Back to School for GrownUps

You probably already know that people do not all learn the same way. Some of us tend to be more auditory; some are more visual, and some people learn by doing…and all to varying degrees.

Knowing where you fit can be helpful - not just in terms of helping you to DO what you need to do in order to learn effectively, but also in making decisions about the type of program or course to take, or what sort of learning situation, in other words, you should look for. And, of course, in figuring out what sort of career you might do well in, as well.

If you are strictly a hands on type of learner, you are probably going to be frustrated as all heck in course that is all lecture. Most profs SHOULD have enough sense to know that in any class groupings they are going to have students who learn better in each of the areas - but not all subjects lend themselves easily to all styles of learning …and not all profs are skilled at finding ways to change it up to accomodate everyone.

There are bunches of online versions of tests to tell you your learning style - but chances are you already have a pretty good sense of what works for you.

Those of use who are more hands on tend to be bored by lectures; those who fill their notes with drawings and diagrams are propably more visual than others, and so on …

There are a number of different inventories and measures available… some that are more detailed than others - and some online sites that are clearly more interested in selling you stuff than in actually telling you anything useful about your learning styles. Here are a few that seem more useful than some:

• Abiator’s Learning Styles Inventories Tests - the ones I tried were straightforward - no registration required.  Information provided for both teachers and learners.
• Learning-Styles-Online.com also includes information and tests - their tests differ in that they offer a graphical, detailed representation of where you fit. You are required to register to get your results, but while they would like you to buy full access and a manual, they do provide you with the basics with the free membership.
• Dr. Richard Felder is a prof at North Carolina State U, and his site, while rather academic and uh… plain (as in visually B O R I N G) does include bunches of information about learning styles, especially the Felder-Silverman Learning Style Model (go figure ). The inventory itself is here , and no registration is required.

So - what is your learning style? And what strategies do you use to make it work for you?

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