Student Centric Learning in Higher Education - A Review

The quality of higher education in India has always been a matter of concern as it directly impacts the future of our nation. Although the industry and the academia both acknowledge that there is something seriously wrong our education system, it is only recently that the learning-teaching process has become the center of discussion and research. The traditional teaching methods have failed to acknowledge the students as individuals. The theatrical mode of teaching places the teacher on the center stage and pushes the student to the background. Whereas researches carried out all over the world suggest that effective learning can happen only when a student is made comfortable and important in the classroom and is given a chance to experience learning in his own way. Also when he is given a chance to be understood as a unique individual with his own special set of qualities, traits and needs, abilities, personality & learning styles (Joshani  Shervan, S. 2008). The paper focuses on the different learning styles that the students bring to the classroom and the need to acknowledge them. There is a need to move to a student centric mode of teaching by understanding how students learn in order to impart education that is effective to prepare the students for the challenges in the world of work. The paper concludes that for the teaching learning process to become more effective, it is imperative that the student becomes an active participant in the process, and is thus actively involved in his own education. This can happen only when the significance of learning styles is not only understood but also catered to in the system of higher education.