Get Your Students Hired
Isn't much of this information outdated? We know that students have learning style preferences, but the degree to which it actually affects learning has been vastly overstated? Dan Willingham's study was pretty damning to this entire idea.
Hi Jacquelyn, That is a great point - we naturally prefer to teach using a delivery that resonates with our own preferred learning style. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career.
Susan Polick
As educators we should not assume that our choice of method to deliver material is the only way our students are able to absorb it.
Hi Shannie, Thanks for your post to the forum. As long as someone on your campus helps students and faculty to work with preferred learning styles, that's fine. Best wishes for continuing success in your teaching career.
Susan Polick
I agree. At the end of the day, we need (and want) our students to be successful. If that means they make flashcards like they did in elementary school, then so be it. The more they learn, the more confidence they will have, which will in turn help them develop different learning styles. I admit I don't always have the time (or patience) to work through the process with them. This just isn't my strength. There are people on campus who are much better than I am at uncovering a learning style, and once discovered, we can target that student's style to best help them.
I don't think it is outdated. I think they apply well to our students today. As far as Willingham's study? You can find ways to damn his too. A study is not fact. You have to choose the ideas that work best for the situation you are facing. Not every study will apply.
Hi Andrew, Thanks for your post to the forum. Good question! I think the answer is that the verdict is still out.
Willingham himself says. “There’s no doubt that seeing something in different ways is going to be a good thing.†This is the approach we encourage.
In response to the suggestion that learning styles do not exist, James Witte says, “Well, we still have people who are convinced that IQ tests are nothing more than vocabulary tests. This should not be a debate over whether learning styles exist, but how we measure them.â€
Susan Polick