There are so many ways that people use for learning. Some people learn by listening and discussing with other people, others learn by reading (visual learners), and still, others learn with hands-on experience. I would say that learning is a subjective process, and discovering the ways in which one learns best is the most important thing. Buehl introduces some important learning skills to students on how to read complex
For me, I will define myself as a visual learner and hands-on experience combines. If I could see what is happening, I have a much easier time understanding it. Reading a book does not give me this ease. Particularly the technical or science book, I have trouble visualizing exactly what is being explained by just reading it and without actually see the process happening. So, in order to gain knowledge from those books, I would highlight the keywords and the main steps, draw pictures or graphs to elaborating the ideas, organize the information, and text coding by putting myself as the writer or instructor. I also found that the visual method is helpful when I try to teach my kids
Chinese. For example, when I introduce a new Chinese word, I will write the word down, and then draw a picture of the word to remind them of the meaning of the word.
Everyone learns in a different style, and I don't think there is a perfect method that is good for everyone. It is important to guide the students to find the most efficient studying method for themselves.
Your own experience as a visual learner; where drawing pictures, graphs or diagrams helps you understand more, and consequently, you tend to use this practice when you are teaching others, is an important factor. This indicates to me that we tend to use learning strategies on the basis of our own experiences and that is an important resource to turn to. However, it is equally important to learn the ways in which our students learn best and there is ofcourse some trial and error involved in this process. So for instance some students may learn well with diagrams, but others may not even be inclined to read them. This would then entail that instructors develop practices that intentionally focus the student's attention towards this form of learning while complementing this learning with other forms as well. You also mentioned that lecturing is an efficient way to teach and sometimes I have wondered if this efficiency is at the expense of depth of learning. I have had experiences of students in my Economics class insisting on my lecturing even though I had other activities planned for them. If a concept was introduced through an experiment or game there was very little that seemed to transfer to conceptual knowledge, which made me constantly question the best format in which to teach a new concept. I have often wondered how best to pull students towards practices that they are disinclined towards but would benefit if motivated to do so. 12th grade students especially, are disinclined to change their study habits and motivating them towards more productive outcomes is a constant struggle. Knowing your students is I believe central to understanding the best ways in which to develop skills as more efficient and effective learners.
ReplyDeleteMs. Ali, thank you for your respondence. I think your opinions are worth reference, since those are your teaching experience. Classroom is a small world, I think it is very hard to choose one teaching strategy that fit every student. Depending on the subjects we are teaching and how much time we should spend on explaining the subjects, we have to decide the methods that best for our classes. And I tend to use my practice when I am teaching because I can demonstrate and explain the knowledge best in this way.
DeleteI also very appreciate that you sharing your experience on how you try to hook your 12th graders in the Economics classes. There is no double that knowing your students is the best ways forever.
I really liked that you shared with us what kind of learner you are. Some students know what kind of learner they are but some don't. I think this is incredibly helpful information for both teacher and student. Helping the students identify themselves as types of learners can help you design your lessons and curriculum in a way that best suits your students.
ReplyDeleteThank you Belinda, you make up the point that I am trying to say. As teachers, I think it is very hard for us to realize all of our students' learning styles. Instead of defining for them, it is better to guide them knowing by themselves.
DeleteI agree, I'm a big visual and hands on leaner. I need real examples to understand complex concepts and I need to picture the process in my head.
ReplyDeleteAlso I really like you analogize with the Chinese words and making them into the picture. Its a creative way to put it that many students could learn from.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Xiaoyan. I also think those learning skills introduced by Buehl are really useful when I reading complex texts which will help me highlight the most important part of the whole articles. Your visual learning experience reminds me that the visual thinking strategies I learned in a workshop. It is said that Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) is a student-centered approach in which the student examines and discusses works of art, prompted by questions selected to support careful, evidentiary looking.
ReplyDeleteXiaoyan,
ReplyDeleteI think what you said "guide the students to find the most efficient studying method for themselves" is important to have in mind when we are teaching. I became aware of my learning style at an early age; however, instruction was guided toward a different style and those of us who did not fit the mold were left to find ways to learn the material on our own.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your personal experience! I think I'm just like you, I learn more with visuals. I also agree with the point you made about enthusiasm. I think if we do not teach in a way that shows that we are genuinely interested in the material, then that will definitely affect how students approach it.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your post. I think as educators we need to provide students multiple methods of teaching. Teaching through visuals aids, lectures, videos, articles, etc. For example, in a study about the importance of pictorial representation, it concluded that visual representations of certain problems foster greater student engagement and ability to solve a problem. Aside from teaching methods, it is also about creating connections with your students and learning what methods best help their learning process. We have been talking about how this can be done in class, by being vulnerable enough with your students, they will be vulnerable with you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the post. I think its very important to understand that students have many different ways of learning. I remember from my expert interview, the interviewee told me that students these days grew up on technology and therefore a trend of visual learners has become popular. As a teacher it is crucial that we understand and adapt o students learning styles. I also like how you mentioned teacher enthusiasm. If a teacher doesn't seem enthusiastic about what they are teaching, the students will feel like they don't need to care about the materials. Great post!
ReplyDeleteHey, Xiaolin .Thank you for your sharing.I also agree that there are many different kinds of ways of learning skill. And the skill is different for students to use. In class we as educators can tell the skills and let students choose for themselves, then I do agree that it will have a good feedback.
ReplyDeleteYour emphasis on learning styles is a unique perspective. I felt like this is often not talked enough about in education readings and classes, we vaguely all know that everyone learns differently, but do our students know how they learn best? What happens when we are not accepting of our students individuals learning styles? These are things we need to keep in mind, because the best way to develop disciplinary literacy and expertise is actually through flexibility not rigidness.
ReplyDelete