Teaching in the Middle School Final Examination

Question 2

In the classroom, teachers can teach with a learner-centered approach or a subject-centered approach to curriculum. In general, a learner-centered approach focuses on individual students, while a subject-centered curriculum is more about the material that is taught in class.

According to Manning and Bucher, a learner-centered curriculum places priority the student’s needs, well-being, self-esteem, and attitudes (83). The emphasis is on what the students need to be successful, and in the context of a middle school classroom, this often means attention must be paid to the development of these early adolescents. The learner-centered curriculum also goes as far as focusing on the individuality of students, not just the learners themselves. Again, in regards to development, this is important for middle school students—as individuals, all middle school students are at a different stage of development. Then when deciding how class material will be addressed, learner-centered curriculum focuses on individual students or small groups. Because of this, students get to be closer to the material they learn, and education becomes more hands-on. A fourth characteristic of learner-centered curriculum relates to the content of classroom material. According to Manning and Bucher, teachers in a learner-centered classroom focus on the “personal and social problems young adolescents might face” (83). Instead of focusing only on academic content, the lives of individual students and their experience become topics in the classroom. Finally, learner-centered curriculum allows for student input in deciding what content should be covered in class. Students are given the opportunity to contribute their ideas to the lessons teachers prepare. A classroom with too much emphasis on being-learner centered was something I experienced as a seventh grader. My geography