Learning Styles PDF

LEARNING STYLES Q. Do you have any particular ways of learning English? Write two statements that best describe how you learn English. Learning styles -the preferential way in which the student absorbs, processes, comprehends and retains information. -depend on cognitive, emotional and environmen...

LEARNING STYLES Q. Do you have any particular ways of learning English? Write two statements that best describe how you learn English. Learning styles -the preferential way in which the student absorbs, processes, comprehends and retains information. -depend on cognitive, emotional and environmental factors, as well as one’s prior experience. Everyone’s different. (https://teach.com/what/teachers-know/learning-styles/)  Learning styles are “general predisposition, voluntary or not, toward processing information in a particular way” (Skehan, 1991, p. 288) mediate between emotion and cognition. are determined by the way people internalize their total environment. Internalization is not just cognitive, but physical, affective and cognitive in combination (Brown, 2000) Visual learners Auditory learners Kinesthetic learners  Visual learners learn well by visual means -tend to prefer reading, and studying charts, drawings, pictures, and other graphic information Auditory learners learn well by hearing things -prefer listening to lectures and audiotapes -like teachers to give oral instructions -like making tape recordings of what they are learning -like having discussions Most successful learners use both visual and auditory input, but slight preferences for one way or the other distinguish onbe learner from another Kinesthetic learners learn well when they have hands-on experience, when they are physically involved or actively participate like moving around when they learn prefer a variety of classroom activities Questionnaire-Learning styles (Coursebook, p. 141c) Task. Read the first 10 statements and identify the learning style each statement refers to. Write K for kinesthetic, V for visual, and A for auditory learners. Acting out (Step1, Coursebook, p. 141a) Work in groups of 4-5. Discuss the situation (Step 1, p. 141a) and write 5 more pieces of advice to each type of learner. Practice (Step 2, Coursebook, p. 141a) Imagine you teach these words: saxophone, Italy, and downstairs. Design a presentation which aims to accommodate three types of learning styles (visual, auditory, and kinaethestic).  More learning styles Field-independent vs field-dependent Ambiguity-tolerant vs ambiguity-intolerant Reflective vs Impulsive  Field-independent style -defined by a tendency to separate details from the surrounding context. (Find the hidden monkeys in the trees) - by the ability to perceive a particular, relevant item or factor in a ‘field’ of distracting items - But being too field independent, you see only the parts, not their relationship to the whole.  Field dependent style (field sensitive style) - defined by a relative inability to distinguish detail from other information around it - but you perceive the whole picture, the larger view, the general configuration of a problem/event  FI FD Impersonal orientation Personal orientation (reliance (reliance on internal frame of on external frame of reference in reference in processing information) processing information) Analytic Holistic (parts are distinguished from (parts are fused with background) background) Independent Dependent (sense of separate identity) (the self view is derived from others) Socially sensitive Not so socially aware (greater skill in interpersonal/social (less skilled in interpersonal/social relationships) relationships) (Hawkey, 1982) 16  Both field independent (FI) and field dependent (FD) styles are necessary. FI/D is subject to individual variation. They are quite variable within an individual. That is, depending on the context of learning, individual learners can vary their use of FI/D.  FI&FD checklist - A, E: very much like you / B, D: more or less like you / C: no inclination A B C D E 1 I have no problem I need a quiet environment in order concentrating amid noise and to concentrate well. confusion. 2 I enjoy analyzing grammar I find grammar analysis tedious and structures boring. 3 I feel I must understand I don't mind reading or listening in every word of what I read or the L2 without understanding every hear. single word as long as I 'catch' the main idea. 4 I think classroom study is the I think communication is the key to key to effective language effective language learning. learning. 5 I prefer working alone to I really enjoy working with other working with other people. people in pairs or groups. 6 Receiving feedback from I find feedback useful as a means of other people really doesn't understanding my problem areas. affect my learning at all. 18  Implications for classroom language teaching 1 Activities that connect different parts of a lesson are useful for field-dependent learners. discuss what they know about a topic predict content look at and listen to related material. 2 Activities such as extensive reading and writing, which learners can carry out alone, are useful for field-independent learners. (https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/field-independent-learners) Ambiguity tolerance Budner (1962) tolerance of ambiguity= ‘the tendency to perceive ambiguous situations as desirable’. Intolerance of ambiguity: ‘the tendency to perceive (i.e., interpret) ambiguous situations as sources of threat’ Ambiguity tolerance -concerns the degree to which you are cognitively willing to tolerate ideas and propositions that run counter to your own belief system or structure of knowledge. -Some people are more open/willing to accept ideologies/views/facts that contradict their own views than others. -A person who is tolerant of ambiguity is free to entertain a number of innovative and creative possibilities and not cognitively or affectively disturbed by ambiguity and uncertainty. Ambiguity tolerance -successful language learning necessitates toterance of ambiguities (words that differ from the native language, rules that are inconsistent,...) Ambiguity tolerance -has both advantages and disadvantages +too much tolerance of ambiguity can have a detrimental effect. People can become “wishy-washy” accepting every proposition before them. + Intolerance can close the mind too soon, especially if ambiguity is perceived as a threat, producing a mind that is too narrow to be creative. Reflective vs impulsive (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FUXljupKl8) Reflectivity and impulsivity -degree to which a person makes a quick or gambling (impulsive) guess at an answer to a problem or a slower, more calculated (reflective) decision. Implications for classroom language teaching: -Teachers tend to treat mistakes too hashly, especially in the case of a learner with an impulsive style who may be more willing to gamble at an answer than a reflective person. -A reflective person may need patience from the teacher, who must allow more time for the students to struggle with responses. Implications for classroom language teaching: -Teachers tend to treat mistakes too hashly, especially in the case of a learner with an impulsive style who may be more willing to gamble at an answer than a reflective person. -A reflective person may need patience from the teacher, who must allow more time for the students to struggle with responses. -Those with impulsive styles may go through a number of rapid transitions of SLA -Those with reflective styles tend to remain longer at a particular stage with ‘larger’ leaps from stage to stage. Questions for discussion Q1. Do you believe that certain learners learn in one single way? Q2. Do you think that learning styles play an important role in language learning? Q3. In your opinion, what makes learning effective? Watch the Ted talk video about learning styles and the importance of critical self-reflection. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=855Now8h5Rs) Q. Do you agree with the arguments about learning styles the lady puts forward in the talk? Why/Why not? Review  More information about reflective learning https://study.com/academy/lesson/reflective-learning-definition -style-theory.html REFERENCES Brown, H. D., & Lee, H. (2015). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy (4th ed.). NY: Pearson. Budner, S. (1962). Intolerance of ambiguity as a personality variable. J. Pers, 30, 29–50. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6494.1962.tb02303.x The slides presented here draw mainly on Methodology 4: Theory of Teaching and Learning by Faculty of English, University of Foreign Languages, Hue University.