These days, it is fairly common knowledge that students learn in individual and different ways. This is because everyone has a unique way of absorbing information. Over the past century, psychologists have taken a close look at the ways in which people uniquely comprehend information. These valuable studies help shape the way Inspiration® Software approaches creating tools to help K-12 students learn. I believe that as an educator always looking for ways to help students learn, you can also benefit from a refresher on the variety of learning styles students possess.
The History of Learning Styles
The study of the way in which people learn began in 1907 with Dr. Maria Montessori, who utilized different materials to enhance students’ learning. Jumping forward 50 years, psychologists such as Benjamin Bloom, Isabel Myers-Briggs, Katherine Briggs and David Kolb touched on philosophies that emphasized the difference in individual cognitive skills and learning.1
In the late 1980s, Neil Flemming developed a model called the VARK learning styles theory, which targets learning based on four cognitive components. These components include visual, auditory, textual and kinesthetic learning styles.2
- This diagram, created in Inspiration®, may be downloaded for any non-commercial use.
The Visual Learner: “Show me and I’ll understand.”
Put simply, visual learners grasp information best when it is seen. As a visual learner myself, I often think in pictures and learn best when I view diagrams that represent new information. When studying, I like to review visual displays in texts books, lecture handouts or my detailed notes in a graphic organizer. Inspiration®, Kidspiration® and Webspiration Classroom™ are very helpful for students with this learning style. In my recent post titled, “Do You See What I’m Saying,” I discuss in detail what it means to be a visual learner and the ways in which educators can tailor lessons for this learning style.
The Auditory Learner: “Tell me and I’ll remember.”
Auditory learners are mentally storing information as it is heard. These individuals often do best by just listening in on lessons and discussions without taking notes. This learning style will likely pick up on everything that you say and the tone in which you say it. For early auditory learners, the talking interface, listening tool and record command in Kidspiration help students to hear and speak words aloud. Auditory students enjoy talking through lessons with others, reading textbooks out loud and listening to recordings of lectures when studying.
The Reading and Writing Learner: “Let me write it down and I’ll comprehend.”
The textual aspect of learning styles refers to reading and writing learners. This type of learner benefits from having a lot of reading material in addition to lectures. They also take meticulous notes during class lessons. While studying, these individuals will often rewrite notes at least once or twice before being tested in order to exercise both the reading and writing aspects of learning. In Inspiration’s Outline View, students can easily take notes and then rewrite, rearrange or expand on them to reinforce their learning.
The Kinesthetic or Tactile Learner: “Let me act it out.”
Kinesthetic and tactile learners are hands on in their educational approach. These students like to move around the classroom and test ideas out with physical activity. Individuals that prefer to learn this way are constantly exploring their physical surroundings. A student who is a kinesthetic learner will often remember lessons or concepts by recalling what their body was doing while learning the new information. Educators can encourage kinesthetic learning by introducing activities that allow students to move about the classroom or act out lessons.
Understanding your students’ need for diverse learning styles in the classroom and implementing a range of effective strategies for each style can drastically improve students’ comprehension, retention and understanding. I encourage you to incorporate a variety of approaches to communicating information to successfully reach every learner!
Tell us what your learning style is in this week’s poll! Check back next week to learn why we believe visual learning is critical thinking.
Mona Westhaver
President and Co-founder, Inspiration Software
- Chandler, Joe. “History of Learning Styles | EHow.com.” EHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles. Web. 14 Sept. 2010. <http://www.ehow.com/about_5381758_history-learning-styles.html>. [↩]
- Withers, James. “VARK Learning Styles Theory | EHow.com.” EHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles. Web. 14 Sept. 2010. <http://www.ehow.com/about_6612058_vark-learning-styles-theory.html>. [↩]
