It is important to understand learner characteristics because it allows the instructor to specifically taylor their instructional plans to meet the needs of the largest possible number of students in the class. This can also provide ideas for the instructor on how they can develop learning activities that will engage individual students, as well as allowing students to choose learning activities from a list of possible activities.
I like your idea about matching stronger students with weaker ones. But, doesn't it take a while to learn this much about your students?
it helps alot to make sure that the student understand the requirement at hand
By understanding the learner characteristics, it is easier to set up teams, pairing stronger students with weaker ones, drawing on the strength to help the less confident ones become more secure. Usually when I work alongside a new student or employee, they work harder to match my pace. It is almost as though they have set up a friendly competition, without actually saying so out loud
Hi Liz,
I agree with you about the pretest needing to be short and targeted. I have 15 questions on mine and it takes about 15 minutes to take. I do some iced breakers and then give the class the pretest and then have some group activities. This way I mingle the pretest into the first nights class without making a big deal of it so the students don't get stressed out but I get the information I need to plan where I start with the class.
Gary
Understanding learner charachteristics helps by enabling me to plan my presentation with those characteristics in mind. In other words, I may choose to do more 'hands on' teaching with learners who have experience in the field.
Hi William and Gary,
Are you thinking of something along the lines of a pretest? These can be very helpful in math. A pretest can help students see where the course is going. It can also be a good reflection tool. It's actually pretty amazing to have students keep their pretest all quarter and then reflect back on it as the quarter progresses to see strides they are making. This would be a good way to offer frequent, genuine encouragement.
I do have to say though that in the past I have given a pretest that was simply too long. It was very frustrating and discouraging for the students to work on a test for over an hour that they really didn't know much about. Now when I do pretests I keep them short and only highlight the really important concepts from each section.
Liz
Hi William,
You make an excellent point. Instructors need to account for life experiences when working with adult learners but no assumptions can be made in relation to subject knowledge. This is why the use of a baseline assessment is very helpful in showing where the students are in their knowledge base.
Gary
Understanding learner characteristics can help instructors differentiate instruction to meet the diverse needs of the learners in their classrooms.
One way of differentiating instruction to meet the needs of the learners is to scaffold assignments/projects. Offering students supports along the way can help and they can choose to use them or not. Another way would be to give different choices for assignments. I am a math instructor, so something I do is give three options of assignments a straight ahead assignment, a hilly, and a mountainous assignment. That way the students can choose the level of challenge they are up for. I find that usually students make a good choice for themselves. If they do not it never hurts to give them some encouraging words like, "you did so well on the last quiz we took, why don't you attempt the mountainous assignment this week?"
The idea of adding the students write down what they learned during the lecture in a 60 timeframe is a fantastic way to get feedback on your presentation techniques as well as how well the students interpreted your material.
Many educators mistakenly feel that the adult learners already are conversant in the subject material. Certainly this is not always the case and it is extremely important to build on a strong foundation and include them in the construction of the learning situation.
Understanding learner characteristics should help be know how to best get the material across to the student, how to best motivate him, and how to relate the material to his experience. I usually work with adult learners, who frequently don't act like adults. They are frequently unprepared, e.g. have not done the required reading. They frequently do not participate effectively in class activities. And, they often have trouble working effectively in teams, e.g. do not communicate or organize well, do not meet dead lines, wait until the last minute to complete the work, deliver poor quality work. Although I know their characteristics, I still have difficulty getting them to act like adults and to master the subject material.
If an instructor understands the learning characteristics a variety of teaching styles can be implemented to assist all types of different learning characteristics. This will also keep the class interesting.
I believe one of the ways to understand learner characteristics is through talking and listening and trying to find out what works for them in the area of learning.
Laurie
It is very improtant because as a teacher you want to give all your students the best opportunity to be successful and learn the material. Understanding their learning characteristics allows you to put together each lesson plan in such a way they can understand it best.
Justin
You will lose most learners by using pure lecture. You will also bore the instructor to tears. Hands on is the way to go with most classes. Lecture a few then do something, lecture again do something else.
You have to know the background of you students in order to set the class up for learning. If you have visual learners you need to be teaching by giving a lot examples or demonstartions. Just lecturing you will lose this type of learner.
This is an essential when planning instruction. By understanding your students characteristics you are able to plan student centered learning activities. For instance, I have found that with adult learners small group projects are great ways to encourage their participation and to make them feel comfortable in the classroom. Most have been doing things like this at work or at home so it is not new and sets them up for success. Younger students do well if you make the groups small so that they learn teamwork and that older students are interesting. It is a win-win for both groups.
By understanding the learner's characteristics we can use the approach which will be most beneficial to him and guarantee maximum learning. We can adjust our teaching methods to the student's learning styles and use whatever makes him tick to motivate him.
Hi Richard,
A powerful message to your students and one that if internalized will greatly change their lives. Keep sharing the message it is needed by your students.
Gary
