Journal - Learning Styles

I have learned a couple of new things concerning my personal learning style. I know I am primarily a visual, tactile learner and that is the way I prefer to learn. I also have adapted and learn auditorily well. However, when I look at the characteristics of the auditory learner, such as group learning and repeating back verbally, I realize this is definitely not me. I prefer to learn independently and holistically. Nothing really irritates and insults me as much as going through the steps of a process without a close look at the end result. I like diagrams that show the individual parts of systems in their relationship. I prefer to see these up front at the beginning before delving into the intricacies of each piece. So, that is me.

What I know about me as a teacher or courseware designer/developer is I have some work to do. My students will have different preferences, potentially, from mine. I still must remind myself of this and not let it frustrate me. When I am designing instruction, I must look at the presentation and topical flow or outline to ensure I am interleaving the information and subjects to suit my learners. I watched The Dead Poets Society and witnessed just how easy it is to engage your students in a variety of means that will appeal to many styles at once. I need to keep the imagination going and remain open to different ideas. Activities can mean individual or group projects as well as in class instruction such as discussions.

One other area I can use this is looking at different means of assessments, both formative and summative. I truly gained some useful insight from the reading. While we may be strapped to multiple choice and matching exams, there are some variations I have been kicking around which may provide a better match when assessing all learning styles.