Daniel William, cognitive psychologist and neuroscientist, states that learning styles do not exist; rather, using the example of the VARK theory, some people have better visual or auditory memories than others. According to Mo Costandi in 'The myth of learning styles' there is no scientific evidence that children do indeed acquire information more effectively if it is presented to them in their preferred learning style.Many researchers do however, agree that we do have various learning styles and preferences. The research tends to agree that it is more important to providing correct learning methods, strategies, and context, rather than matching individual preferences (Coffield, et. al., 2004).
David Merrill's (2000) philosophy for using learning styles is that teaching strategies should first be determined on the basis of the type of content to be taught and secondarily, learner styles and preferences are then used to adjust or fine-tune these fundamental learning strategies. Finally, content-by-strategy interactions take precedence over learning-style-by-strategy interactions regardless of the instructional style or philosophy of the instructional situation.Merrill states that most students are unaware of their learning styles and are unlikely to start learning in new ways without teacher input. Thus, knowledge of one's learning styles can be used to increase self-awareness about their strengths and weaknesses as learners. In other words, all the advantages claimed for metacognition (being aware of one's own thought and learning processes) can be gained by encouraging learners to become knowledgeable about their own learning and that of others (Coffield, et. al., 2004).
According to Don Clark, we should be showing students how to select the best style or modality for the task on hand. Choosing thebest learning method is part of meta learning i.e. learning to learn. Meta learning is a key principle of Foundation Learning. Having come from backgrounds of not very successful learning experiences, a strong focus of the Foundation Studies Trades programme for each learner is finding ways to learn that suit them. Learning and retaining information is usually most effective when the information is delivered in more than one form. Consider Mel Silberman's Active Learning Credo (1996):
What I hear, I forget.
What I hear and see, I remember a little.
What I hear, see, and ask questions about or discuss with someone else, I begin to understand.
What I hear, see, discuss, and do, I acquire knowledge and skill.
What I teach to another, I master.
For example if a student reads instructions, sees the activity demonstrated and has a go themselves, they are more likely to remember than if they had just read the instructions. I have seen the enormous frustration of some students who are unable to understand a concept without further instruction or alternative modes of delivery. Practical activities such as carpentry provide opportunities for learning in context. For our students the most successful activities seem to be those which are contextual that they can relate to something in their lives. Enjoyment of learning, I believe, is a key component to successful learning; if a student enjoys hands-on, practical learning in a workshop they will possibly have more success than in a classroom-based learning environment.
My learning preferences no doubt do impact on my teaching style. I know that I learn best when the information is contextual and I can relate it to something tangible. I prefer to learn face to face than online.I like multiple modes of delivery and to have the opportunity for discussion, practice and sharing of ideas.
As lecturers and tutors on the programme we often ask ourselves 'How can we deliver this in a way that the students will respond well to? How can we change the delivery so it is not like school?' If we are hoping to turn around negative learning experiences, we need to critically examine how we teach and how we can improve on our delivery for these learners.We need to vary the delivery style and expose learners to diverse learning opportunities.
References
Clark, D. (2000). Learning Styles and Preferences. Retrieved from:
Coffield, F., Moseley, D., Hall, E., & Ecclestone, K. (2004). Learning styles and pedagogy in post-16 learning: A systematic and critical review. www.LSRC.ac.uk: Learning and Skills Research Centre. Retrieved from:
Costandi, M. (2013). The myth of learning styles. Retrieved from:
Merrill, D. (2000). Instructional Strategies and Learning Styles: Which takes Precedence? Trends and Issues in Instructional Technology, R. Reiser and J. Dempsey (Eds.). Prentice Hall.
Silberman, M. (1996). Active Learning: 101 Strategies to Teach Any Subject. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Willingham, D. (2008) Learning Styles don't exisit. Retrieved from:
