WHEN LEARNING STYLES AND TEACHING STYLES CONFLICT

Do you enjoy listening to lectures, or do you find yourself gazing out the window or dozing? When your instructor assigns a group discussion, what is your immediate reaction? Do you dislike talking with other students, or is that the way you learn best? How do you react to lab sessions when you have to conduct an actual experiment? Is it an activity you look forward to, or one you dread? Each of these learning situations appeals to some students more than others, but each is inevitably going to be part of your college experience. Your college or university has intentionally designed courses for you to have the opportunity to listen to professors who are experts in their field, to interact with other students in structured groups, and to learn through doing. Because they are all important components of your college education, it’s important for you to make the most of each situation.

Instructors tend to teach in ways that fit their own particular styles of learning, which might surprise you. So an instructor who learns best in a read/write mode or aural mode will probably just lecture and give the class little opportunity for either interaction or visual and kinesthetic learning. But an instructor who prefers a more interactive, hands-on environment will likely involve students in discussion and learning through experience.

When you recognize a mismatch between how you best learn and how you are being taught, it is important that you take control of your learning process. Use Table 4.2 as a guide to identify these mismatches and discover strategies for how to handle them. Don’t depend on the instructor or the classroom environment to give you everything you need to maximize your learning. Employ your own preferences, talents, and abilities to develop many different ways to study and retain information. For instance, if you don’t like listening to a lecture, you will want to sit close to the front of the classroom to reduce distractions. You might also want to record the lecture (with the instructor’s permission) so that you can listen to it again. Look back through this chapter to remind yourself of the ways that you can use your own learning styles to be more successful in any class you take.

TABLE 4.1 image Using the VARK to Adapt

Try to use the VARK to figure out how your instructors teach their classes. List your classes, your instructors’ teaching styles, and then your learning style. Do they match? If not, list a strategy you can use to adapt.

My Classes Teaching Style My Learning Style Match: Yes or No?
Example: Psychology Uses PowerPoints with her lecture so: Visual and Auditory I am kinesthetic and visual. No, but I can ride a stationary bike while looking over my notes.