Child has an innate sense of wonder and a natural disposition to learn

Child is an empty vessel waiting to ‘be filled’—waiting to learn.

Learner-centered with teacher as guide/facilitator

Teacher-centered class

Prepared self-correcting kinesthetic materials

Textbook, pencil, paper and worksheets where the teacher corrects errors

Individualized instruction, at a level consistent with the child’s development

Class oriented instruction, at class’ pace or teacher’s pace

Children exercise choice regarding what to work on and for how long

Teachers chooses what children will work on and for how long

Integrated subjects and learning based on developmental psychology

Individual subjects taught separately

Process focused

Product focused

Whole child approach (cognitive, social-emotional, physical)

Only focused on imparting certain knowledge

Repeated use of materials is encouraged to develop investigative skills

Memorization and correct answers are stressed

Hands on, Project-Based Design working backwards from an end goal

Coverage of a textbook

Use of a range of resources to teach

Overwhelming use of the textbook as the curriculum

Differing instruction to meet individual needs

Same instruction for all students

Emphasis on learner as “doer” and “creator”

Emphasis on teacher as presenter/lecturer

Integrating technology into instruction to enhance learning

Use of technology as an add-on when time and space is available

Focus on multiple skills at a time

Focused on isolated skills e.g. listening, speaking, reading and writing, each addressed separately