How I develop a range of teaching strategies to build on the different strengths individual students bring to the classroom is by lecture, powerpoint, a physical demo and review by writing what is expected on the whiteboard to cover all aspects of the 4 learning styles
Hi Susan,
Thank you for the reply.
WIMBA - Pronto is great :). Students are very comfortable using it since most are already familiar with internet Instant Messenger tools like AIM.
I really like how we populate the class clusters with it. It helps give a sense of cohesion to the class, especially when they communicate with each other using it as well.
Another communication tool that I really like is Elluminate. I have found that setting up course reviews and some office hour sessions with it where everyone can come into the session and participate in real-time together is great. I can use prepared slides, videos to start a topic discussion, but also use the blackboard feature and web pages etc. to move away from the prepared material in areas that require more explanation or time for absorption.
Many people still think of on-line courses as very impersonal asynchronous activities. I have heard people describe them as a high-tech version of the old mail-type "correspondence" courses. Perhaps in its infancy that may have been somewhat accurate. But, with all of the advanced tools that have and are being generated for internet interaction, on-line courses have the potential to be very interactive with the students on a variety of levels.
Even with all of the advancements though, it is still difficult to replicate the ability to scan a class-room and evaluate student responses, body language etc. :). Many think of on-line courses as an "easy" way through a course, but the students are much more responsible for their success in this environment :). I can't chat with a student as they are leaving class or force them to come to office hours :).
It is interesting to see the mix of ways students will approach an on-line class with some preferring to keep the bare minimum required interaction with the class and just focus on the assigned work while some really dig-in and seek out a lot of interaction with other students and me. Very similar to Brick-and-Mortar dynamics :).
Hi Joel - Thanks for your post to the forum. I really found your suggestions for the online environment interesting. We have just started to use WIMBA which is the synchronous feature offered by BlackBoard. It's really going well!
Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Just like this module has described, there are several approaches to learning new material and not everyone has the same preferred method.
I teach for an on-line institution and this is one of the areas that we have been working to improve in course revisions. With today's technology and resources it is becoming easier to ensure that we can accommodate all four of the main style groupings.
Traditional on-line environments seemed to be dominated towards written-word learners with heavy emphasis on text book material and reading assignments. Over the past few years we have worked to infuse Power Point presentations of the Unit Contents which caters to the Visual Learners as well as include Video content examples of the material through self-shot work, YouTube, etc. which again work with Visual and Auditory learners.
The toughest style to accommodate through a pure on-line environment is Tactile learners. But, we have also worked to provide "simulation" experiments and problem solving activities directed at this as well.
I think it is very important, especially in the on-line environment to try and work with the students and offer material in a format that provides them with the greatest amount of comfort in learning the new material to ensure that they feel successful working with the material. While we have office hours and live-chat options, it does not replace the ability to scan the class-room to gauge the furrowed eyebrows and students that may need a bit more help with a topic. So, we need to do our best to provide the students we enough recourses up-front to make sure that they have access to material that support their learning styles.
One size does not fit all well. The success of any individual student is dependent upon a good fit between the particular learning style of the student and the style of instruction provided to the class. A variety of teaching approaches and instructional resources should be offered, in order that each student can find the one that best fits, and thereby achieves success.
I like to use different appraoches for the students. This allows me to reach the different students learning styles and keeps the information more interesting.
Variety is truly the spice of learning.
Because of the non-tradional excellerated learning enviornments the students are in at my college, it is vital to their success that the new information presented to them in this short time is condusive to their learning styles. They only have 10 weeks to grasp information that other students would traditionally get in 16 weeks.
Because if you don't provide for the different learning styles of your students in whatever clever means that you can create, minimum learning may apply to some of the students. Not all of the students, but some of the students may have much difficulty in learning and RETAINING the information.
Hi Jamie- You are so right! The more interesting and engaging we make our classes, the more likely that our students will be to attend, and participate when they attend! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
To me it provides effective delivery and reception of the content and its assimilation.
It is very important to understand first of all where your students are coming from and how each learns best. If you just teach and appeal to 1 group only then you have missed a substantial portion of the students and in my opinion not a very effective teacher.
You need to use a variety of different methods to engage all in the content matter so every learns it and it is a win win situation for all. I also believe that as the class time goes past the students get bored. So shake things up! Do something different add movement to the learning process etc. I think if you employ multiple learning styles into material to cover that day that students will find your class much more interesting and not skip it.
In my opinion, if an instructor wants to see students doing really well in the class, he/she should not only know about different learning style but also uses them while teaching. This engages students and they understand the concept the instructor wants them to know.
This can help them to apply knowledge on the field, and it helps to to develop more their skills.
Hi Kyla- Thanks for your post to the forum. You are doing a terrific job teaching to the learning styles! I'm glad that you have found this class useful. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I believe it's important to provide resources and teaching techniques that complement your students' learning styles, in order to effectively reach every student in your class. I'm currently teaching Document Processing I & II, which provides adequate instruction for kinesthetic, visual, and written learners. I also incorporate brief lectures to appeal to my auditory learners.
I did find the suggestion to conduct a learning styles assessment to determine which styles are evident in my classroom to be very helpful; I'll definitely be implementing that tip.
Hi Jonathan - Thanks for your post to the forum. Using Powerpoint while lecturing is very effective as it provides visual and auditory stimulation. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I kind of roll everything into one. When i teach i will lecture and do powerpoint presentations all at the same time that way everyone will understand what i am teaching.
Getting students involved and helping them understand is our job. Students come in all different shapes and sizes (so to speak), and getting them to understand may take some practice with using different approaches.
Resources such as PowerPoints, building something, videos, guest lecturers, discussions, field trips, or even making a video could be ways in which to enhance or supplement the learning materials.
Every student learns differently, and it is the instructor's responsibility to try to reach every one of his students. For students to have full involvement and understanding, using varied delivery methods will be most effective. This can be difficult in preparing lesson plans and will take some preparation, but it will be worth it in the long run.
Cathy K.
When I do have students go to the whiteboard to solve math problems, is that an example of manipulative learning style?
