what are the learning styles?
People tend to perceive information in different ways and this has an impact on how we learn. For example, some people are visual learners, they learn better if they can “see†the information. Other people may learn better through hearing, or touch. Although each of us is able to learn through all of the different learning styles, a person will learn and retain information easier through their learning style.
Most people will learn through more than one learning style, however, they will learn best through a specific style. This is not to say the will not combine different ways of learning, for example, although someone may learn best through seeing, they may find that both listening to a lecture and seeing the words together provide the best way for them to learn
Hi Qiana, Gardner does identify multiple intelligences that he correlates to multiple learning styles :
http://www.tecweb.org/styles/gardner.html
However, it is much more efficient to reduce those modalaties down to the four we identify in this course. Thanks for your post to the forum!
Susan Polick
There are a total of 9 Learning Styles, more commonly referred to as Mutiple Intelligences, by Theorist, Dr. Howard Gardner.
Hi Jacqueline, Thanks for your post to the forum. I completely agree that we need to have our students learn to adapt to different styles. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Susan Polick
Great posts! As an educator, I believe we need to use multiple learning styles in an effort to equip students for their future career paths. Once in their perspective career field, students will not benefit from multiple intelligences / learning style research. Students will be expected to perform regardless of their individual learning styles.
Employers will not use the research. For example, a visual learner will be expected to write reports, listen and assimulate information, and work with their hands. The employer will not care what dominant learning style the employee has. Thus, we as educators need to use all learning styles, so students have experience in all the domains.
It truly is more beneficial for students to receive a variety of learning methods because I we may be influenced by outside or physical forces that may alter our usual way of learning. One day we may feel stronger at hearing a lecture and reading the writing on the board. Another day we may be better learners at doing the hands on project. I believe we can switch from one to the other depending on how we feel physically, mentally, emotionally and so on.
