Introduction
Faculty often speak in terms of student-centered teaching, but what does this mean and how do we enact it in our curricula? In this booklet, we introduce several fundamental principles of student learning that illustrate how we at CNDLS understand the term, and then show how these principles of learning might inform the development and teaching of a course. Both the development and the teaching are complicated activities, and we can only scratch the surface here of what you might consider. There are many resources that go well beyond what is offered here and we include references to some of those resources.
While we have divided what follows into the two major sections — developing the course and teaching the course — it’s important to see these two activities as intimately related to each other. The way you design the course has implications for the way you teach it, and, assuming you teach the course more than once, your experience while teaching the course should inform your plans as you prepare to teach it again.
We think you’ll find that your teaching practice, like your disciplinary research, becomes more effective and productive to the extent that you approach it rigorously and discuss it with your colleagues. We hope that you will not only test the following principles and methods in your own teaching, but also find opportunities to discuss your teaching experience with others. We encourage you to seek out such opportunities, and we are also happy to consult with you about your teaching practice.
