One of the first people to define Student-centered education was John Dewey at the turn of the twentieth century. Although many other scholars had the initiative and desire to implement these ideas in the classroom, Dewey with the support of his neighbors was able to materialize this dream. In a series of papers based on the direct experience he acquired from his reformed school, Dewey explains what student-centered education is and the need is there for it. In Dewey’s work there is a series of ideas that others had expressed in the passed but that he rephrased in order to have a concrete definition to present to those who didn’t quite buy the idea of focusing on the student rather than on knowledge alone.

And thirdly we must look at the interests of the children. Child-centered education bases its curriculum in developing the interests the children already have. This also sounds like an interesting way to get to know the child, it also gives grounds for children to learn better since “there is no doubt that children do work better and learn more effectively when they are interested in that they are being required to do”. However, with this too Kelly finds drawbacks since it would be difficult to find the true interest of these children. It would be difficult to separate between an “abiding interest” from a mere “inclination”. Even sorting this question he points out there will remain others such as how would we know what are the interest of the children?

‘And that,” says John Dewey, “Tells the story of the traditional education’ ”

Below there is an example of the type of lesson one may find in a child-centered classroom. This lesson plan illustrates the way a teacher can be guided and guide his/her own students through an expressed interest by them. This lesson plan follows step by step the process of learning through experience (as against learning by learning by memorization). First it shows the interest that had been expressed by the children and ways how the teacher can stimulate the curiosity for this interest. This is immediately followed by the possible questions children may come up with, questions concerning different aspects of the same interest. Then follows the section that specifies what subject matters, such as history, mathematics, literature, science, etc., will help answer these questions. The next and last sections deal with the possible outcomes and “new interests leading toward further activity”. These last two are part of the description of the “total personality as modified by the foregoing experiences” which describes what happened to the children as a result of learning about this particular interest.

In a book published in 1977 from an author named A.V. Kelly, very different ideas from Dewey’s and Sener are expressed. The name of the book is The Curriculum: Practice and Theory points at Rousseau as the pioneer to the idea of child-centered education. Kelly believes that Rousseau planted the seed of this concept while others like Forebel, Montessory and Dewey brought it forward. According to Kelly the reason these educators felt the need for change in the way children were being taught was because the curriculum planning was more often than not based solely on knowledge.

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