| For years, teachers were told to plan their instruction | | | | He found that in a hands-on setting: kinesthetic |
| according to the learning styles of their learners in | | | | learners enjoy their lessons much more than their |
| terms of personality types of the Myers Briggs or | | | | verbal peers. In a reading text setting: verbal learners |
| the five major learning types such as auditory, | | | | enjoy the lessons much more than their kinesthetic |
| kinesthetic, tactile, verbal and visual. Typically, | | | | peers. |
| teachers would administer a learning styles inventory | | | | Teachers Can Match Teaching Styles With Content |
| and based on the results, they would best adapt | | | | It's not realistic to figure out the composition of |
| their instruction on primary learning models. | | | | learning styles in the classroom.The question |
| Now there is new research that shows there is no | | | | becomes: how can teachers match teaching style |
| strong scientific evidence to support the "matching" | | | | with content so that one instructional technique can |
| idea - that teaching styles should match students' | | | | be optimal for all groups of students.A variety of |
| learning styles. Harold E. Pashler from UCSD states, | | | | instruction might turn out to be better for all |
| "we were startled to find that there is so much | | | | students! |
| research published on learning styles, but that so little | | | | Why Diversify Teaching Styles to Match the Needs |
| of the research used experimental designs that had | | | | of the learners |
| the potential to provide decisive evidence." | | | | Teachers and instructors pay more attention to the |
| In fact, no one has ever proved that any particular | | | | kinds of instruction they are delivering - "getting into |
| style of instruction simultaneously helps students who | | | | the student's head"Teachers can offer a broader |
| have one learning style while also harming students | | | | mixture of lectures, discussions and other hands-on |
| who have a different learning style. | | | | activities. "Even though the learning-style idea might |
| There is another fact: only a study by classroom | | | | not work, it might encourage teachers to think about |
| type can support the hypothesis that teaching styles | | | | how their students learn and what would be the best |
| should match students' learning styles. Additionally, | | | | instructional methods for a particular lesson" (Richard |
| there are almost no studies based on classroom type. | | | | E. Mayer, UCSB) |
| Case in Point: Students Are More Alike Than | | | | Matching teaching methods to learning styles might |
| Different | | | | not be ideal but it still an important learning and |
| When teaching the structure of complex molecules, | | | | teaching concept to keep in mind when planning |
| Pashler assigned students to a classroom that uses | | | | lessons. |
| laboratory lessons or to a classroom that uses texts. | | | | |