Teaching Methodologies and Tools for Campus Management

"The true textbook for pupils is their teachers," a quote by Mahatma Gandhi, highlights the significance of teachers, who immensely contribute to an individual’s growth. Also, it indicates that they are the source of knowledge and guidance and aid students in their journey to attain academic excellence. But it is not an easy endeavour; if you are a teacher, you are well aware of the time and effort it takes to evaluate and improve students’ performances.

Furthermore, global educational trends encouraged institutes to make some necessary changes, like adopting unique teaching methodologies. Also, technological advancement led them to integrate specific tools that helped implement the aforementioned methodologies. Moreover, the combination of the right tools and instruction techniques proved to be revolutionary. But if you are still wondering about the best instructional approaches and tools, take a look below:

The Best Teaching Methodologies and Tools for Campus Management

1. Student-Centred Learning

If you look back at the teaching style fifty years or even twenty years ago, you will remember that teachers executed a singular individual approach. Hence, classroom teaching primarily included teacher-centric mechanisms that focused more on how teachers evaluated pupils. Unfortunately, although the approach has been successful in enabling students to do their best, it does not necessarily take all students' learning needs into account.

However, we need to address the glaring issues of the educational system that breed inconsequential assessment processes. And ineffective teaching and learning techniques have been an integral part of the previous system. Besides, you couldn’t possibly forget how flawed the previous practices were, which led to ineffective student outcomes.

But institutes responded to the urgent need to shift towards a more effective and dynamic structure. Instead of restricting the faculty to one-dimensional methods, they encouraged them to research and use diverse pedagogies. So, they researched elaborately on old and new teaching methodologies and applied them in the classroom.

Besides, you might have noticed that the teacher-centric approach predominantly dictates the teacher's role in the classroom and limits students to passive learning. In contrast, if you choose a student-centric system, it will help you create a dynamic classroom environment. Meanwhile, one should understand that the teacher's role will not diminish or become less significant in the approach; they will continue to act as a mediator and guide students accordingly.

Some great examples of student-centric learning are as follows:

• Group Projects: When teachers divide students into groups of four or five, they will work to fulfill a common goal.
• Debates: Institutes have been conducting debates at scholastic events, but if teachers conduct them as a part of classroom activity, it will be more beneficial.
• Role-Playing: Students can act out roles from history, literature, elements, or chemicals, as it is an effective learning technique.
• Group Presentations: When students work collectively on a project, each of them contributes their efforts to make a successful presentation.

Hence, student-centric activities improve communication skills, foster individuality, creativity, and curiosity, and establish active learning.

2. Blended Learning

You probably know about blended learning because schools and colleges have implemented it in the last one to two years. But still, if anyone were to define it, they could refer to it as the combination of traditional, in-person instruction, and technology-assisted learning. It was prevalent before the coronavirus outbreak of 2020 but became a relevant and standardised education platform in the past two years.

Furthermore, blended learning modifies the traditional educational system with the use of modern tools like a learning management system. The tool allows teachers to conduct new and effective classroom and online activities and helps create an engaging learning environment for students.

Some of the important blended learning examples include:

• Flex Learning: Flex learning is also personalised learning that teachers can easily facilitate with an LMS. Also, it enables learners to progress at their own pace, and teachers help them whenever they face difficult situations.
• Rotation: Students participate in rotational activities that occur interchangeably in teacher-directed learning sessions or self-paced tasks.
• Virtual Learning: Students use online digital platforms to complete and submit class assignments and projects. But as per the requirement, they can submit them during face-to-face classes.

3. Inquiry-Based Learning

According to the traditional classroom setting, teachers asked the questions, and students replied to them; although the former encouraged the latter to ask if they had any queries, only a few students voluntarily asked questions. As a result, most often than not, students had unanswered questions and doubts about specific topics or problems. However, if you implement inquiry-based learning, it will help you establish a question-driven mechanism. For instance, you select a core topic, encourage students to explore relevant information, and conduct specific research. Then, they must discuss their ideas with their peers, which will help to establish a solid understanding.

Meanwhile, you can act as an excellent facilitator by providing them with the necessary resources. Finally, you need to evaluate individual presentations of facts and opinions. Besides, you must remember that inquiry-based learning includes opportunities to fail and retry. And you must give constructive feedback based on individual performances.

Also, some of the best inquiry-based learning examples are field trips, collaborative assignments, science experiments, etc.

4. Problem-Based Learning (PBL)

The aim of establishing a stimulating learning environment encourages teachers to implement innovative instructional strategies. And one of the most popular techniques is problem-based learning, also known as PBL, in which teachers present a problem, and students must find an appropriate solution.

Furthermore, the problem must be relevant to real-world issues, which will encourage learners to research relevant news and incidents. Also, setting a deadline for submission and assigning tasks to small groups are essential to PBL. Additionally, teachers must refrain from giving detailed directions and ensure self-directed working and learning.

Consequently, PBL enables individual learning and prevents students from depending on others, so, in the future, they won’t rely on instructors or peers to help them solve a problem. At the same time, the technique polishes analytical skills, problem-solving skills, and communication skills.

5. Differentiated Learning

Disproportionate learning has been one of the major flaws of the traditional education system, which did not account for the learning gaps. Also, the corresponding instructional approach was ineffective and inadequate because it didn’t cater to low-performing students. For instance, students who score average to below average marks are rarely the topic of discussion except when they get criticised.

However, it is imperative to understand their learning needs and help them with appropriate strategies. Therefore, institutes must integrate a campus management system that allows them to store student information and update faculties and parents. Also, the system is an excellent tool for automatically tracking a particular learner’s progress and identifying their strengths and weaknesses. So, when teachers can keep a record of the individual progress of students' academic activities, they can help them whenever they face any issue.