Running head: LEARNING STYLES AND TEACHING STRATEGIES 1

Learning Styles and Teaching Strategies

Molly Blankenship

Tarleton State University

Learning Styles and Teaching Strategies

STYLES AND STRATEGIES 2

It is important for a teacher to recognize that students have different learning styles. This

affects not only the way that students learn and internalize the information, but also how they

approach problem-solving situations.

Cognitive Theory

According to Goulet & Wittrock, 1971, the cognitive process leading to learning is a

result of past experiences, stimuli, attitudes, and abilities. Cognitive theory implies that

learning can be predicted and understood in terms of what the learners bring to the learning

situation, how they relate the stimuli to their memories, and what they generate from their

previous experiences (p. 44). Their research indicates that learning is dependent on prior

knowledge and long-term memory. When new information and/or concepts are presented, this

triggers a past experience. A connection is then made which helps the learner to process and

fully comprehend the new information.

Learning Styles

In order for students to maximize their learning potential, it would be beneficial for them

to know their optimum learning style. How students learn varies, but generally falls into these

categories: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic/tactile.

1. Visual learners prefer seeing the information in print textbook, board, graphics,

PowerPoint.
2. Auditory learners need to hear the information lecture, reading aloud, audio tapes,

class discussions.
3. Kinesthetic/Tactile learners require movement and hands-on experiences field trips,

role-playing, handling and building models, touching and working with materials,

experiments in a laboratory.
STYLES AND STRATEGIES 3

Students approach how they study in different ways as well. Students may prefer music or quiet;

bright light or dim light; studying alone or in a group; and reading or listening to material.

Recognizing these individual preferences will enhance the students success.

Addressing Learning Styles

The way teachers present material also varies. Ideally, teachers will address Multiple

Intelligences as set out by Howard Gardner:

1. Bodily/Kinesthetic
2. Interpersonal
3. Intrapersonal
4. Logical/Mathematical
5. Musical/Rhythmic
6. Verbal/Linguistic
7. Visual/Spatial

By addressing these intelligences, the teacher provides opportunities for students to learn in the

style that suits them the best. The teacher who utilizes a variety of instructional approaches is

more likely to reach all students in the classroom: moreover, students are encouraged to learn in

a variety of ways (Castolo and Rebusquillo, 2007, p. 22).

Students flourish best in a powerful learning environment. In a student-centered

classroom, the students are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning. This is

achieved by implementing numerous opportunities for students to learn independently and

collaboratively utilizing print and technology. Success is determined by the application of the

acquired knowledge to problem-solving situations.

Cooperative Learning
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One teaching strategy to enhance student understanding is cooperative learning. Students

are given the opportunity to work with other students in order to use each others understanding

and knowledge to better comprehend the concept or solve the problem. Being grouped with

students with different learning styles helps to present the material in different ways. Studies

have found positive effects of cooperative learning such as knowledge acquisition, peer

relationships, social skills, and academic self-concept (Jurkowski & Hnze, 2015, p. 358).

Peer Collaboration

Another strategy is peer collaboration. In this strategy, the teacher becomes a facilitator,

only offering coaching when needed. The students conduct the discussion as independently as

they can. Ideas and strategies emerge, and the student discussion leads to a volleying of thoughts

among the students.

Achievement Goals

The term achievement goals refers to cognitive representations of competence-related

purposes that individuals seek to pursue (Liem, 2015, p.37). When students set academic goals,

they should be more inclined to purposely manage their time and study habits in order to

accomplish the goals. The motivation becomes intrinsic rather than extrinsic. This same goal-

setting can be applied to social settings as well.

Implications for My Teaching Practice

As an Agricultural Education major, I plan to use all of the learning styles I mentioned

above. In my years of taking Ag classes in high school, I was able to witness the different styles

that both of my teachers applied in their specific subjects.

STYLES AND STRATEGIES 5

Visual

To aid in visual learning, we used a variety of visual aids. What I found most helpful for

me, and something that I will definitely use are PowerPoints. Whether it was an aid for a lecture

in welding or a visual of the anatomy of a plant, PowerPoints were a lifesaver for me. My junior

and senior year of high school I was captain of the Nursery/Landscape team, and it was my job

to prepare the team for contest. My biggest teaching strategy was to use PowerPoints to help

give visual aid to the information that I was giving. I really like how the visuals actually give the

students a picture or some sort of mental image of what a teacher is trying to convey in their

lesson. One visual that helped me in high school was when my welding teacher took my class

out into the shop to show us the equipment. We had been going over the different parts of

welding machines and tanks on paper, but it hadnt been clear to me. Actually going out and

seeing the different parts in person is what made the difference in my actually learning the

different parts.

Auditory

The auditory skills that I would utilize would be lectures. I feel that lectures are a great

way to give the information in a way that could at least be partially understood by students. But

along with the lecture, I would prefer a visual aid. That way there is a better chance of the

lecture sticking with them better due to the fact that the lecture is both auditory and visual.

Another auditory/visual that would be good are videos. While I dont believe that they educate

as well as actual face-to-face interactive teaching, they can be a good way to keep the students

learning even if you arent able to be in the classroom.

Kinesthetic/Tactile
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Of these learning styles, the one that has always been the most helpful to me is

kinesthetic. Ive always felt that hands-on learning is the best way to really understand

something. This type of learning is also the category in which the teaching that Id like to focus

on falls under. My passion is Horticulture, particularly Floral Design. The hands on approach

that one must take when designing arrangements is what brings me joy and allows me to express

myself in a way that words cannot. I feel that this is the best way to fully appreciate and be a

part of the learning experience in Ag. As a teacher, I want my students to feel just as much joy as

I feel when I get to show someone how to arrange flowers, make a homecoming mum, or make

pencil holders out of vegetable cans and modge podge. My Floral Design class was all about

hands-on interactive learning, I want to implement the same methods in my own classes.

In Conclusion

The many different strategies that my Ag teachers used helped me to understand how and

what to implement in my own classroom one day. Between field trips to the Ag Farm to get the

pigs and goats ready for show, to watching a video about growing flowers in a greenhouse, I was

able to gain firsthand experience in seeing how to put these styles into practice. These learning

styles and the many strategies I have seen will help me to provide a positive learning experience

for students that I encounter in my career.

Reference List

Castolo, C.L., Rebusquillo, L.R. (2007). Learning styles of sophomore students of pup laboratory

high school. Journal on Educational Psychology, 1,21-35.

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http://www.eric.ed.gov.zeus.tarleton.edu:82/contentdelivery/servlet/ERICServlet?

accno=EJ1066299

Jurkowski, S., Hnze, M. (2015). How to increase the benefits of cooperation: effects of training

in transactive communication on cooperative learning. British Journal of Educational

Psychology, 85, 357-367. doi: 10/1111/bjep.12077

Liem, G.A.D. (2016). Academic and social achievement goals: their additive, interactive, and

specialized effects on school functioning. British Journal or Educational Psychology, 86,

37-56. doi: 10.1111/bjep.12085

Lin, T., Anderson, R.C., Nguyen-Jahiel, K., Kuo, L., Dong, T., Jadallah, M., Baker, A.R., Kim, I.,

Miller, B.W., Wu, X. (2014). Less is more: teachers influence during peer collaboration.

Journal of Educational Psychology, 107, 609-629. doi:10.1037/a0037758

Van Petegem, P., De Loght, T., & Shortridge, A. M. (2004). Powerful learning is interactive: a

cross-cultural perspective. E-Journal of Instructional Science and Technology, 7(1).

http://www.eric.ed.gov.zeus.tarleton.edu:82/contentdelivery/servlet/ERICServlet?

accno=EJ850351

Wittrock, M.C. (2010). Learning as a generative process. Educational Psychologist, 11, 40-45.

doi: 10.1080/00461520903433554