Reality does not follow theory
Learning styles is an interesting idea and has become something of a "sacred cow" in education but the awful reality is that most businesses (and for that matter, professional schools) couldn't give a hot damn about what of learner you are; the message in those environments is typically "our way or the highway. In both law school and graduate school (in clinical psychology) you were expected to conform to the style being used, not the other way around. I also never had an employer ever ask me (or seem to care) what my learning style was--what they cared about was whether or not I could do the job they wanted. I think that it is often the duty of the individual student to figure out how to make the material being taught fit their style as opposed to expecting teachers to accommodate them. Therefore, that might be a more realistic approach to take than to try to adapt your methods to four admittedly different styles. What do you think?
Hi Brian, Thanks for your post to the forum. You mentioned an important consideration. We must address the learning styles of our students, but must also be sure that we are teaching the appropriate curriculum! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
I believe the challenge will be to be flexible with the teaching methods in order to cover the different styles of learning but to do so without altering the lessons.
Hi Jeanna - Thanks for a well written and very enthusiastic post to the forum! As a fellow career/vocational instructor I agree with the strategies you use with your students. Best wishes - Susan
Hi! Although I agree with the general consensus that it is unrealistic to expect an instructor to incorporate all 4 learning styles into one class it is entirely possible, depending on the subject being taught and the facility in which you are teaching. In a traditional university setting it would be quite difficult (law school, grad school, etc.), but I teach on a vocational college level and not only is it possible, it actually is alot easier than some would think.
First and foremost, the student is our top priority, and my job performance is based on their ability to learn. (If they're not learning the material, then why am I employed?)If that means that I have to go out of my way to create a learning enviornment that is beneficial to every student, then so be it. Plus, vocational students are usually (although not always) already at a disadvantage just because of the types of students we cater to (low income, high school dropout, single parents, etc.)
On top of that my classes last 4 hours daily and broken down into several increments. I have lecture for one hour (Auditory and Visual by use of PPT and myself), one hour of computer class (kinesthetic and written word as it is mostly work at their own pace after I have given some direction), and a two hour lab period (another chance for kinesthetic, auditory, and visual as I will first demonstrate and then the students will have hands on practice).
Hope this information helps!
Jeanna
Hi Editha- Thanks for your post to the forum. I think it is really unrealistic to expect to use all of the delivery styles in every class for the reason that you cited. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I tend to have about 15 to 20 students in my class. I do use all four methods depending on the subject being taught. However, I do not use them every day. It really depends on the subject. For example, Accounting is hands-on. The rules and methods are the same as when I went to school. I agree to adapt to all methods, but certain subjects have to be taught certain ways and it is up to the students to make it work for them.
I agree that maybe a lot of educators don't try to appeal to the different students learning styles. But I feel that if we want to be the best teachers we can be, we will try our best to reach as many students as possible.
I agree with Susan. We cannot always provide material for each of the 4 learning styles but we can 1) lecture and 2) demonstrate (usually at the same time) then assign 3) reading and some type of 4)activityn to reinforce the concepts to all the students each week. Hopefully they will find at least one method there that appeals to them and helps them learn and retain the information presented.
HI Robert - Thanks for your post to the forum. No, it is not realistic to expect that we will address every style in every class. The goal is to do so as often as possible. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I tend to agree with you. During my undergrad work I do not remember being given an learning styles assessment, I was told what time the class starrted and where it was located. I typically have between 10 and 15 people in my classes, that averages out to 4 each learning styles...am I supposed to make all of them happy all the time? 4 different lectures reading assignments handouts and projects for each class? I dont think so. But I can see where being aware of the types of learning taking place would be valuable, I can probably use it to assist a talented but underacheiving student.
