Dec 18 2009
Learning Styles: Back to the Blackboard
For years now, teachers have been teaching other teachers that there are different learning styles — visual, auditory — and that it pays to tailor your teaching to the student’s style. But maybe it ain’t so. A recent report in the journal Psychological Science in the Public Interest has seriously questioned that assertion.
Do teachers of teachers need to go back to the black board and begin teaching differently? May be. But before the old is erased and replaced with the completely new, there is some homework to be done. And by “homework” I mean research. It seems the problem is with the first batch.
What was the problem? The report -
reviews the existing literature on learning styles and finds that although numerous studies have purported to show the existence of different kinds of learners (such as “auditory learners” and “visual learners”), those studies have not used the type of randomized research designs that would make their findings credible. [source]
Oops. Of course, the problem can be remedied. Maybe there really is something to “the notion that teaching methods should match a student’s particular learning style.” But maybe there isn’t.
The final sentence of the news release might be a bit overstated, but valid:
Given the lack of scientific evidence, the authors argue that the currently widespread use of learning-style tests and teaching tools is a wasteful use of limited educational resources.
Interestingly, the initial title to the Eurekalert post was also a bit overstated: Learning styles debunked. Overnight it was changed to Learning styles challenged.
See, people can learn.
