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Unit 3: A Learner-Centered Environment

Estimated Duration for Study:

Learning Outcomes:
After the studying the materials, you should be able to:

1. Describe a learner-centered environment that promote fairness, respect and care to

encourage learning;
2. Plan and design a learning space indicating flexibility in accommodating learners’
needs; and
3. Craft a Personal Plan of your perceived ideal learner-centered environment

PRIMING

The Classroom Climate

The Classroom Climate is a psychological, social, cognitive, emotional and physical

environment where learners acquire knowledge and skills through interaction between and
among the teacher and the learners. It is influenced by the psychological environment and
the physical setting.

Facilitating learning can effectively take place when learners feel secured and not
threatened. This is ensured when the teacher creates a positive atmosphere.

Study the succeeding facts sheet, article and blog related to creating a conducive
classroom climate. Determine how you can create an ideal climate that establishes a
learner-centered environment and be able to answer the given task as directed.

I have placed the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the materials I would like you
to read. However, for those who may have weak or no internet connectivity, I placed the
images of these blogs and articles so you can easily read them. Credit goes to the respective
authors and I do hope you learn well just as I how I have learned so much on how they try
to create an environment that is learner-centered.

https://www.educationcorner.com/developing-a-student-centered-classroom.html
Developing a Student-centered Classroom by Becton Loveless

https://www.gettingsmart.com/2017/08/8-things-look-student-centered-learning-environment/8
Things to Look For in a Student-Centered Learning Environment By Emily Liebtag August 9, 2017

http://lighthouse.bcps.org/learner-centered-environments.html
Learner-Centered Environments

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DEEPENING

The first material is a blog by Becton Loveless. The blog discusses how the
environment can become a welcoming place for learners making them feel accepted for
whoever or whatever they have. It is a place where their space is respected and they feel
valued and recognized for their unique personhood.

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This next
site is
very

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informative. It contains videos and images of learning spaces that address the needs
of learners.

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ASSESSING
Write your answers in the Answer Sheet provided/appended in this section.

After going over the materials, you may have gained some points on how you can create the
right climate for a learner-centered classroom.

Required Task: Create an Acrostic of CLASSROOM

CLIMATE
Using each letter, compose an acrostic of a clear description
of your idea of a classroom climate that you envision your
classroom for yourself.

The Physical Classroom as a Learning Space

PRIMING

When you visit a classroom in most of the schools around, you can see a set-up that looks
like the one in Image A. Perhaps, like me, you may have been in a classroom that is
arranged in a manner like this.

Image A

Compare this with the classroom arrangements that are shown in the succeeding images.

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Image B
Image C

What are your observations? Why are these classrooms arranged is such ways?
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DEEPENING

Classroom climate does not only refer to the emotional and psychological
environment but also to the physical environment. We are usually affected by the physical
condition around us. In this context, we can learn more efficiently when we are in a place
that is clean, pleasant and conducive to study.

A learning space should have the right amount of furniture, chairs, cabinets, bulletin
boards among others that are arranged in such a way that there is ease in mobility and
allows interaction among the learners. The teacher can see everybody and that the learners
can likewise see the blackboard or a focal instruction point when needed. The area should
have enough lighting, it has to be well-ventilated, safe and clean. It is advisable that every
learner is assigned a work space and seating arrangement is flexible so that it is easy for
them to work in groups.

Based on minimum standards issued by DepED, the size of the classroom for

elementary and secondary schools must be 7.0 meters in width/depth x 9.00 meters in
length or 9.00 meters in width/depth x 7.00 meters in length measured from the centers of
the walls.

An image of the perspective of a DepED Building

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I would like to suggest some ideas that may excite you in designing your own
learning space plan. Accompanying this material is a powerpoint presentation containing five
principles that you can consider when planning and designing your 21st-century classroom.
Look for the powerpoint presentation (in pdf) and study it. I have also placed some
interesting classroom designs that allow flexibility inside the classroom.

The Virtual Classroom – An Alternative Learning Space

With COVID-19 pandemic that affected our human engagements inside a physical
classroom, there is another place called the Virtual Classroom. This has become an
alternative learning space.

At present, we are all experiencing a mediated way of communicating because the

institution opted to give prime importance to our safety and health. The set-up of remote
learning is not new at WVSU because we initiated a Distance Education Program since
2004. Initially it was through the modular mode which in fact is still being used as the label
of the offerings. However, this was converted into an online flexible learning mode. The
University Distance Education Program (UDEP) offers programs for graduate and post-
baccalaureate levels.

The virtual classroom poses a challenge on how it is managed. The teacher called
the online tutor has to possess certain technological skills and discourse competence to be
able to effectively navigate through the learning management system while guiding and
engaging the course participants in learning. Although the demand to learn is given to the
learner, just like in your case, the online tutor has to ensure that he facilitates learning
effectively despite the mediation and remote distance.

It is no excuse for the online tutor to just leave everything to the learner. Engagement
and monitoring of learning have to be done in a virtual classroom. In fact much more effort is
required when you facilitate learning in a distance mode because learning is mediated and
usually reaction or feedback is a bit delayed. So one’s presence has to be evident.
This is called Social Presence in a distance class or remote learning. Social Presence is
defined as the degree of an individual to feel connected with classmates and teacher in an
online community.

Like in the physical classroom, the virtual classroom should also have an atmosphere
that is supportive of the needs of the learners. Sung and Mayer (2012) in their article Five
Facets of Social Presence in Online Learning stated that social respect (e.g. giving timely
responses), social sharing (sharing information or expressing beliefs which makes the
learners understand that you are reading their work and reacting to their ideas), an open
mind (e.g. establishing a welcoming feeling as you provide encouraging feedback), social
identity (e.g. being called by name) and intimacy (e.g. sharing personal experiences and
creating an atmosphere that you are a co-learner) can have a positive effect on establishing
a classroom climate conducive for remote learning.

I would like you to study the infographics entitled, How to Humanize Your Online
Class. Write your answers to the following trigger questions: What are your takeaways by
reading the material? How can you make you presence felt if ever you will handle remote
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learning? What classroom policy will you make so your learners will be oriented on what they
should expect from you as their teacher?
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ASSESSING
Write your answers in the Answer Sheet provided/appended in this section.

Required Task: A Personal Plan of a Learner-

Centered Environment – This is one’s desired vision
of his teaching context which should include the design
of a learning space and the classroom management
policies in facilitating a learner-centered environment.

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References:

Lucas, R. and Corpus, B. (2014). Facilitating learning: A metacognitive approach. 4 th edition.

Lorimar Publishing Inc., Philippines

SEAMEO INNOTECH GURO 21 Facilitating 21st Century Learning retrieved from:

http://iflex.innotech.org/GURO21/Module2/index.html
Suggested materials (blogs, vblogs, sites, OERs, among others) for you to use as reference:

Sung & Mayer (2012) Five facets of social presence in online distance education. Volume 28,
Issue 5 Computer in Human Behavior, Elsevier https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2012.04.014

https://www.educationcorner.com/developing-a-student-centered-classroom.html
Developing a Student-centered Classroom
by Becton Loveless

https://www.gettingsmart.com/2017/08/8-things-look-student-centered-learning-
environment/8 Things to Look For in a Student-Centered Learning Environment
By Emily Liebtag August 9, 2017

http://lighthouse.bcps.org/learner-centered-environments.html
Learner-Centered Environments
https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/five-ways-to-teach-students-
to-be-learning-centered-too/
Five Ways to Teach Students to Be Learning Centered, Too
  November 28, 2018    Carl S. Moore, PhD

https://www.wevideo.com/blog/for-schools/why-is-the-teachers-role-so-important-in-
creating-a-student-centered-classroom
Why is the teacher's role so important in creating a student-centered classroom?
August 9, 2018 / By Dr. Nathan Lang-Raad

Visualizing 21st-Century Classroom Design Retrieved from

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/visualizing-21st-century-classroom-design-mary-wade

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