Learning Styles.

Students take in and process information in different ways. This is due to their different perceptions, personalities, prior knowledge, intelligence and worldly knowledge.

It is important therefore to strive for a balance of teaching strategies to ensure a majority of student’s learning styles are accommodated for within each lesson. If students are taught using their preferred learning style they are more likely to be engaged and achieve essential learning outcomes relevant to the specific tasks or units.

 After completing the Felder and Solomon learning style inventory I was surprised with the results. My results showed that I am well balanced with all of the eight learning styles. This could only be beneficial when planning for students learning as I would tend to use a varied yet balanced assortment of learning and teaching strategies. I would teach students to be reflective in what their lesson’s outcomes will consist of and be active learners in planning the implementation of tasks to fulfil these outcomes. Using mind mapping and timeline tools could enhance these activities digitally. Accommodating for the sensing and intuitive learners I would set tasks to ensure students had an understanding of how the subject or unit connects to the real world and then create procedures to further show how important concepts relevant to the unit apply in practice. For visual and verbal learners I would continually show thinking out-loud strategies and encourage students display of word walls and prompt charts or tables relevant to the lesson or unit the class is working on. For sequential and global learners, whole class constructed criteria and to do lists would help the students with sequential learning styles and revisiting or brainstorming to connect with student’s prior knowledge of unit content would assist the students who prefer to learn globally.

Digital pedagogoy allows teachers to use technology to enhance and contribute to the learning of students regardless of their learning style. By using technology to; allow students to work individually or work in groups, encouraging collaboration, visually, auditorally and interactively stimulate, experiment and learn different formatting opportunities, the implementation of technology with in the classroom is really as endless as your imagination. Teachers must become competent in using the new technology first however. You cannot possible develop an exciting, stimulating learning plan without effective knowledge of the content in which you wish to teach.