Modelling an action and then getting students to repeat a similar task is an effective method of retention.
I belive it is important to give students every opportunity to discover the style of learning they are comfortable with. While most may agree that visual is best, a small percentage may feel just the opposite. We become more apt to teach to those with our learning styles but know the importance of them all.
Sheri,
I agree and this is why we need to incorporate as many learning venues into our courses as we can.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think students learn better by visually seeing and then performing hands on approach, this helps to re-enforce their knowledge.
Laura,
I can tell you are most enthusiastic about your field and being able to share it with others. Your approach is a student centered holistic method that enables students to not only gain technical competence but application expertise as well. This is what will help the students to be well trained and sought after upon graduation.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I'm the director of dental programs and there is no other way to teach this curriculum than to "learn by seeing". Many of our students do not have a dental background (I didn't when I was first in school) and they need to train their mind to think in this very different way. The science is there and will be tested on their written boards, but their day-to-day will be driven by touching, seeing, smelling, manipulating all parts of how to be this type of practitioner. They'll remember these practical clinical experiences and apply daily.
In addition to this, I am constantly telling the students to think in process, but imagine how the appointment will go, actually SEE the end result in their head. So....both concrete and abstract thinking come up all the time. I love it! It's fun to see their skills grow.
Jackie,
The key is just what you said in that you are delivering content in three ways. Through tactile, auditory and written formats. This way the students get to work in different learning preference areas so they can get new information from three different venues.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I can agree with the learn by seeing argument to a point. Teaching a hands-on performance technique for massage therapy requires that I demonstrate to my students the technique they need to learn. They visually engage with this procedure. However, I must also give them verbal and written information with which to round out their learning experience or their retention of information and technique.
William,
I agree with you. Learners like variety and change of pace in instructional delivery. When we provide such they become engaged at a much higher level.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have always tried to have visual and active response or hands-on learning a part of any lesson. In my experience, lecture just doesn't engage enough of the senses to be meaningful for most learners. Perhaps the fact that I am a visual learner makes me favor the visual approach, but I think a balanced methodology is the best way to engage the most students.
Brandon,
Tactile learning is an overlying learning preference for many students. If they can touch it, taste it, smell it, manipulate it then they start to understand it. I am a hands-on learner and can relate to what you are saying about your student population.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Donald,
You raise a good point and this is what each instructor has to adapt or adopt strategies and methods that will work with his/her students and the content being taught. There are many creative ways to appeal to the different learning preferences of students while keeping the class moving forward toward the stated goals.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
At our school we have many hands on learners. Sometimes they just don't understand something until they can put it in thier hands and take it apart.
I find this to be an interesting concept that ties into peripheral learning. I do question if the concept would be useful in all fields. There would seem to be more relevance to me to place formulas up where a student could see them versus case law in a legal class.
True, and by approaching said skill from as many different points of view as possible
Earnest,
Right you are. The more senses used in learning the more retention there is of the content. So after a student has heard, seen and then done the learning curve has been increased greatly.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Tonya,
This is true and has been validated through research. The more senses involved in the learning process the greater the retention of the content and skills.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I believe it is easier to learn by seeing. By seeing, a student can form images in their brain and perhaps apply it to their experiences. I like using lots of visual images for my students.
Earnest J. Kendall,MSn, RN-BC
I think students learn by visual but remember more by actually doing the method.
I agree, but if u can expand on the topic and make learning more abstract at the same time, they can actually apply the learning topic to life experience and remember information that way.
