Blending emerging technologies for student-centred teaching: A critical analysis

Student-centred learning is an emerging terminology questioning the relevance of traditional terminologies such as teacher-centred and institution-centred learning. Teacher-centred and institution-centred learning align more towards teachers and institutions making the students passive recipients of knowledge. These traditional paradigms of teaching have been questioned in recent years and they have been replaced by student-centred learning which focuses on placing the students at the forefront and taking responsibility for their learning. Internet technology has offered tremendous support in the process of students playing a key role in student-centred learning. This chapter presents a summary of emerging technologies that have played a key role in enhancing the quality of student-centred learning in higher education. Five key technology trends such as Learning Management Systems, Virtual Reality, Internet of Things, MOOCs and Social Media are critically analysed to explore their role in the development of a student-centric learning and teaching program. The chapter identifies the strengths and weaknesses of these technologies and how they can be successfully applied to enhance the quality of student-centric learning and teaching program.