By Sara LaHayne
Schools and districts often prioritize social-emotional learning (SEL) because it equips students with the skills to understand themselves, manage emotions, build healthy relationships, pursue goals, and make wise choices throughout life. Yet many students still spend most of the school day following routines and directions: what to learn, where to sit, when to eat, and when to take breaks. If our aim is to prepare young people to navigate life independently, we should also create more daily opportunities for them to practice decision-making, self-expression, and responsibility during the school day.
A student-centered classroom that values student voice makes room for learners’ values, perspectives, passions, and interests in both the learning environment and the activities. In these classrooms, students help shape classroom norms, learning approaches, and how they demonstrate understanding. They are supported to reflect on who they are, explore their interests and preferences, and develop confident self-expression. Educational technology (EdTech) can expand those options by offering choice in how students access content and present work, but students also need explicit support to recognize their preferences and make meaningful choices. SEL gives students the language and self-awareness to understand their voice and use it effectively in student-centered learning.
At the same time, choice does not mean the absence of structure. Thoughtful options actually provide boundaries that make decisions more manageable and productive. Offering a framed set of choices helps students practice decision-making within supportive parameters and allows teachers to guide learning. When classrooms center both student voice and guided choice, learners can explore interests and develop identity while practicing life skills—selecting among defined options with teacher support.
Ways to give your students more voice and choice
Designing a student-centered classroom is as much a mindset shift for educators as it is the adoption of specific strategies. While there are countless techniques for encouraging student voice and choice, a productive starting point is reflection: ask yourself why your classroom is organized the way it is. Why are desks arranged the way they are? Why do you review homework as a whole group? Why do students all sit on the rug for story time? What technology do you use, and how does it support learning?
Questioning routines and systems will reveal places where you can change practices to center students. Over time, you’ll notice opportunities everywhere—from how students submit work to how you introduce a math concept—that can be adapted to promote agency. When teachers feel they lack input in choosing classroom tools, that frustration mirrors students’ experience when they have no choice in how they learn. Use that empathy: invite students into conversations about selecting and using edtech. Teachers and learners can collaborate to evaluate tools, pilot options, and advocate for resources that meet classroom needs.
EdTech also offers practical ways to expand choice. Rather than using digital tools only as add-ons, integrate them as deliberate options within assignments. For example, a history teacher might offer a “menu” allowing students to choose among Newsela articles, documentary clips, interactive modules, or multimedia projects to learn a topic. Providing a variety of formats supports diverse learners, increases engagement, and lets students take ownership of how they demonstrate understanding.
What are the characteristics of a student-centered classroom?
Student-centered classrooms resemble equitable learning communities where educators and students co-create learning. These classrooms emphasize relationships, collaboration, and opportunities for authentic practice. But simply offering more choices doesn’t guarantee that students can make effective decisions or express themselves with confidence. That is where SEL becomes essential: it builds the self-awareness, social skills, and decision-making capacities students need to benefit from voice and choice.
In practice, a student-centered classroom provides structured opportunities to practice life skills in meaningful contexts, strengthens peer and teacher relationships, and fosters independence and deeper learning. Students learn to reflect on choices, weigh trade-offs, ask for support, and iterate on their efforts. Teachers act as facilitators who scaffold reflection and guide students through decision-making processes. Together, SEL and intentional classroom design create environments where students not only have a say, but also the skills to use that voice responsibly.
About the author
Sara LaHayne is the founder and CEO of Move This World, a social-emotional learning program serving PreK–12 students, educators, and families. The program offers multimedia experiences that help students identify, express, and manage emotions through creative expression and movement. Rooted in developmentally appropriate, evidence-based content, Move This World promotes daily SEL routines that support students inside the classroom and across their lives. LaHayne, a lifelong dancer and former professional performer, developed the original curriculum more than a decade ago while a Fulbright Scholar in Bogotá, Colombia.
Note: This article was originally published by The Learning Counsel, a research and news organization focused on the transition to digital curriculum in education.