“Learning-Centered” as Opposed to “Learner-Centered”?

Anderson asserts that a theory of online learning needs to reflect what is known about effective learning environments in general, and that the attributes of learning are; learner-centred, knowledge-centred, assessment-centred and community-centred. I found Anderson’s descriptions of some of the terms somewhat limited, and I wonder if it has to do with how Anderson sees them in a post-secondary environment as oppose to a K-12 context.

Anderson uses “learner-centred” to refer to the idea that the context of the learner, specifically his or her background, and prior knowledge be understood by the teacher, and that the learning environment take this into account, more for the purpose of the teacher correcting any “misconceptions the learner starts with in their construction of new knowledge” (47), than for anything else. While I see this as necessary in the most effective learning environments, I think Anderson’s view is narrowly constructed.  Anderson’s assertion that the focus would be better termed “learning-centred” rather than learner-centred is problematic to me in that it assumes a standard learner and ignore the real diversity in learners. I have seen examples of online learning support diversity in learners more in 8-12 contexts (as opposed to most – but not all – post-secondary contexts I have experiences) where students are able to access information in different formats and represent their learning in different ways.

Regarding “community-centred” learning, I have experienced some online courses that have been able to develop a sense of community among the learners in an online environment. When I think about these situations, the following factors have been present:

•  Multiple opportunities for students to work together in smaller groups
• A learning environment where learners were encouraged to take risks
• A learning environment where learners were asked to help each other learn

On a different (but related) note, there has been some work done by the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation in the OECD called the Innovative Learning Environments Project which also refers to attributes or principles of learning. The Nature of Learning: Using Research to Inspire Practice is a lengthy document, but worth the read. Chapter 8 specifically deals with Learning with Technology and provides a framework to distinguish the difference between technology-centred and learner-centred approaches to learning with technology. The chapter can be found here.

The research for the project was synthesized to identify 7 principles of learning. They include the following concepts:

•  Learners at the centre of the learning (includes self-regulation)
• The social nature of learning (encourages the well-organized cooperative learning)
• Emotions are integral to learning (recognizing the role of emotions in achievement)
• Recognizing individual differences (includes recognizing prior knowledge and makes room for differentiation)
• Stretching all students (work is challenging without excessive overload)
• Assessment for learning (a strong emphasis on effective formative assessment)
• Building horizontal connections (promoting connectedness across community and the wider world)

(from The Nature of Learning: Using Research to Inspire Practice – Practitioner Guide from the Innovative Learning Environments Project available here)

Jo