I agree with Tzvi Daum that one key obstacle is the lack of limudei kodesh content resources available for students. On that note, the resources at torahskills.org are indeed a valuable support.
At the same time, I think that this post highlights a lack of clarity around what student centered learning means. Many of us are eager to see classes move away from a sage on the stage, teacher centered approach, and rightly so. However, we often make the quick jump to assume that if teacher centered means the teacher is talking, then all we need to do is switch to individual or group work and we will have achieved the goal of becoming student centered.
I believe that student centered learning means much more than pivoting to group work. If we want to create a student centered classroom we have to ask ourselves how we can turn the student into the subject rather than the object of the learning process. Doing so necessitates not only pulling the teacher offstage but also creating an environment in which the student can make meaningful choices about his or her own learning and take an active role in shaping the learning process.
Of course, students' lack of facility with Hebrew text is an obstacle in this regard (as has been pointed out in the standards thread on this forum). However, online translations and worksheets are not the solution. In fact, the nature of these resources is inevitably such that they pose their own challenge as they tend to box students into a specific learning path. A skilled teacher must know how to stimulate the essential questions, to set the students on their path of exploration, and to ensure that each path leads the students to master the key skills and content standards to enable future growth. Such a teacher can then employ these resources such that they open doors for students to truly play a leading role in their own learning.
Barry Kislowicz
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/14/2016 10:50PM by mlb.
