Dear
students:
As you may
know,
students have different learning styles (ways of perceiving and
processing information), and sometimes run into trouble in courses in
which the instructor’s teaching style doesn’t match their learning
style. Read over the following descriptions and try to identify your
learning style, and consider the suggestions of ways you can help
yourself when mismatches occur, so that you can make the most of your
educational experiences.
Active
and Reflective Learners
- Active
learners tend to retain and understand information best by doing
something active with it -- discussing or applying it or explaining it
to others. Reflective learners prefer to think about it quietly first.
- "Let's
try it out and see how it works" is an active learner's phrase; "Let's
think it through first" is the reflective learner's response.
- Active learners tend to like
group work more than reflective learners, who prefer working alone.
- Sitting
through lectures without getting to do anything physical but taking
notes is hard for both learning types, but particularly hard for active
learners.
Everybody
is active sometimes and reflective sometimes.
Your preference for one category of learners or the other may be
strong, moderate, or mild. A balance of the two is desirable. If you
always act before reflecting you can jump into things prematurely and
get into trouble, while if you spend too much time reflecting you may
never get anything done.
If you are
an
active learner in a class that allows little or no class time for
discussion or problem-solving activities, consider studying in a group
in which the members take turns explaining different topics to each
other. Work with others to guess what you will be asked on the next
test and figure out how you will answer. If you are a reflective
learner in a class that allows little or no class time for thinking
about new information, don’t simply read or memorize lecture material;
stop periodically to review what you have read and to think of possible
questions or applications. You might also find it helpful to write
short summaries of readings or class notes in your own words.
Sensing
and Intuitive Learners
- Sensing learners tend to like learning
facts; intuitive learners often prefer discovering possibilities and
relationships.
- Sensors
like solving problems by well-established methods and dislike
complications and surprises; intuitors like innovation and dislike
repetition.
- Sensors tend to be
patient with details and good at memorizing facts and doing hands-on
(laboratory) work; intuitors may be better at grasping new concepts and
are often more comfortable than sensors with abstractions and
mathematical formulations.
- Sensors
don't like courses that have no apparent connection to the real world;
intuitors don't like "plug-and-chug" courses that involve a lot of
memorization and routine calculations.
Everybody
is sensing sometimes and intuitive sometimes.
Your preference for one or the other may be strong, moderate, or mild.
To be effective as a learner and problem solver, you need to be able to
function both ways. If you overemphasize intuition, you may miss
important details or make careless mistakes in calculations or hands-on
work; if you overemphasize sensing, you may rely too much on
memorization and familiar methods and not concentrate enough on
understanding and innovative thinking.
If you are
a
sensing learner in a class where most of the material is abstract and
theoretical, you might ask your instructor for specific examples of
concepts and procedures and find out how the concepts apply in
practice. If the teacher does not provide enough specifics, try to find
some in the course text or in other references, or by brainstorming
with friends or classmates. If you are an intuitor in a class that
deals primarily with memorization and rote substitution in formulas,
you might ask your instructor for interpretations or theories that link
the facts, or try to find the connections yourself in texts or on the
Web. You may also be prone to careless mistakes on test because you are
impatient with details and don’t like repetition (as in checking your
completed solutions). Take time to read the entire question before you
start answering and be sure to check your results.
Visual
and Verbal Learners
- Visual learners remember best what they
see-- pictures, diagrams, flow charts, time lines, films, and
demonstrations.
- Verbal learners get more out
of words-- written and spoken explanations.
Everyone
learns
more when information is presented both visually and verbally. In most
college classes very little visual information is presented: students
mainly listen to lectures and read material written on chalkboards and
in textbooks and handouts. Good learners are capable of processing
information presented either visually or verbally.
If you are
a
visual learner, try to find diagrams, sketches, schematics,
photographs, flow charts, or any other visual representation of course
material that is predominantly verbal. Ask your instructor, consult
reference books, and see if any videotapes or CD-ROM displays of the
course material are available. Prepare a concept map by listing key
points, enclosing them in boxes or circles, and drawing lines with
arrows between concepts to show connections. Color-code your notes with
a highlighter so that everything relating to one topic is the same
color. If you are a verbal learner, you should find it helpful to write
summaries or outlines of course material in your own words. Working in
groups can be particularly effective: you can gain understanding of
material by hearing classmates’ explanations and you can learn even
more when you do the explaining.
Sequential
and Global Learners
- Sequential
learners tend to gain understanding in linear steps, with each step
following logically from the previous one. Global learners tend to
learn in large jumps, absorbing material almost randomly without seeing
connections, and then– suddenly– "getting it."
- Sequential
learners tend to follow logical stepwise paths in finding solutions;
global learners may be able to solve complex problems quickly or put
things together in novel ways once they have grasped the big picture,
but they may have difficulty explaining how they did it.
Many people
who
read this description may conclude incorrectly that they are global,
since everyone has experienced bewilderment followed by a sudden flash
of understanding. What makes you global or not is what happens before
the light bulb goes on. Sequential learners may not fully understand
the material but they can nevertheless do something with it (like solve
the homework problems or pass the test) since the pieces they have
absorbed are logically connected. Strongly global learners who lack
good sequential thinking abilities, on the other hand, may have serious
difficulties until they have the big picture. Even after they have it,
they may be fuzzy about the details of the subject, while sequential
learners may know a lot about specific aspects of a subject but may
have trouble relating them to different aspects of the same subject or
to different subjects.
If you are
a
sequential learner and have an instructor who jumps around from topic
to topic or skips steps, ask the instructor to fill in the skipped
steps, or fill them in yourself by consulting references. When you are
studying, take the time to outline the lecture material for yourself in
logical order. You might also try to strengthen your global thinking
skills by relating each new topic you study to things you already know.
The more you can do so, the deeper your understanding of the topic is
likely to be. If you are a global learner, before you begin to study
the first section of a chapter in a text, skim through the entire
chapter to get an overview. Try to relate the subject to things you
already know, either by asking the instructor to help you see
connections or by consulting references.
Although
these suggestions may seem time consuming, if you know what kind of
learner you are and use that knowledge when in class and when studying,
your studying will be more efficient and your learning will be more
productive and more fun. You’re also encouraged to visit your
instructor during
office hours to discuss any of the ideas in this letter.
Sincerely,
Richard
Feldner and Jonathan Gutow
Note: To
find out
more about learning styles and to take an on-line test that determines
your preferences on all four of the given scales, check out:
Learning
Styles
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