Learner-Centered Design

What is the Learner-Centered Design Designation?

As of summer 2025, the College of Sciences awarded the Learner-Centered Design designation to over 60 courses.

The College of Sciences’ Learner-Centered Design designation recognizes individual courses and the COS faculty who teach them. It identifies a faculty member’s commitment to creating a learning environment that promotes educational best practices, which accommodate a wide range of student needs, foster a less stressful learning environment, and help students better understand and meet faculty expectations.

How do I know what courses have the Learner-Centered Design Designation?

College of Sciences courses that have the Learner-Centered Design designation are identified in the UCF Schedule of classes with the course attribute, LCDSGN (see the Enrollment Information of any course details). The faculty teaching these courses will also display a digital emblem on their course syllabus and Webcourse.

What can I expect?

This designation recognizes a faculty member’s commitment to incorporating at least 13 or more of the best practices for Learner-Centered Design in the relevant course. If you are enrolled into a course that has been awarded Learner-Centered Design designation, the best practices your instructor is adopting will be explicitly identified within the course syllabus and will be applied in how the instructor conducts the course and/or how assignments are handled. Student feedback is welcome at COSAwards@ucf.edu to continue to learn about the positive impact from these courses and ensure best practices are applied.

I have more questions, who can I talk to?

If you have questions or would like more information, please email the COS Dean’s Office at COSAwards@ucf.edu.

Learner-Centered Design Best Practices

The best practices adopted in any course will be identifiable in the course syllabus and supplemental materials.

1. Practices designed to create a welcoming environment for students with a variety of communication and learning style preferences:
   1. Students will have the ability to demonstrate their learning in multiple ways. For example, a variety of assignment types will be assigned such as written work, projects, videos, audio files, Prezi, etc.
   2. Students will be able to opt to work alone during any group work assignments. Any student who chooses to work in a group will be given the option of choosing their own group or being assigned to a group. The method of communicating that choice should be clearly stated.
   3. Students will have access to recorded lectures with transcripts or closed captioning or class notes.
   4. Students will have access to all assignments with due dates in the first week of the semester so students can work ahead or plan ahead. The assignments do not need to be open for submission but should be accessible to students to review requirements.
   5. Students will have at least 5 opportunities for in-class or interactive learning activities during the semester.
   6. Students will have options, beyond simply posting office hours, of how they can communicate with the instructor and other students including in-person, virtually, or via email/Inbox or other written communication.
   7. Faculty posts or presents information about themselves (beyond their academic background) so students can get to know them as a ‘real person’ and not merely as their professor. This presentation can take many forms (e.g., module page, video introduction, in-class presentation, etc.).
2. Practices designed to create a welcoming environment for students with a variety of personal and academic needs:
   1. Students will be able to use non-electronic earplugs for testing. If a test is being proctored online with video feed (i.e., Respondus Monitor), students may also use non-electronic earplugs.
   2. Students taking a synchronous class that is over 75 minutes will be provided with at least one announced break; no instruction will take place during the break.
   3. The instructor will offer flexibility for students’ personal and academic needs following careful consideration of its impact on the learning environment for the entire class. The method for requesting such flexibility will be clearly stated in the syllabus. Note: This is separate from the course accessibility options that Student Accessibility Services provides.
   4. No timed in-class assessments, such as planned quizzes and writing activities or unannounced pop quizzes or notecard responses, will occur during the class period. Timed assessments followed by or embedded in instruction or other activities pose challenges in meeting accommodations for students who receive extra time.
3. Creating a less-stressful environment for students:
   1. The instructor will spend 5 minutes on the first day of class discussing different learning strategies and encourages students to communicate their needs to the instructor. This could take the form of a video, module page, or other posted resource.
   2. No single item in the class (assignment or test) will be worth more than 20% of the final grade.
   3. Students will not be required to speak or present in-person or in virtual environments. For example, students are provided the option of submitting a pre-recorded presentation in lieu of a live presentation. This criterion is not applicable to asynchronous courses without a presentation component.
   4. Students will be provided with an agenda and/or class outline for each class period. For online modules, students will be provided with an agenda for each module.
   5. Students are allowed two options to complete an assignment. For example, students may submit a weekly reflection on their learning either in writing or via video. Some students process information and express their ideas better in speech than in writing.
4. Helping students understand and meet faculty expectations:
   1. Students will be provided access to curated background information or relevant knowledge for the class (from earlier in the semester or from prerequisite courses). Examples of such resources are paper-writing tips, background information, math knowledge needed for the class and other relevant information or techniques/strategies.
   2. Students will be provided with granular learning objectives and a list of important concepts covered on each test. For example, module or unit study guides are provided.
   3. A rubric will be provided for each graded assignment.
   4. Students will be provided with a one-page executive summary of the syllabus with all due dates and assignments. For example, a grading summary, list of modules/topics, related assignments, and due dates are presented in a single table.
   5. Students will be able to resubmit some assignments to be regraded. The syllabus will clearly indicate which assignments are eligible for resubmission and under what conditions.
   6. Students will have at least weekly self-assessment opportunities such as non-graded practice assessments, non-graded concept checks etc.

To apply for a Learner-Centered Design designation, College of Sciences faculty members can click below: