TCL vs SCL

To impart knowledge, instructors have traditionally lectured, assuming that students were
taking notes and absorbing concepts. Of course, teachers never knew how well their
students were learning until they graded the essays and exams. In this teacher-centered
learning model, students learn passively, focusing upon the instructor's presentation. In
contrast, student-centered learning requires active participation from students, forcing them
to interact and construct their own knowledge. The instructor assists but does not dictate.
The student-centered approach, promoting engagement and collaboration, questions the
assumptions underlying the traditional approach.

Assumptions
The notion that any knowledgeable expert can teach underlies the teacher-centered
approach, according to WGBH Educational Foundation's Getting Results, an online
professional development course for educators. In contrast, a student-centered approach
assumes that instructors need not only mastery of content but also knowledge of active
learning strategies. Whereas a teacher-centered approach assumes that students can
succeed if they study sufficiently outside of class, the student-centered approach presumes
that students become more successful if they understand their own learning styles and
participate actively in class

Engagement
Traditionally, our classrooms have focused on instruction, rather than learning, according to
the American Association of Community Colleges. Switching to a student-centered
approach, instructors become facilitators, rather than lecturers. Online games and short,
interactive exercises provide immediate feedback to instructors and students during the
learning process, rather than after a test. For example, if students participate in a Jeopardy
game prior to the test, the instructor can immediately gauge their level of understanding. At
the end of class, an instructor may ask students to write a one-minute statement about their
learning that day. If students indicate confusion about concepts, instructors have the
feedback to provide future intervention.

Collaboration
In a traditional classroom, relationships among students and instructors often remain
distant. Students may simply take notes during a lecture and then leave. Through
collaborative learning --- small group projects, online discussion boards, chat rooms and
peer evaluation -- student-centered learning can take place. Rather than passively
absorbing content, students in a student-centered classroom can discover concepts and
build their own understanding through interaction with the instructor and fellow students.

Terminology
The University of the Sciences notes that many educators use the terms "student-
centered," "learner-centered" and "learning-centered" interchangeably, although subtle
differences exist. Some teachers object to "student-centered" because they feel it implies a
consumer mentality, providing too much power to students. The League for Innovation in
Community Colleges indicates that since the early 1990s, many community colleges have
changed their terminology; instead of using "student-centered" and "teaching-centered,"
they have focused on "learning centered" to prioritize learning as the primary goal. In
practice, many educators use the terms "student-centered" and "learning-centered"
synonymously and recognize the shortcomings of the teacher-centered approach.