Gerald V.

Lauglaug Batch 10 – Class 57

Facilitating Learning: Issues on Learner-Centered Teaching

By D. Pan
A Reflection

“To act fool is sometimes the greatest wisdom” – Cato. Upon reading this article I
was struck by this saying. As educators sometimes we are perceived as the bearer of all
the knowledge in the world, that we are all capable of answering every questions thrown
to us and that it is our sacred obligation to answer those questions. Teaching indeed is
not an easy task, we need to be very cautious because even the very minute detail like
asking question may affect our learners.

A learner-centered teaching does not necessarily mean letting our students to

teach themselves. Our students will need to be taught how to do meaningful self-
assessment of their work; we cannot expect them to know how to do something they
have never been taught. One of the basic facts that all teachers know about the
learning process is: the one who does the work does the learning. But being able to
successfully do the work in a learner-centered classroom will require most students to
advance their learning skills. Questions play important role in learning process in order to
assess the level of mastery of our learners. However, questions are not just mere questions,
with need to have a level of questioning that will HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills) and
enable them to analyze the problem as what they have understood it.

In my six years as teacher, I have done varied strategies and techniques in my

lesson that I can say I have applied a learner-centered instruction. I have conducted
activities and projects that will enhance students’ creative thinking and encourage
collaboration among them. In one of my classes in senior high school in MIL (Media and
Information Literacy), their project is to create a music video applying all the lessons
they’ve learned in my class and it was very amazing. They come-up with a very creative
output using very minimal materials.

The challenge in learner-centered instruction is the fact that teachers are very
limited in terms of strategies, techniques and resources in this kind of classroom instruction.
Some teachers remain very traditional as far as teaching techniques is concern due to
the fact that they lack seminars to be updated and improved as educator. In general,
the education system of our country though striving hard to provide the best education
to its citizens and to make them globally competitive is still in the process of stabilizing the
effect caused by the changing of curriculum for good.