This almost seems like one of those times that discussing something and hearing about a similar idea later is more than coincidence. In an almost serendipitous turn of events, I have spent the week discussing with teachers the importance of differentiation, and more importantly, the adherence to presenting material in more than one way through our professional learning communities. This was along similar lines to Gardner’s work with learning styles as discussed by Hattie in Visible Learning (2012). The connection stems from Hattie’s assertion that not all learning styles are equal and that visual and auditory are more prevalent than others in our society. This is not to say that others are less important, but rather that some occur as strengths
Behaviorism is one of the most used theories in education. Due to it can fit in both a classroom setting and at home. Educators had sought out the reason why for many years. But due to each child learns a different way so should the educator. Behaviorism was study by many great Psychologists over the years. Just to name some that had done work and publish books on the subject are, John Watson, Ivan Pavlov, Clark Hull, and B.F. Skinner.
Flemming claimed that visual learners have a preference for seeing (think in picture; visual aids such as overhead slides, diagrams, hand-outs, etc.). Auditory learner’s best learn through listening (lectures, discussion, tapes etc.) Tactile/kinaesthetic learners prefer to learn via experience, moving, touching and doing (active exploration of the world; science projects; experiments, etc.) Its use in pedagogy allows teachers to prepare classes that address each of these areas. Students can also use the model to identify their preferred learning style and maximize their educational experience by focusing on what benefits them most(Wikipedia.org/learning styles).During my lessons I always try to give students a mixture of learning styles so overall the lessons are more varied. I find this keeps the levels of interest much higher and it caters for the group as a whole, this way each student gets to learn at some point in their preferred learning style, this helps me confirm that they have knowledge and understanding from classroom based auditory and visual learning and that they can demonstrate through practical assessments that they have the skills and ability to perform tasks to a standard which can be deemed competent. I insist my students must understand how, when, where and why they should perform tasks. By giving students as much information as possible I believe this empowers the individual and gives them more incentive for
When I arrived for my interview at Tunica Middle School for the seventh grade math teacher position, I was asked the usual questions about strengths, weakness, and my previous work experience. In turn, asked questions about teacher expectations. The teaching position was open in February. However, I believe it was the perfect opportunity for Mr. Newson, the principal, to divulge and share his vision for the school. He did not. Mr. Newson did not display many of the Envisioner traits in my first year.
“Just as students have different personalities, they also have different ways of learing (Slavin, 107).” Learning styles are another important factor to incorporate when implementing the best learning environment. Learning styles are defined as an individual's mode of gaining knowledge. The most common learning styles addressed are auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. Auditory leaners understand information through hearing. Visual learners need more visual aids in the learning process, such as diagrams, webs, or pictures. Kinesthetic learners learn better by using manipulatives or by being physically involved in the learning process. Learning styles is a piece of the “backbone” of differentiated learning. Both are used to individualize instruction to help students achieve the most success.
Learning styles and barriers to learning can be by the VARK to give a profile of learning preferences of how a person takes in and gives out information or Tidwell and Rodgers Practical learning styles Questionnaire. The VARK learning styles determines if the person learns by being a theorist, reflector, activist and/or pragmatist. The practical learning styles questionnaire looks at how people learn by their orientation, whether they are a realistic or creative, by their interaction, are they a doer or a thinker, by how they represent things, either by words or pictures, and how they process information, whether they are a surface or deep processor. There are many other
All learners have different learning styles. Using materials at the initial stage of the learning process can highlight preferred styles. Honey and Mumford show four learning styles – activists, theorists, reflectors and pragmatists, while VAK highlights visual, auditory and kinaesthetic preferences.
It makes sense, therefore, that before we explore how we teach, we understand how people learn’. From discussion with my student prior to the lesson I learnt that she too had a more activist learning style and I felt that this match would provide a more harmonious learning environment between myself and the student. Whilst there is validity in attempting to match teaching styles with learning styles (Quinn & Hughes 2007) there is also research to show that by moving the student outside of their dominant learning style will stimulate learning and the challenge will promote more creative learning (Tennant 1997 and Partridge 1983).
The main point of customizing instruction to to appeal to the perceptual or cognitive strengths of different individuals. Louis Thurstone (1983) was the first psychologist to provide strong empirical evidence for the idea of “specific ability differences.” He proposed seven “primary mental abilities” which included verbal comprehension, word-fluency, number facility. Spatial Visualization, associative memory, perceptual speed, and reasoning. However his studies show that you do not need to provide these different groups with different forms of instruction to maximize their performance on tests. This evidence contradicts the learning style hypothesis along with Massa and Mayer’s study, showing that preferences for visual or verbal information intake don’t show any relationship with
According to UNESCO (2004), teachers around the world are exerting efforts in trying out innovative teaching strategies. There were dedicated and committed teachers who make a difference to the students’ lives and even providing important learning opportunities in their communities. To meet the students’ diverse learning needs, teachers cater variety of learning opportunities and experiences. In an interview of Carol Ann Tomlinson, an American author and educator known for her works with techniques of differentiation in education, she described differentiation as shaking up the classroom to be more appropriate for the learners. Regarding the methods of instruction, there should be a variety of techniques for collecting and presenting the lesson considering the students’ needs, abilities, interests, and backgrounds of experience.
For years, there have been many theorists who have shared their views on how individuals learn. Such research has determined that individuals have different learning styles. It is important for teacher to understand the learning styles of both themselves and their students because it helps them to relay the subject knowledge to the students. The teacher is in a position where they must be able to assess the learning styles of their students. This means that the students and teachers are both in a process of learning.
Learning styles is one of the ways schools have changed over the past couple of years in regards to diversity. The varieties of learning styles of students have become more
A person with this learning style excels in the capacity to examine situations from many angles and generate many ideas. Studies indicate that individuals with the diverging learning style are interested in people and are creative and expressive. They also tend to be fascinated in the arts and often have humanities or liberal arts backgrounds. Counselors, organizational development specialists, and human resource managers have exhibited this learning style. (casa colorado teaching seminar Kolb Learning Style Inventory Info pdf website, 2008)
When students reach college, or higher education schools, the professor’s desire to accommodate students starts to decline, especially with caring about the way that their students learn differently. The inability of higher education to accommodate students with different learning styles is an unavoidable issue. Every student learns differently, but you can group the learning styles into four main categories: visual learning (learn by seeing), auditory learning (learn by hearing), kinesthetic learning (learn by moving), and tactile learning (learn by touching). Learning styles are influenced by a student’s genetic make-up, their previous learning experiences, their culture, and the society
The day I decided that I wanted to be a teacher I pictured myself choosing my favorite books and having thoughtful discussions. I imagined my students would enjoy the many activities we completed and at the end of the unit they would take a test and we would move on to the next topic. I was unaware of what the field of education would actually entail. I soon learned that teaching was nothing like what I imagined. I didn’t realize that my teachers made teaching a classroom full of student look easy because they used several techniques. They realized that they “must take into account not only what they are teaching (content), but also whom they are teaching (individual students)” (Corley, 2007). As I’ve learned more about my field I have realized that teaching involves providing the best education to students based on their ability to learn. When you understand that this is what teaching is about, you try practices that will make your instruction stronger. Differentiation is one way to make sure that all learners gain the education they deserve.
When seeing how this article relates to me, I believe it is best to start with the most obvious. I am a student myself and have been a student in a formal education setting for most of my life. I have had many teachers of mine refer to and accommodate for learning styles in the past and have never