Purpose

There is a need for a shift of the pedagogy to student-centeredness in the teaching–learning process of the higher education sector in countries such as Sri Lanka, where the education system is still identified with the dominant “teacher-centeredness” pedagogy. Within this backdrop, this study aims to understand whether a learner-centred teaching (LCT) can be practised effectively within a postgraduate taught course in Sri Lankan public sector university system.

Design/methodology/approach

Ontologically, this study is placed within the interpretivist paradigm and adopted qualitative methodology. Reflections and experiences of 2 facilitators and 63 participants were thematically analysed.

Findings

Four themes emerged from the data as key phases of LCT-based learning process, namely: “changing role of the facilitators,” “emerging a collaborative learning environment,” “creating a platform for contextualising the knowledge gained in class” and “becoming an owner of the learning.”

Originality/value

Within the learning process, participants became “owners” rather than “renters” because of facilitators maintaining low power distance and participants developing a sense of empowerment, leading to engaging in the learning process willingly. Further, this study shows how the classroom shifted from the state of learner-centred to learner-driven. These novel findings become the main theoretical contribution of this research to existing knowledge.

中文翻译：

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在以学习者为中心的背景下成为“主人”：斯里兰卡在管理和技术研究生授课课程中的经历

目的

在斯里兰卡等国家的高等教育部门的教学过程中，有必要将教学法转变为以学生为中心，那里的教育系统仍然被认为是占主导地位的“以教师为中心”的教学法。在此背景下，本研究旨在了解以学习者为中心的教学 (LCT) 是否可以在斯里兰卡公立大学系统的研究生教学课程中有效实施。

设计/方法/方法

在本体论上，这项研究被置于解释主义范式中，并采用了定性方法。对 2 位辅导员和 63 位参与者的思考和经验进行了主题分析。

发现

作为基于 LCT 的学习过程的关键阶段，数据中出现了四个主题，即：“促进者角色的改变”、“形成协作学习环境”、“创建一个将课堂上获得的知识情境化的平台”和“成为学习的主人。”

原创性/价值

在学习过程中，参与者成为“所有者”而不是“租户”，因为促进者保持低权力距离，参与者发展了一种赋权感，导致自愿参与学习过程。此外，本研究显示了课堂如何从以学习者为中心的状态转变为以学习者为驱动的状态。这些新发现成为本研究对现有知识的主要理论贡献。