I fail to see how you are going to do 'student centered' math education in a manner that allows students to progress at a rate that is appropriate for them. Indeed, there is so much material to cover that anything but teacher/tutor/AI led is all but irresponsible. Yes, you may have a small fraction of auto-didacts and near auto-didacts who can move mostly on their own, but they still will need occasional instructor support. And how are you going to handle 'student centered' learning in a class that requires reading when you have students with reading levels of 12th grade and above with students who are not functionally literate?
I very much doubt that it can be done in one classroom after the earliest grades - the dispersion in abilities and competencies will be too much. This is particularly true in areas that are cumulative - such as math. It is quite possible to have students with rudimentary arithmetic as well as students mastering algebra in the same class if you do not have tracking.
Thank you for your work on this topic. I am very interested in the inquiry vs instruction or teacher led vs child led debate - have been for some time now. Was wondering if you had a take on a completely child led approach to education like the democratic model? I am still actively looking into the topic, so would be interested to hear your perspective.
An important reminder that good intentions don’t always lead to equitable outcomes. Autonomy without strong foundations can unintentionally widen gaps, particularly for students with less support outside school.
The key point is sequencing. Clear explanations, modelling, and guided practice help build the knowledge that makes later independence possible.
Equity isn’t about choosing teacher-led or student-centred approaches—it’s about using the right support at the right time.
There is so much left unsaid here. I used to teach 2nd language learning at the college level. I taught student-centered (guide on the side). I was downgraded by staff observers who would come in for 5 minutes at the beginning of class and comment on how there was too much teacher-talk. Was I a sage on the stage? Well, you have to explain lesson material and the gist for the method you study. Many of my learners came from traditional teacher-fronted classrooms and wanted correction of...every...single...mistake...when speaking. However, if you do this, of course, it leads to little to no interaction. Furthermore, they don't understand your correction. You have to show why and not tell why. In other words, they won't understand your grammatical correction. Student: "What is second conditional? What do you mean teacher?" Anyway, there should be a mix of these two ways, but if learners comprehend through experience the basis of student-centered, it will lead to more interaction and more language learning. There is a lot of missing context here, but this is the best I can do.
and before clear explanation there needs a clear understanding of how English actually works, without parroting what is in mainstream textbooks worldwide.
So "drilling" by experienced instructors works. We knew that for 000s of years. The military has never forgotten it. Yet teaching experts are just rediscovering it?
What, if anything, does the literature say about when students already know a lot of the material to be taught? Or who come from privileged backgrounds? If we work in a place where we do not directly impact issues of equity, does this study still suggest teacher-directed instruction is best?
Several good questions. We believe we have the ultimate and future of teaching English today @GoGiEngl check out our autonomous personal learning device PLD.. probably the most equitable teachers today. (Several builtin accurate expert English teachers) .. and much more..
I fail to see how you are going to do 'student centered' math education in a manner that allows students to progress at a rate that is appropriate for them. Indeed, there is so much material to cover that anything but teacher/tutor/AI led is all but irresponsible. Yes, you may have a small fraction of auto-didacts and near auto-didacts who can move mostly on their own, but they still will need occasional instructor support. And how are you going to handle 'student centered' learning in a class that requires reading when you have students with reading levels of 12th grade and above with students who are not functionally literate?
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I very much doubt that it can be done in one classroom after the earliest grades - the dispersion in abilities and competencies will be too much. This is particularly true in areas that are cumulative - such as math. It is quite possible to have students with rudimentary arithmetic as well as students mastering algebra in the same class if you do not have tracking.
I appreciate how nuanced this approach is, rather than a pendulum swing. Thank you!
Thank you for your work on this topic. I am very interested in the inquiry vs instruction or teacher led vs child led debate - have been for some time now. Was wondering if you had a take on a completely child led approach to education like the democratic model? I am still actively looking into the topic, so would be interested to hear your perspective.
Would also be curious to hear your take on a recent article I wrote that is relevant to both equitable education in Finland and child centred learning. Hope you don’t mind me attaching a link here: https://samuelkammin.substack.com/p/the-path-of-abstraction-a-finnish?r=7412wc&utm_medium=ios
An important reminder that good intentions don’t always lead to equitable outcomes. Autonomy without strong foundations can unintentionally widen gaps, particularly for students with less support outside school.
The key point is sequencing. Clear explanations, modelling, and guided practice help build the knowledge that makes later independence possible.
Equity isn’t about choosing teacher-led or student-centred approaches—it’s about using the right support at the right time.
Thanks for the article!
There is so much left unsaid here. I used to teach 2nd language learning at the college level. I taught student-centered (guide on the side). I was downgraded by staff observers who would come in for 5 minutes at the beginning of class and comment on how there was too much teacher-talk. Was I a sage on the stage? Well, you have to explain lesson material and the gist for the method you study. Many of my learners came from traditional teacher-fronted classrooms and wanted correction of...every...single...mistake...when speaking. However, if you do this, of course, it leads to little to no interaction. Furthermore, they don't understand your correction. You have to show why and not tell why. In other words, they won't understand your grammatical correction. Student: "What is second conditional? What do you mean teacher?" Anyway, there should be a mix of these two ways, but if learners comprehend through experience the basis of student-centered, it will lead to more interaction and more language learning. There is a lot of missing context here, but this is the best I can do.
You might find some interesting ideas at @GoGiEngl
and before clear explanation there needs a clear understanding of how English actually works, without parroting what is in mainstream textbooks worldwide.
Here's something amazing from the Big Boss Rosenshine himself: https://youtu.be/r9CkeA5RC0Q?si=sUTgNibin3TUahVL
So "drilling" by experienced instructors works. We knew that for 000s of years. The military has never forgotten it. Yet teaching experts are just rediscovering it?
What, if anything, does the literature say about when students already know a lot of the material to be taught? Or who come from privileged backgrounds? If we work in a place where we do not directly impact issues of equity, does this study still suggest teacher-directed instruction is best?
Several good questions. We believe we have the ultimate and future of teaching English today @GoGiEngl check out our autonomous personal learning device PLD.. probably the most equitable teachers today. (Several builtin accurate expert English teachers) .. and much more..
Good questions. @GoGiEngl
@GoGiEngl we handle all that Mr. Jim Hewitt queries.