Student-Centered Learning Made Easy with Instructure: Empowering Education Through Dynamic, Engaging Tools

Student-centred learning (SCL) focuses on understanding and supporting student learning, making their actions and experiences as integral to the process as the teacher’s guidance. This learning paradigm resonates powerfully in Australian universities and institutions, where diversity thrives.

According to the Australian Department of Education, for the first four months of 2023, approximately 590,566 students at Australian universities are international students from 155 different countries. This mixture of cultures presents unique learning opportunities for students and teachers alike. However, to harness this diversity and truly offer a student-centred environment, teachers need a deep understanding of who their students are and the unique set of skills, knowledge, and perspectives they bring.

Catherine Friday, Ernst & Young Global Education Leader and Oceania Government and Health Sciences Managing Partner, sums it up perfectly. She argues that in a true student-centred environment:

• students should be empowered to shape their own learning experiences and pathways. 
• teachers must adapt to new digital learning expectations, such as flexibility, gamification, and personalisation. 
• universities should ensure their remote learning technology is secure, accessible, and equitable.

The ultimate goal is to encourage active engagement from students, fostering a sense of belonging, community, and support while equipping them with critical future workplace skills.

All of this might seem daunting, but thankfully, there are tools to assist in this educational revolution. One such tool is the Instructure Learning Platform. It’s a comprehensive solution designed to help teachers and educators create a personalised learning environment for each student. It facilitates SCL through innovative software, tools, engaging content, professional development resources, and a supportive community.

Here’s how Instructure can revolutionise your courses and help you adopt a student-centred learning approach successfully:

1. Collaboration 

Anchored by Canvas, Instructure opens a world of shared learning opportunities for teachers and students. 

The Canvas Collaborations tool allows for seamless student interaction, making group projects and collective note-taking significantly easier. It eliminates the need for sharing personal contact details, as all the collaborative activities are hosted within the platform. It’s also easy to use, allowing students to concentrate on working together to explore new ideas and build collective knowledge.

Teachers and students can:

• Access Google Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drawings, and Forms directly without opening these tools. Students can start, work on, and submit assignments within Canvas, which helps simplify the learning process, reduce friction, and increase focus on the tasks. Furthermore, these tools allow real-time collaboration, encouraging interaction and fostering a vibrant, collective learning community.
• Comment directly on the media timeline during playback. Students can gain insights from their peers and receive timely feedback from their teachers without needing to navigate away from the content.
• Use familiar conferencing and lecture capture tools like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and GoToMeeting to schedule and conduct virtual meetings.
• Create and manage small communities with Canvas Groups. This allows students to create a collaborative workspace based on their unique needs. 

2. Discussion 

Canvas Discussions allow teachers and students to create a dialogue beyond the traditional classroom. It promotes flexible engagement and gives students time to absorb the material and form thoughtful responses. 

Students and teachers can:

• Create individual journals or personal blogs within the learning group, allowing students to express their understanding creatively. Teachers can then use the insights to tailor their teaching methods to meet students’ individual needs.
• Incorporate various media types like images, videos, documents, and external links into their posts. Such diverse forms of expression facilitate a comprehensive understanding and foster a vibrant, engaging learning environment.
• Use Canvas Chat to create real-time, synchronous communication within a class or group. This instant interaction tool simulates a virtual classroom where students can share ideas, discuss objectives, or seek immediate clarification on their doubts. 

3. Mastery Paths

Mastery Paths is another Instructure tool that can help you accelerate your student-centred learning program. It supports individualised, dynamic learning, catering to each student’s unique skill set and knowledge level. With Mastery Paths, education isn’t one-size-fits-all but intelligently responds to student performance.

With Master Paths, teachers can:

• Assesses students’ understanding and provides activities designed to address their learning gaps. Activities may include additional quizzes, relevant videos, or specific assignments.
• Let students choose their tasks and empower them to take control of their education. This student-centred approach increases motivation and can lead to more effective and enthusiastic learning.
• Adjust each student’s learning path according to their current level of understanding. Students won’t waste time on what they’ve already mastered and will receive support in areas where they need improvement.
• Set up automated remediation. When students encounter difficulties with certain concepts, the platform automatically assigns new tasks to help them overcome their struggles. This ensures no student is left behind, and everyone gets the support they need to progress.
• Track the progress of students and detect any potential learning obstacles. For instance, if a student’s performance declines over several assignments, the teacher can step in with customised support to help the student get back on track.

4. Student Motivation

Instructure motivates students through visual, stackable, and shareable pathways. These are like personal roadmaps that guide students on their journey, allowing them to visualise their progress and maintain learning motivation.

Instructure also supports Credentials, letting students easily curate and showcase their skills, achievements, and professional development. It serves as a portfolio, reflecting the learner’s growth and progress in a tangible, verifiable form.

Moreover, Credentials seamlessly integrate credentials from other platforms. Students can consolidate their achievements from different learning sources, providing a comprehensive view of their skill set. This is a way for students to own their learning journey, while for teachers, it offers a complete picture of a student’s competencies.

5. Formative and Summative assessments

Instructure enables teachers to provide a variety of formative assessments, including assignments, discussions, and surveys. These regular, low-stakes interactions allow ongoing evaluation of student comprehension and learning needs. Meanwhile, summative assessments like quizzes and final grades offer a detailed overview of a student’s mastery of the course material at the end of a learning period.

Instructure also facilitates timely feedback through automatic grading. With the SpeedGrader™ feature, teachers can expedite the grading process, ensuring students receive prompt and consistent feedback. Moreover, teachers can leave personalised advice and comments through audio or video recordings. There’s no need for technical expertise, as Instructure seamlessly connects with the teacher’s laptop or mobile device.

Instructure also supports a mobile app, meaning students can learn and access feedback anytime, anywhere. This will further boost student engagement, accountability, and overall success in their learning journey.

If you want to learn more about the Instructure Learning Platform to implement student-centred learning, sign up for a free demo today