According to a published report in a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, new research debunks the existence of learning styles. The December 2009 report claims that earlier studies have not used the type of scientific research designs that would make previous findings credible. Part of their conclusion to this study, states that educational institutions have wasted limited educational resources to push learning styles theories.
Since the publication of the journal article, some teachers have publicly come forth to challenge the research. Teachers, whose classrooms are living laboratories of experimental teaching methods, changing pedagogies, and individual human differences, face the daily needs of their students. A knowledgeable teacher will use different methods of presenting material and find the best way to teach each student.
I am one of those educators who say that students often do learn differently from their peers and it is my responsibility to learn how each of my students gains the knowledge that they need to have. But equally important, especially for the adolescent student, is for the student to understand how he learns. As a previous special educator in the public schools and learning specialist in a private school, I find that students usually can tell you how they learn best. Now I don’t mean that if you ask the question “How do you learn best?” or “What is your learning style?” that a student will come out with a pat answer. But if I ask a series of questions about how they study, how they take notes, how they attain information from a lecture, etc, I will eventually get a series of answers that point to a combination of learning styles for a particular student. Once the information is gleaned, then a good teacher, tutor, or mentor can help the student find more appropriate and successful ways of studying.
For example, if a student tells me that he doesn’t understand the diagrams or formulas the teacher writes on the board, I ask what would help him comprehend them. One student may tell me that when the teacher orally explains it step by step, he gets it, but when he goes home to study it, he is lost. So then I may suggest a series of ideas: ask the teacher to write out the steps so the student can read them aloud step by step, in order to comprehend. Or ask the teacher to tape record the steps in a formula, so the student can listen to it at home, while studying. Ultimately the student will have to find a way to comprehend by self-talking through the diagram or formula.
Another student might tell me, that he only understands the diagram or formula, if he has a model in front of him, or labels on the diagram, or a list of step-by-step how-tos. Then I may suggest to the student to obtain a list from the teacher, in order to check off each step as he completes the formula. Or have the teacher provide a model with labels, so the student can memorize or locate each item, then one by one map it out on the blank diagram.
Some students need a combination of visual and auditory prompts, so I may combine suggestions for students to try. If the student needs movement while he studies, I may suggest pacing back and forth, walking on a treadmill, or riding a stationary bike, as he recites, reads, or memorizes. Another student, who needs touch as a stimulus for learning, may benefit from typing out the steps of a formula, or pointing to parts of a diagram, as he recites the labels.
Teachers teach in their own comfort level with subject matter and own style of teaching. As individuals, students learn in their own comfort zones. Let’s help them reach their highest potential, by asking, probing, and challenging them to know their own style of learning and challenging us to teach them in as many ways possible.
