No two people are alike,so they learn differently.Some are fast learners others are slow. Some learn by doing some by reading some by hearing.Age difference makes a difference also.By knowing this the instructor can structure the lessons to cover all students.
Hi Roy,
Getting to know the needs of students is a must for instructors. What are some techniques that you use to help you to "read" your students so you can assist them with their learning.
Gary
being able to read the students in order to be able to to assist & teach them in a way that will be usefull to them.
In response to the question, I believe that knowing how someone learns and understanding their concerns can help me better organize the pace and the information to be taught.
Understanding learner characteristics helps to understand the many chalenges that some students
have and then to help them overcome those challenges in a direct and personal way
Hi Kathy,
I congratulate you on your attention to what the needs of your students are. Getting to know them and what they bring to the classroom is essential for your instructional planning. Keep up your efforts because I know your students are benefiting from your care and concern for them.
Gary
As an instructor in a GED prep program, I work with young adults who are ages 17-21. It is crucial that I gain an understanding of how each of my students learns and quickly! Any hesitation on my part to get to know my students simply reinforces the belief that no one cares or no one wants to see them succeed.
Unfortunately, most of my students come with a lot of 'baggage.' They have all dropped out of high school, a social failure, and have worn that burden in the eyes of society. Now that they have decided to try and change or remedy their past mistakes, they can often struggle with battling their past 'demons.'
It is important that I learn from my students why they dropped out. Once I have this information, I am able to avoid the same situation. Many of my students were 'behavior problems' in public school. I have never had an issue with any of them. I believe it is because I identify and address their learning needs quickly. They feel respected and cared for, and therefore respond in kind.
The other aspect of learning characteristics that I find extremly common with my students is undiagnosed learning disability. I find these often lie at the core of constant failure and frustration. If I can uncover this 'cause' to the problem, I can often work with the student to determine how to overcome it. Students who were never able to learn from lectures often need more visual and less auditory input. Students with reading issues need the opposite. And students with attention issues need a lot of motion and activity to allow their minds to focus.
As an instructor, it is virtually impossible for me to plan successfully if I do not have a clear understanding of my students' learning characteristics!
Kathy
If you know how each student learns best, for instance, by listening, doing, maybe by powerpoints or hands on experience, you will be able to design your planning process to match with most of your students. You may need to customize it for certain students. All students learn in different ways. So the instructor must be able to instruct in different ways.
Yes, I understand now that all student do not learn or are motivated in the same way. Some students are active learners and want to be involve in the learning process. Others want to use their past life experiences to build on.
Career College students know what goals they want to attain and want to know how what you are teaching them will help them attain them. They are focus on what the need to succeed in their career field. As the course pointed out get in, get trained, and get out.
Hi Alfred,
You students are really fortunate to have you as their instructor. By using the instructional supports you mentioned and spending time with them you are encouraging them to continue their learning success. Keep up the good work.
Gary
In my class room , I have several students that have a problem following along with the class. I take my office time to bring the students in and help them with this problem. One of the teaching tools I use is 3x5 cards. At my age, I went thru the learning system the old way. I was instructed to learn by seeing, saying, and doing the work. This has helped most of my students. When planning my classwork, I take into consideration all my students, and how they learn.
Hi Ira,
That is a key point you make. Knowledge of learning styles and preferences help the students to acquire the information and you with your planning.
Gary
Understanding learner characteristics helps in determining different learning styles in which each instructor can utilize in the instructional planning process. The sooner the instructor can determine the learning styles, the instructor can now gear his presentataions with those particular learning styles in mind. Therefore, capturing the learners undivided attention.
able to understand students better and teach better
By understanding learner characteristics, the instructor is able to create lesson plans that utilizes techniques that will ensure that all learning styles are addressed.
Hi Thomas,
You make a good point. As communicators we need to make sure our message is being heard and processed. Through feedback from the students we can learn how effective we are really being. This type of feedback should be solicited throughout the course and not just as a summative course evaluation.
Gary
Hi Ricardo,
Thank you for this excellent example of how to work with diverse learning groups. You example shows how each person and group can benefit from each other while respecting what each one brings to the learning environment.
Gary
Hi Thomas,
Well said. We as instructors need to understand the students we have and they change so much from course to course. By digging in a bit and learning about where they are coming from and where they want to go an instructor will be much more effective.
Gary
As time goes on you will develop a fine tuned version of your lesson plan that will address most of the difficulties you have encountered in previous classes. This lesson plan will likely evolve continously as needs and characteristics change, the curriculum changes, and even as you develop as an instructor, discovering progressively better techniques for communicating the course information.
Understanding learner characteristics helps us in the planning process because it helps us to meet our students where they are.
Knowing the characteristics of our learners is like understanding a culture. If we understand a foreign culture, we will function better within that culture and also have a greater ability to communicate ideas within that culture.
As instructors we are communicators, and communicating within the context of a given culture will greatly enhance our ability to communicate effectively.
If everybody within a given culture is accustomed to learning by means of verbal expression, asking those persons to read instructions and perform the tasks outlined in the written instructions, will likely not be as productive as verbally delivering those same instructions.
