Student-Centered Teaching
Helen Mongan-Rallis
Dept: Education
College: CEHSP
Campus: Duluth
Campus Address: 120 Montague Hall, 10 University Drive, Duluth MN 55812
Phone: 218-726-6272
Email: hrallis@d.umn.edu
Website: http://www.d.umn.edu/~hrallis/
Description: “Can provide tips on how to use this effectively in a college classroom.” (HMR)
Lou Pignolet
Dept: Chemistry
College: IT
Campus: MPLS
Campus Address: 241 Smith Hall
Phone: 612-625-0837
Email: pignolet@chem.umn.edu
Website: http://www.chem.umn.edu (follow faculty link)
and also for my course (Chem 1021, Fall 03) which is in WebCT. It is possible to visit this
course site as a student guest using the ID: pigno001 and the password: guest01.
Description: “I strongly believe that learning must be student-centered. I
explain this with examples on the first day of the class. I have a number of written
documents that the students can access that explains that the responsibility for learning
rests with the student. I explain the role of the student as learner and the role of the
teacher as facilitator and coach. I also clearly define my role in the class, especially
with respect to providing clear evaluation tools that permit a student to evaluate their
learning on a continuous basis and to evaluate their progress. I also tell them the level
of learning that is needed for a specific grade, and I provide evaluation tools so they can
determine their level of learning.” (LP)
Cathrine Wambach
College: General College
Campus: Twin Cities
Campus Address: 158 Appleby Hall
Phone: 612-625-2547
Email: wamba001@umn.edu
Description: “I have experience using variations of Personalized System of Instruction
(PSI), a method that de-emphasizes the role of lecture and features text as the primary source
of content information. This method allows for some self-pacing and more one-on-one
interaction between students and staff.” (CW)