Learning Styles and Influence on Learning (Week 2 - Reflection 2)

To gain knowledge or understanding is considered the definition of learning. The individuals’ manner for gaining the knowledge or understanding is considered the learning style. It is “style” (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic) that has the greatest impact for the learner in the classroom. Studies indicate that 65% of individuals are visual learners, 30% are auditory, and 5% are tactile learners. This needs to be a primary consideration for the classroom teacher.
When providing information, a general agreement of what people retain is as follows:
• 10 % of what they read
• 20 % of what they hear
• 30 % of what they see
     Note: These numbers indicate 40% rely on visual information for learning. Retention increases when combining these various methods of providing information.

It will be important to provide various teaching techniques in the classroom to accommodate the various learning styles. The impact of the environment on the various learning styles should also be a major consideration. Think about it – no handout or chalkboard for the visual learner; a large classroom with poor acoustics or an ESL student for the auditory learner; no paper or glue for the tactile learner. It does not have to be absence of high-cost tools to have a negative impact on learning styles.

While not the end-all, the addition of technology in the classroom is ideal. Technology will provide the classroom teacher with various inputs and outputs for information. Again, it does not require the most expensive technology available to add to the learning experience. Think about the antiquated overhead projector, the use of colored paper, seating in close proximity to the chalkboard for the visual learner. Even these minor adjustments can have a positive impact for the visual learner. The auditory learner should benefit from a book on tape, and the tactile learner would gather knowledge by planting a seed in a small pot in the classroom.

What high-end technology can provide is limitless; limited only by the teacher’s imagination and the ability to use the equipment. The use of an LCD projector, computer, and the internet gives the classroom teacher access to tools from around the world. No one has to “reinvent the wheel”; it is out there for the taking for educational purposes. The computer, coupled with various software, can offer a wide-range of learning activities, and modes of teaching, for the student who relies on visual information, auditory information, or kinesthetic information for learning.