Learning Styles/Theories

Learning Styles Don’t Exist

            The video presented reasons why learning styles don’t actually exist.  The information provided almost seemed obvious.  It makes so much sense and made me question if it is just easier for people to make excuses as to why they didn’t learn something effectively.  While some people have a better visual memory than others, it doesn’t mean they ONLY learn visually. It is important to base your style of teaching on the content AND not the student’s alleged learning style because any good teacher can use any method depending on the material , and any student can learn the content if it is presented effectively.

Behaviorism—

            After reading the articles defining behaviorism, I have a lot of questions. I am not certain what I was to take away from these readings. I have ascertained behaviorism as presenting a student with material (stimuli) and rewarding the student with positive reinforcement if they give the desired response, or negative if they do not.  Doesn’t this just allow students to memorize the desired response rather than actually learn how or why they need to know it?   I can only assume this represents the status quo. I feel educators too often condition students rather than teach them.  The material is processed but the students fail to comprehend the material at a deeper level therefore they are unable to apply the concepts outside of a classroom. This goes back to teaching students concrete and abstract ideas to allow them to transfer the same concepts to other concrete ideas. They can only do this if they achieve a deep lever of understanding of the concepts.

CLT—

            The idea of constructivism resonates more than behaviorism. I appreciate the idea of students building on current knowledge and connecting it to what they already know. The article does a fantastic job of outlining the principles of learning and every teacher is affected by theory. One’s teaching methods should revolve around the principles of learning to ensure their instruction if effective.  Taking into consideration what a student already knows and building off current knowledge to introduce new concepts allows students to construct meaning and retain the new knowledge. While I appreciate the articles and the insight it gives, I am also a little overwhelmed with the ideas and principles of CLT

 I appreciate the articles but I am overwhelmed with the principles of learning. I fully understand the principles but am fearful of how I will take them into consideration to effectively teach my lessons. Practice I suppose!