necessary to observe learners over a period of time while they
engage in a variety of activities in order to account for the development of this important capability, which is at the heart of creative thinking and its application. With traditional
methods of evaluating learning, we cannot discover just how a learner's prior experience might be brought to bear to help scaffold new understandings, or how ongoing experience
shapes the content knowledge or skills and strategies the learner is developing. In a math class, students scaffold new knowledge through applying the principles and procedures
they’ve already learned: algebra depends on the capacity to apply basic arthimetic procedures, for example.

Reflection
Reflection refers to the developing awareness of the learner’s own learning process, as well as more analytical approaches to the subject being studied. When we speak of
reflection as a crucial component of learning, we are not using the term in its commonsense meaning of reverie or abstract introspection. We are referring to the development of
the learner's ability to step back and consider a situation critically and analytically, with growing insight into his or her own learning processes, a kind of metacognition. It provides
the "big picture" for the specific details. For example, students in a history class examining fragmentary documents and researching an era or event use reflection to discover
patterns in the evidence and construct a historical narrative. Learners need to develop this capability in order to use what they are learning in other contexts, to recognize the
limitations or obstacles confronting them in a given situation, to take advantage of their prior knowledge and experience, and to strengthen their own performance.

An optional dimension: Creativity, originality, imagination

As learners gain confidence and independence, knowledge and understanding, skills and strategies, ability to use prior and emerging experience in new situations, and
reflectiveness, they generally become more playful and experimental, more creative in the expression of that learning. This is true not only in "creative" fields such as the arts, but
in nearly all domains: research, argumentation, history, psychology, mathematics. In all fields the primary contributions to the field at the highest levels are the result of creative
or imaginative work. Even in the early stages of learning in a discipline, exploration and experimentation, taking new or unexpected perspectives, and playfulness should be
recognized and encouraged as a natural part of the learning process. This optional dimension may be adopted as part of the Learning Record by teachers or schools to make
explicit the value of creativity, originality, and imagination in students' development and achievement. Among other things, it recognizes the value of creative experimentation
even when the final result of the work may not succeed as the student may hope. If we hope to foster this quality in students’ thinking and development, it is important to
encourage it, to document it, and to explicitly make it a value. We make this dimension optional because there are certain classes that depend on the transfer of information (as in
human anatomy, for example) or the acquisition of fundamentally technical skills (calculus, for example) where creativity and imagination may not play a significant role.

Source: http://www.learningrecord.org/dimensions.html

Learner-Centered Teaching
In teaching, consider the following questions:
  What is the role of the teacher?
 What is the balance of power?
 What is the function of content?
 Whose responsibility is it for learning?
 What is the purpose and process of evaluation?
Most respond to these questions from a traditional point of view. The faculty give students content to learn. Evaluation is for students to show faculty what they know. Faculty
have all the power. Another perspective to these the questions is called Learner-Centered Teaching (LCT). In their seminal paper, Barr and Tagg (1995) argue that teaching needs
to shift from an instruction-centered focus to a focus on student learning. So to move to a learner center approach, Weimer invites us to consider the five questions that we posed at
the beginning of this blog post. These questions challenge our assumptions about teaching and invite us to rethink our approach to undergraduate education.
What does LCT look like in practice? Phyllis Blumberg (2009 pg 19-20 table 1.2) developed the rubric below that contrast instructor-center and learner-center approaches to
teaching based on Wiemer's 5 dimensions of of LCT. 
 
Definition of this
Dimension An Essential Component Instructor-Centered Approach Learner-Centered Approach 
Dimension 
Content includes building a
Instructor encourages students to
knowledge base, how the Level to which students Instructor allows students to memorize
The Function of Content transform and reflect on most the content
instructor and the students engage content. content.
to make their own meaning out of it. 
use the content.
Instructor:
Instructors uses teaching
An essential role of the  Does not have specific learning goals Instructor intentionally uses various
and learning methods
The Role of the Instructor instructor is to assist and/or teaching and learning methods that are
appropriate for student
students to learn.  appropriate for student learning goals.
learning goals.   Uses teaching and learning methods
that conflict with learning goals
The Responsibility for Students should assume Responsibility for learning Instructor assumes all responsibility for Instructor provides increasing
Learning greater responsibility for should rest with the students learning (provides content to opportunities for students to assume
their own learning over students.  memorize, does not require students to responsibility for their own learning,
 create their own meaning of content, tells
leading to achievement of stated learning
time.  students exactly what will be on
objectives. 
examinations).  
Instructor
Consistently throughout the learning
There are additional
Formative assessment  Uses only summative assessment (to process, instructor integrate
The Purposes and purposes and processes of
(giving feedback to foster make decisions to assign grades)
Processes of Assessment assessment beyond  Formative assessment
improvement. 
assigning grades.   Provides students with no
 Constructive feedback 
constructive feedback 
Instructor is flexible on most
 Course policies

Instructor mandates all policies and  Assessment methods

The balance of power shifts Flexibility of course
deadlines.  Learning methods
so that the instructor shares policies, assessment
The Balance of Power
some decisions about the methods, learning methods, or  Deadlines
course with the students.  and deadlines.  
Instructor does not adhere to policies.   and
Instructor always adheres to what
instructor has agreed to with the
students. 
 
 
Barr, R. B. & Tagg, J. (1995). From teaching to learning - a new paradigm for undergraduate education. Change, 27(6), 12-26. 
Blumberg, P. (2009). Developing Learner-Centered Teaching: A Practical Guide for Faculty.  San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 
Weimer, M. (2013). Learner-Centered Teaching: Five Keys to Practice 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
Posted by Office of Teaching and Learning on August 09, 2019.
Focusing on Learning Instead of Teaching
“Learning cannot be accomplished by teachers or instructors; it must be accomplished by learners.” – Seven Principles of Learning, UNT Teaching
Commons

Viewing learning as something accomplished by learners, rather than caused by teachers is often referred to as learner-centered teaching. Maryellen
Weimer, who has written several books and articles about this topic, defines learner-centered teaching as teaching that makes learners responsible for
learning (2013). Learner-centered education makes sense from our new understandings based on neuroscience of how learners learn (NEA, 2008). As this
approach is a paradigm shift from traditional teacher-centered instruction, this article overviews some of the mental shifts necessary for thinking from a
learner-centered perspective.

Becoming learner-centered leads us to focus our teaching directly on learning. It does not mean placing the students in charge! We need to avoid the
mistaken viewpoint that teachers are here to serve our customers, the students, and to deliver education to them. Weimer (2013) states that learner-
centered teaching involves students in:

 Practicing, working with difficult problems, and developing learning skills. Weimer calls this work the “messy work of learning.”

 Learning how to learn. Teachers teach students how to learn while they are teaching content.

 Reflecting and assessing their own learning and taking responsibility for modifying approaches to strengthen their skills.

 Having control over some of their learning processes such as making choices about assignments and helping to develop course policies.

 Learning collaboratively from one another and from their teachers.

Dimensions of Learner-Centered Teaching

Blumberg (2009) and Weimer (2013) describe dimensions of learner-centered teaching and contrast them with dimensions of instructor-centered teaching.
We have outlined these dimensions in the following sections.
Content
Per Blumberg (2009): “Instructor-centered approaches focus on building a large knowledge base, perhaps at the expense of the learners’ ability to use it or
to engage in a meaningful way with the content” (p. 73). In other words, instructors “cover” the content and construct tests to measure students’ retention
(Weimer, 2013).

In a learner-centered environment, learners are aware of the reasons for learning the content, develop ways to learn about the content that are
appropriate for the discipline, and practice solving real world problems based upon the content.

Instructor Responsibility
In an instructor-centered approach, instructors often focus on delivering content through lectures and demonstration. In a learner-centered approach, the
instructor assists the students with accessing and working with content. There is a shift from instructors allocating time for lecture preparation to time
planning ways to help learners achieve learning goals and outcomes for the course. The instructor is planning what the learners are going to do in the
class rather than preparing slides to deliver content (Blumberg, 2009). 

Student Responsibility
In an instructor-centered classroom, “instructors take responsibility for their students’ learning, they define what will be learned, direct how it will be
learned, and determine how well it is learned” (Blumberg, 2009, p. 127). On the other hand, in a learner-centered approach, the instructor assists the
learners to develop and practice learning skills that they can carry into their future as lifelong learners. Learners develop the skills to assess their own
learning and apply the learning to their lives and interests. 
Assessment
In an instructor-centered course, one might see course requirements such as readings, four tests, and a final. Assessment is generally summative,
providing end of course grades. In a learner-centered course, along with summative assessments, one might also see multiple projects with self-
assessment and reflection, self-tests, clickers for feedback about student understanding of concepts, etc. Assessment continuously provides feedback to
learners. 

Power
Learner-centered teaching does not remove the power or authority of the teacher. Rather, learners share some of the power in the classroom. Unlike an
instructor-driven course, learners have the option to explore content outside the boundaries of what instructors have provided. They have opportunities
to express alternative opinions and choose different ways to apply content. Learners even have some power to assist in making policies for the course.

Learner-centered teaching can reframe how we think about teaching, but it does not erase the significance of the teacher to impact learning, nor does it
entirely eradicate traditional methods of teaching. For example, sometimes lecturing is the best method of transferring content to learner. As novice
learners, students often need help to access content and determine what is important. 

Incorporating Learner-Centered Teaching into Your Teaching

From a review of the literature and our experiences, there are multiple strategies that instructors can employ to cultivate a more learner-centered
environment. You can:

 Prompt learners to reflect and describe what they learned from or after a given activity.
  Give learners the opportunity to practice different learning skills.

 Help novice learners understand concepts by engaging in concept linking activities such as concept mapping.

 Develop learning outcomes tied to assessments and make learning outcomes clear to learners.

 Offer learners options such as selecting project topics.

References
Blumberg, P. (2009). Developing Learner-Centered Teaching: A Practical Guide for Faculty. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Center for Learning Experimentation, Application, and Research. (2016). Teaching Resources for Engaged Educators [online training modules]. Denton, TX:
University of North Texas.

Center for Learning Experimentation, Application, and Research. (n.d.). Seven Principles of Learning. UNT Teaching Commons. Retrieved from https://vfd-
dev.unt.edu/teaching-essentials/student-learning/seven-principles-learning

National Education Association. (2008). A Clear Rationale for Learner-Centered Teaching. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/34221.htm

Weimer, M. (2013). Learner-Centered Teaching: Five Key Changes to Practice. (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.