Accommodating Learning Styles
The strategies that I have used is when I am doing hands on in the lab. I will lecture very little, demo. I then have the students help me do it again and direct me in my steps(walk me thru it). I also have them do each step with me as I am doing it. As I am doing this I give examples of different situations when this would be done and try to give the different terminology that is used for it.
Kelly ,
Sounds like you have mixed things up well and have something for everyone.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
As a Surgical Technology PD/Instructor I am fortunate enough to have a simulation lab for the students to complete hands-on demos and practice skills. We have also had to adapt to all learning styles dispite this advantage to ensure that the students also recieve step-by-step instruction and demonstrations. We have encorporated videos, to include youtube, and a lab skills book which provides step-by-step instructions, pictures, videos and competnecy check-off sheets. We have used our imaginations to increase "real world' scenerios by utilizing things such as water balloons filled with colored water to simulate various intra-operative fluids etc. & they love it.
Chris,
Have students explain to each other. Yes, there are several,ways to turn verbal explanations into an active experience.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
In our fascility, the most common is hands on experience. However there there are still several students that seem to learn by having things explained to them. Sometimes explanation may have to be turned several different directions before thay understand correctly.
Thomas,
Keep things student centered, cut down on lectures and include many activities.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
My strategy to accommodate different learning styles is to be flexible. It's usually pretty easy to tell if you're getting through to a student. I you don't think you are, then change your approach. Don't get locked into one style.
What strategies have you used to accommodate different learning styles in a lab environment?
Tim,
A wonderful post. Thank you for sharing. We are as much learners as are the students for sure.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
This challenge is the fun part of teaching. When the majority of the students have grasped the skill to show competency in an exercise, but 1 student just doesn't get it, this forces you to "learn more that you teach". You will need to find a new way to explain or demonstrate this skill so this student can comprehend and learn the new skill. Now you can put your new skill in your back pocket for the next student that has the same learning style or stumble to grasp the skill.
John,
A detailed description. You have approaches that speak to different learning styles.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
We try to make sure that we have multiple types of presentations and experiences in class to reach of the different learning styles that students have. We use an instructor presented power point along with student handouts and go through the theory of the systems being discussed. Afterward we do instructor led lab demonstrations using the systems discussed previously in the power point presentation. Finally we multiple lab projects dealing with those systems that the students complete in class individually and in small groups. Additionally students often have self study type worksheets assigned to encourage them to explore and familiarize themselves with reference materials they have been provided with for the course; textbooks, manuals, workbooks etc..
Alice,
letting the students document the demonstration is great. If the school makes it available record a demo yourself and put it up on the web for students to access whenever they want. Flip the classroom.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Jeffery,
Your commitment to helping the students is evident. thank you for your post.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I encourage students to take photos and/or videos while I am demonstrating the skills in the lab.
I take the time for each student to demonstrate the skill back to me, and then encourage the students to work in groups to reinforce that skill.
I have my base teaching skill to cover a project and then if I go over their heads I have a back up to explain it in more easier terms and then if that doesnt work I have what I term the baby step through it so that all will recieve what I am laying at thier task at hand. This seams to work that I do not insult them as just get them to see the objective and goal at what we want them to know and uderstand. I feel that if they fail at that level of teaching that I failed them. I do not like to fail in this catagory!!!!
Kleinkauf,
A very thorough and detailed approach. Students will often find step by step processes in the field as well.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
The strategies I have used to accommodate learning styles in the lab environment are: writing the skills to practice for that day. Putting students in groups of two peer tutoring. Working one on one with a student. Show a video of the skill to be learned for that day before entering the lab.Read over the competency check list to remind students its all in writing step by step.Demo a skill before the start of lab.Questions are encourage in the lab. Students are told the lab is where mistakes can happen and we will learn from them. No mistakes are allowed out in the work force in this field, which can have bad outcomes.All questions are welcome.I need to be sure that everyone knows what is going on and how to solve a problem if one arises.
Nicolette,
I've commented in several forums that students teaching other equates to the highest retention of learning.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I like the idea of having students watch each other, and then having them teach each other. No matter how good of a teacher you might be, you may have a teaching style that doesn't cater to every student's learning style. A student may have a way to answer the question that makes more sense to the person asking it. Of course, you would have to make sure that the answer is correct, but I think that students learn a lot from each other in laboratory settings.
