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A Tour of Learner-Centered Classrooms
A tour through St. Edmund's classrooms demonstrates the many ways learner-centered classes engage and educate students.
It’s one thing to hear about student-centered learning, and it’s another experience to be able to see it in action. On a recent “tour” I took, I discovered nuggets of learning that paint a picture of what intentional and sustained learner-centered classrooms look like. While many of our nation’s schools have struggled to meet the individual needs of students, we remain committed to building in opportunities for authentic engagement and meaningful experiences.
Here is a snapshot of what I observed:
Phipps Conservatory visits Preschool to teach children about the anatomy of a pumpkin.
Ms. Ditommaso facilitates a Math in Focus lesson and uses storytelling to teach math. The Kindergarteners applied new concepts as they came up with stories about vegetables in a garden.
The Language Lab in third grade creates a system where students take ownership of their learning and rotate to different centers throughout the language arts block.
Fourth grade students are assessed on their critical thinking and communication skills during a social studies unit on United States regions.
Seventh grade students learn about force, motion, and engineering and design during an egg drop experiment in science.
In each instance, students became curators of their own knowledge and teachers became facilitators for learning. They knew what types of questions to ask and used their imagination to generate new ideas, conduct research, and test them. As we begin exploring options for a new school schedule, our hope is to build on aspects of the program that have made St. Edmund’s Academy successful, while expanding opportunities for interdisciplinary learning, choices for electives, and signature partnerships in the city of Pittsburgh. We owe it to our students to develop their passions in a dynamic learning environment, and we look forward to what lies ahead.
Thu-Nga Morris
Academic Dean and Director of Curriculum
St. Edmund's Academy
Guided by our Core Values and commitment to high standards, St. Edmund’s Academy provides a diverse, inclusive, and nurturing learning community where students are known, valued, and challenged to achieve their potential.
