Friday, January 16, 2015
How do our learning styles affect learning? Blog #1
After watching the UDL video and completing your own Learning Styles Inventories, you now have an idea that we all learn differently. No matter our level of intelligence, we all need material presented, consumed, and applied in different ways, and how smart we are does not always equal how much or how well we learn. How does that make you feel as a future teacher? What will you do to accommodate for that? How does that apply to you as a student here at WC (i.e. does it explain classes you've excelled in and/or fallen short)? Discuss! Post by classtime Wednesday, Jan. 21. Respond to your Leadership Groupmates by classtime Friday, Jan. 23rd.
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ReplyDeleteThe number one thing that I can do as a teacher is to be sure that I am differentiating instruction. Not everyone learns in the same manner and therefore it is essential to be sure that information is being relayed in multiple formats, As a visual learner I need instructions to be written, it is very challenging for me to have information read aloud to me. In several classes in the past I have teachers that would only give instructions verbally; when that is the case I struggle to understand the assignment- thankfully, most teachers give a written description of assignments making it simpler for me to understand.
ReplyDeleteDifferentiation is also something I must incorporate into the classroom when teaching to reach every type of learner. As a visual learner myself, I definitely understand what a struggle it is without written instructions. Fortunately, most professors here at Westminster tend to give both types, and are usually willing to offer help if students don't understand something.
DeleteI can definitely tell that it's going to be a priority when I have a classroom of my own to be sure that I use differentiated instruction. Especially with younger kids, they can't really tell you what kind of learner they are. I think it's the teacher's responsibility to present that information in several ways. I'm a visual learner and I've had teachers or professors that only stand and lecture (or we discuss) but I have trouble following along without having something to read on the board. It helps that many professors understand that not everyone can learn that way.
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain regarding the lecturing. It can be very difficult to remember or get all the information down when a teacher is just talking to the class without any time of visual aid to follow. Also, I liked your point about the younger children not knowing the type of learning style that works best for them because it is so true. Many children try to just remember things without writing them down or they might try to skip out on certain exercises they find to be difficult. A teacher needs to recognize the areas students have difficulty with and note that the type of learning style they might excel in as well as the one in which they do poorly.
DeleteIt is going to be difficult as a future educator to try and figure out how each student learns best. I think that will definitely be one of the biggest challenges. I hope that throughout my college career I learn to think like other people, in the sense of learning styles. I am such a visual/kinesthetic learner that I cannot imagine just listening to a lecture!
DeleteI totally agree that differentiation of instruction is key! I for one, cannot learn things very well, with solely visual information, I need to hear it. I get distracted from taking notes and the next time I look up, were talking about something completely different. So, in a way, you and I are different learners, I wonder if that affects how well we will vary our instruction?
DeleteKnowing about the UDL style of teaching as a future teacher myself will definitely help me in the classroom. When I teach, I will make sure to use several different styles of instruction so that each student can learn the material to the best of their ability. By applying this knowledge to my own learning, I have realized that as a visual learner, I benefit the most in classes where the professor writes notes on the board while explaining the material, rather than just lecturing. When I am studying for a test, this also helps to explain why rewriting my notes and flashcards help me to retain more information.
ReplyDeleteIt is incredibly important to know your own learning style, especially in college where you may be expected to learn a large portion of the material on your own. It's easy to fall in the pattern of teaching in a way that works for you, it will be incredibly important that you keep yourself aware of all the different learning styles.
DeleteAlthough the accommodation of various learning styles is universally positive for students, it will more difficult for instructors to cater to these learning styles. Since I am primarily a visual learner, I will have to put more effort into other learning styles, especially tactile, since that is least relevant for my individual success as a student. The fact that I am a visual learner could explain why I typically struggle in math courses and excel in social studies. Although the incorporation of word problems is becoming more common in math classes, it is still difficult for me to turn numbers into images, but with history, I can easily picture historical events as I perceive them to have happened by my own imagination or by simply looking at an image on a board. I do very well with graphs, but graphs and many other visuals not included in mathematics are generally included in social studies.
ReplyDeleteJim you and i have very similar learning styles and we seem to struggle in the same classes and excel in the same classes also, I think that you will have no problem using various learning styles in your classroom
DeleteFrom my point of view, you as a teacher need to know that not all students learn the same way. I know this through experience in elementary school that some students can sit and listen while others need to have something in front of them in order to understand the concept of the lesson. As a teacher, I want to be able to determine what methods I can use for each student to succeed to the best of their ability. Whether it means we have a five minute break every hour to get out of our seats to move around, performing more science experiments, assigning readings every night, working with visual items in math to help with counting, etc. Looking at how I am as a student here at Westminster, I have noticed that being a tactile learner is very difficult as a college student. For example, whenever I have a professor who lectures the whole class, I have to do something such as take notes or play with a bracelet in order to keep my attention on the lesson. In classes that allow me to participate more and interact with people and items, I do a much better job at retaining my focus and I enjoy the class more.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you Beth that all students do not learn the same way. I think that the idea of having a five minute break every hour for the students to get up and move around is a great idea. I also can share with being a tactile learner. It is very hard on the campus here, because many teachers just lecture. There are some that have a lot of participation and those are the same for me as well as I do much better and enjoy them.
DeleteI agree with you that classes that are all lecture are very hard to stay focused in. The five minute break is a great idea; it allows students to move around, release some energy, and then refocus themselves for the next section of the class. Teaching a class in a way that allows the students to get more involved in the learning process is very important to making sure your class is a good learning environment.
DeleteAs a future teacher, UDL helps me understand that students learn in different ways. I should always strive to reach all learners by giving instructions in multiple ways and incorporating activities that reach different students. I think that a significant part of that is being able to pay attention to my students and notice how they respond to different teaching styles. Then I can be sure to accommodate all learning styles and make sure that each individual student is benefitting from class. For example, I can give instructions verbally, but also provide handouts or write on the board. Also, I can have activities or games where tactile learner students can touch and work with different objects to learn. This could work especially well with math or science. Being creative with teaching methods is the best way to reach all students, since auditory learners could learn better by reading aloud or acting out a skit, while visual learners might need graphs, charts, pictures or demonstrations.
ReplyDeleteAs a student at Westminster, I find that some teaching methods work better than others for me. Lecturing can be useful sometimes, but it can be difficult for me to remember the information for a long period of time. Class discussions are more helpful for me and I feel like I learn better since students have some input and a teacher does not simply present the information. I think that it helps students to retain the information better if they are more active in learning.
I completely agree that information is retained better when we are active in our learning. I also like all the specific examples you gave of how you can incorporate the different learning styles. I will say however that accommodating for every learning style in every lesson is an extremely lofty goal. It may not be possible to do this every time but accommodating for more than 1 every time is probably possible, then hopefully everyone in your class has one of their top 2 learning styles used. I think you made a strong point saying that paying attention and observing how your students respond to your lessons is a huge part of being a teacher. It goes along with being reflective. If you can't diagnose how your students are or aren't getting information it's going to be difficult to know how fast or slow to go when covering material.
DeleteI like the idea of of being active during the lesson, mainly in the Math class. I plan to be a Math teacher so that is a great idea. People find Math boring anyways so being active could help with the boring factor. Teachers will need to be creative, which will be hard for me since I'm not very creative.
DeleteI really believe being active in a class room is beneficial. Me, personally, wanting to become a P.E teacher I will be active most days as will my students. With that being said students learn from different ways but I have personally always found it constructive to be able to actually do something then as to just see it done.
DeleteAs a teacher, this kinda stresses me out. I am afraid that I would try to impose my learning style onto my students. Me, as a teacher, will need to develop lesson plans in a way that incorporates the many different learning styles. I am a more visual person and will therefore write most stuff on the board for the students to read throughout the class.
ReplyDeleteAs a student, the visual learning has helped and hurt me. I feel that most courses that are done in the classroom and where the professor writes things has helped me. The online courses were not good for me. This may be because I was not seeing the assignments in the normal way and did not like it.
I agree that teachers often try to impose their learning style on other students, but I am grateful that we are learning about different styles so we can be more effective and avoid this. Lesson plans do sound like a good idea to make sure that different teaching methods are planned out in advance.
DeleteI am also a visual learner and its comforting that the majority of people's 1st or 2nd learning style is visual. It is relatively easy for me to incorporate that type of learning into my lesson since that's my style, thankfully that will appeal to a lot of students. At the same time I don't want to be boring so like you mentioned, planning is essential. It's something we have to do purposefully or we'll skim over certain learning styles every time and a few students may continually struggle/be lost. I actually like online classes because almost everything is visual, assignments are all written out and most of the information you gain from reading. I can see how the different format of it would cause you to not like it. Just another example of how everyone learns differently!
DeleteI agree that many teachers or professors seem to try to use their own preference on all their students on how they learn best. I think as an Educator we should hit all the learning styles or as many as we can so it relates each assignment to every student in the class and not just the ones who learn visually or kinetically, ETC.
DeleteI think that every future teacher should watch the UDL video. It shows a great example on how all students learn in different ways. As a future teacher, the video made me realize how much more effort great teachers have to put into their planning. These outstanding teachers have to try to meet the needs of all of the students learning abilities. This requires many hours of planning to give your students options to learn or show what they learned best. When I do have the opportunity to teach my own class, I will now be more open to try new things with different students. Here at WC we have all different ways to do things. A big one is electronic or paper copy. For me, it sometimes gets confusing on what professor prefers what type of assignment submission. Another thing I noticed was how motivated I am for my EDU courses. They are all pretty hands on with outstanding, intriguing professors. I learn things I don’t even recall learning because I am fully engaged in their classes. This is compared to my classes where the professor is not as engaging and I did not seem to retain as much information from their classrooms. When this milestone in my life is over, I will take the learning styles I gained from this classroom to my own classroom.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you regarding the education courses. I seem to take things out of class and into my own ways of approaching teaching without even realizing that it was covered in class. There are a couple other classes that I have noticed this in as well, namely Philosophy because it makes me question the world more often and some of the systems and organisms studied in my biology labs. Additionally, I think that all students can benefit from the different types of learning styles you present in class, not just some of the students.
DeleteI totally agree with the part about being more engaged in EDU classes with them being so hands on. You're right about the planning too - I know it will take a lot more time planning out all the activities and being sure that we meet all of the learning styles of the students.
DeleteGreat teachers can take an average student above and beyond where they thought they would ever be, which is empowering for students. The planning aspect of differentiated instruction is the what I worry about the most. No matter how well you plan, sometimes S#@$ hits the fan and you have to improvise, especially when the students are somewhere on the spectrum. Classes with teachers who do not engage me, I learn nothing in. So, I totally agree with you that being engaged is a huge success factor in the classroom.
DeleteAs a future teacher I believe differentiated instruction is the most important variable when it comes to the learning process. Differentiation is also very challenging because within a classroom there will be many different learning styles to adapt the curriculum to. To tackle that issue I think teachers should be very consistent in observing how each individual student performs on different tasks. Observing carefully and working with other teachers on student performance can help pin point the right activities and approaches to accommodate the students individual needs. Accommodating diverse learning styles can be done by creating lesson plans that offer a variety of tools like handouts, videos, tactile activities and even a brief lecture to help reinforce the main ideas for the lesson. Sometimes adding variety and unpredictability is all it takes to gain a classrooms full attention for a period, so using a variety of approaches that reinforce the main idea of the lesson can help cater to learning needs as well.
ReplyDeletePersonally I am a visual learner more than anything but kinesthetic is a close second. Since I have always been an athlete, learning by doing seeing is what I am the best at. As a student I have learned that lecture and class discussions are not my favorite method. I am able to learn a bit more efficiently when I watch videos that are instructional or work in groups for a class project. Despite how I learn on a personal level I do believe I have had the most success learning in settings where teachers are very enthusiastic about the curriculum. For me it is easy to want to learn about something when I understand how it applies to my life.
Dennis, I completely agree that it is the easiest to learn and want to learn about something when it is applicable to real life. This is the reason why I want to become a science teacher! I want students to take the information they learned in class and use it in the real world to gain a new perspective and understanding on the world around them instead of just cramming before a test or only caring about the subject during actual class time.
DeleteDennis, I completely understand where you are coming from with the visual learning angle. I also learn best when I can see it done right before my eyes or get some hands on experience, and I feel that students of all learning types benefit to an extent from hands on experience.
DeleteDennis, I totally agree that being an athlete and learning by doing and seeing is what has always became easiest to me also. I also agree that at teacher that is energetic is a easier teacher to listen to.
DeleteDennis, I agree that it is the teachers' responsibility to help the students find out what learning style is best for them. If you do this then it will be easier to pick out activities and lessons catered to your students needs.
DeleteAs a future teacher, the UDL video opened many thoughts and ideas in my mind that I have never thought about before. The video demonstrates strong examples on how students learn in many ways. This has brought focus onto myself on being able to put a greater effort into my future teaching. To be able to accommodate for the many different learning styles my students might have, I will try to understand each and every one. I will try my best to understand how each of my future students work and then find a learning style to help each and every one of them. My journey here at Westminster has been filled with many different learning styles. The type of learning style that fits best for me is Kinesthetic. This is when you learn best by being able to touch something or doing an activity to allow you to understand the material better. This has been shown in some of my classes but not all. I just make sure to try my best and figure out different ways on my own to be able to learn the material. This can be a great example to use for my future students in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteBeing able to take the information given in class and present it to yourself in a way that helps you to retain it best is a great way of accommodating your own learning. I agree that each child has his or her own way of learning, but I am not sure that you will be able to have a separate learning style and plan for each child and successfully cover all the material. As much as I wish this were true, education has not come that far yet in the traditional classroom. Yet, I do believe that an educator should observe the students in his or her class to get a general idea of which learning style the different students are better able to grasp and hit on the top few in each lesson.
DeleteI agree that the UDL video opened up many different things for me too! I know it is going to be challenging to figure out how each of the younger students learn best, because they are just learning how to learn in a classroom setting. I think it is great to go in with such a positive attitude about understanding all of your future students. It is good that you are hands on and ready to do things as a future elementary teacher.
DeleteI think the video was a good one. You being a kinesthetic learner will help you in elementary school settings, I believe, because hands on activities are so important for kids. I think it might be easier for you when planning those activities.
DeleteDo you think knowing your learning style will make you more effective at determine the learning style of your students? I for one, know that I plan on doing a learning styles inventory, early in the school year, so I know how best to approach a student, if they are struggling with a concept or in general. If you struggle with trying to teach to different learners, remember that the internet has, literally, everything.
DeleteAs a future teacher the UDL video makes me realize that as a teacher will have to teach the same thing using different styles to accommodate every student in the class. The first thing we have to do as teachers is find out the different ways that each student learns after that we can then figure out how we would like to teach each class period. As for me as a student at Westminster the classes i have struggled in the professor taught the class only one way and expected everyone in the class to do the same work. The classes that i have done well in the professors taught each class differently but was also consistent and we had different ways to complete the work.
ReplyDeleteTyler, it sounds like you are a very multifaceted learner. Therefore, you should have no problem integrating UDL into your classroom, as it seems that you are not biased toward one particular learning style.
DeleteTyler this is so true with teachers having to find out the various ways that different students like to learn. the seated lecture in starting to go by the wayside and it is time for diverse learning.
DeleteWatching the UDL video, I was definitely inspired to become a better teacher than some of the previous teachers I have encountered in my life. In previous classrooms numerous times I have seen teachers repeat the same lessons or lectures over and over again without any variety or any accommodations to students with different learning styles. Many teachers who stick to lectures are most likely auditory learners and others who do a lot of hands-on learning are most likely kinesthetic. Teachers should not only implement their learning style into their teaching but also recognize that every student is different and mixing up how they present a lesson and also how they assess student achievement in order to give all types of learning a chance to excel. In my history at Westminster, a majority of my classes have been lecture based and presented along with a powerpoint. The class writes down what is on the powerpoint while the professor discusses. It is usually pretty difficult to write down everything on the slides and also any extra bits of information but I feel like in order for me to learn something I need to have it in my own handwriting. Sometimes it is hard to keep up, but for the most part it is working out for me. Unfortunately, any kinesthetic learners in some of my science classes are out of luck because I have been in many classes where in lecture the only activity we did was lecture and learning was simply assessed from unit tests and an exam. When I am a future science teacher, I will find ways to bring some fun to learning with experiments, labs, and hands on activities but also videos, audio clips, and other materials to excite the learning styles of all students.
ReplyDeleteAlyssa, I like how you reflected back to your experiences with other teachers and learn from the things the did that helped you as well as restricted. I have had a lot of teachers that I really enjoyed because they made learning seem easy. Then there are teachers that have never really changed up the way they present information to the class and those classes are tough. As a future educator I am definitely going to use teaching strategies that engage students curiosity.
DeleteAlyssa, I like how you brought to light, the fact that a lot of classes at Westminster are lecture based. I feel like it would make students loosen up and concentrate more if they were allowed to do more physical activities and work in groups.
DeleteAlyssa, I agree that teachers shouldn't implement their own learning styles to their teaching and should learn your students learning styles before teaching your class with just one way and not change things up for your students.
DeleteI think by implementing fun learning experiments in your future classroom your students will grow to love science if they didn't already. From my experience, the hands on activities taught me the most.
DeleteAs a future teacher first of all it makes me very thankful that I'm learning this information. I think realizing that everyone doesn't learn the same way will save me a lot of headache and confusion when some students don't "get it" the first time or the first way that I teach something. In order to accommodate for student learning preferences I have to be extra prepared and extra thoughtful. It will be easy for me to appeal to visual learners, because that's my primary learning style. But when I plan lessons I also have to appeal to tactile and audio learners. Being aware and purposefully trying to cover multiple learning styles in lessons will help my students learn more efficiently and effectively. As a business teacher projects that apply to real life will be easy to create and fun for students because they can go with what learning preference works for them in order to complete it. At Westminster I see this because as a visual learner it's usually relatively easy to learn in the "typical" classroom setting. Most teachers either present a powerpoint or give you readings from a textbook or handouts and then you take notes, I learn well in this format. I've found classes where there is only lecture I struggle, because I don't learn well as an "audio learner."
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is very helpful to learn this information. I never really thought about how teachers have to accommodate different learning styles. It could be very stressful when you explain a concept to students and they don't understand it the first time, but understanding that students just learn in different ways can help us to change how we teach so that more students can understand.
DeleteI also agree that this is extremely helpful. I also knew there were different styles, but never really understood them. Each student in a classroom is in fact unique. As a teacher, we will need to be fully away of all the different styles and make an effort to accommodate each student in the best way to allow them the best opportunity to learn.
DeleteI also agree. I knew that many people learned best differently. I never thought much about it until I came to college and had teachers who were not very understanding with not doing everything the right way or as quickly as others because I was having a hard time trying to figure stuff out. so personally for me knowing that it is becoming more obvious to people about learning styles is a stress reliever.
DeleteAs a future teacher this helps me realize how serious different learning styles are in children's lives. All kids learn differently and it should be a teachers job to accommodate their students be teaching, using different learning styles. I know personally that it is hard to stay focused during a long lecture. I much rather be conversing with classmates or doing hands on activities. As a future advocate for students I will do my best to accommodate all students different learning styles. As a student at Westminster these types of lessons have helped me excel as a student.
ReplyDeleteJake, although classes are gradually learning moving away from complete lecture, many course still rely on some lecture, and others rely on lecture completely. As a teacher, I think lecture could be made more interesting by displaying graphics and listing brief bullet points on the board, so that the visual learners can more easily grasp the material. Certainly not the entire class has to involve lecture, but most still involve some. You are certainly not alone in finding lecture monotonous, but there are plenty of visual, non-tactile learners who can best understand material through lecture.
Deletei agree with you Jim, but i think that having lecture mixed with group discussion will be more effective in making sure that the entire class is understanding the material and keep everyone involved
DeleteAs a future teacher it is a little intimidating to know that everyone learns in very different ways. This makes me aware that I will have to be sure to adapt to whatever learning my styles that my students have. I also have to know that this can change from year to year as new students come into my classroom. Now that I know this however I will try to do a good job teaching in a variety of ways so that all of my students may be able to learn to the best of their ability. I do not see myself doing a whole lot of lecture, since very few students learn the best through this way. I hope to have students break into small groups for discussion and then at the end have a whole class discussion. I also will have a variety of assessment strategy choices for the students to choose from when assessing over a subject. For instance, I may allow them to write a paper, create a video, or make a soundtrack. This will hopefully allow my students to do something that they may enjoy more and hopefully as a result learn more. As a student here at Westminster I have seen the advantages to having classes that meet multiple learning styles. The classes that do are usually more enjoyable and I retain more of the information that I learn in them.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is a little intimidating knowing that as teachers we must try to cater to the learning styles of all students. It definitely added an aspect to teaching that I had never thought of before. I also like your idea of using small group discussions followed by a class discussion. It allows you to see what individual groups took from a lesson and then gives you a good opportunity to tie all of the ideas together in a way that makes sense.
DeleteYes, I agree with the intimidating facter. I too feel the exact same way. I think though as the years go by it will get easier and easier.
DeleteAs a future educator, knowing these things helps me to realize that just as I am not the same as everyone else, when it comes to learning, neither are my students. Therefore, I will strive to do my best to accommodate as many learning styles and abilities as possible. I learn best through auditory means, but I also recognize the value of visual and kinesthetic practices in the classroom. Some things work best for different lessons e.g. Labs are obviously very kinesthetic. However, as an English teacher, I am fortunate, in that English is very multi-faceted and there are a variety of ways to learn nearly every topic. As far as being an auditory learner at Westminster goes, it is fairly easy, because most professors LOVE to talk and have class-wide discussions, so I learn easily.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree that Westminster is heavy in the lecture and discussion based classes. I wish I were as gifted in the auditory learning spectrum because it would make sitting through lectures much more beneficial and bearable. I like that you said you must realize others do not learn in the same way as you do because that is the first step to really being able to help students reach their goals and solve problems they have learning material.
DeleteI completely agree about realizing that not a single one of us learn the same way. It is crazy how we all process things differently and need different examples to fully understand concepts. being a non auditory learner I do not see how you do it! I cannot focus enough to listen and write at the same time. I now know who to go to when I missed the instructions because I was too busy writing the previous instructions in my planner!
DeleteEnglish is such a great class to have so many different actitivies and ways of teaching the material. I think when people think of English class, they just think of sitting and reading, but really that doesn't work for everyone. It really can be taught in so many ways. You are lucky to be an auditory learner, lectures are rough for those of us who aren't! Definitely use that to your advantage in class.
DeleteI like how you start out by saying you are different and so are all of the students. Yes, this is true we are all different. Im glad that you know this and are willing to switch things up in your classrooms for differents kids benefits. I hate English with a passion, therefore I am glad to see that you will make your class more fun than what I can remember before college.
DeleteAs a future educator, watching the UDL video and becoming educated about different learning styles was very beneficial. It made me realize that any successful teacher has a variety of different activities and teaching styles to accommodate for all different types of learning. Differentiation is the single most important thing in education. Some teachers forget that. As an auditory learner, I manage to do alright in purely lecture classes, but I recognize that my students will not have that same success. Not all lecture is bad, but it should be paired with other more exciting hands on activities to engage all learners. I think creativity is very important in the classroom, and if you incorporate creativity, you will typically hit all the different learning styles. Personally as a student at Westminster, I have only struggled in my very boring, monotone science classes. I typically do well in lectures, but it gets boring for everyone. Being a part of the education program here has given all of us a leg up because we have the best of the best when it comes to topics like this. Because all of you guys are education professors, you take differentiation a little bit more seriously then other teachers. Overall, I've had a great experience and tend to learn easily!
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you that differentiation is important in education. I wish I was more of an auditory learner, because as a visual learner myself, I do find it difficult to pay attention and grasp the material in long, boring lecture classes. I also agree that creativity is important in the classroom to reach all different learning styles of the students. I think that will probably be difficult for me as a teacher because I tend to just stick with a routine and not incorporate creative aspects. Lastly, I also agree with you that we have an advantage with our great education professors here at Westminster!
DeleteI agree that lecture is not all bad and kind of forces you to pay closer attention to what your teacher is saying. I think that lecture paired with the hands on activities will be a great combination in the classroom Ally!
DeleteYou can't escape a Westminster education course without speaking of differentiation, and that is a great thing. Some teachers do seem to forget that not everyone can learn from a basic lecture, as a teacher it is vital to present information in different ways.
DeleteI have always loved lectures more than other things because I am a auditory learner, but I do agree with Danelle that not everyone likes lectures and can retain the information through them.
DeleteI have always loved lectures more than other things because I am a auditory learner, but I do agree with Danelle that not everyone likes lectures and can retain the information through them.
DeleteThe UDL video and the class discussion reinforced that as a teacher it's my job to try and cater to my future students' various ways of learning. Even though I may be an auditory learner, I have to take into consideration that some students may need to see it written down to remember it. I plan on presenting the info I am teaching in multiple ways so that I give each student an equal chance to learn what I am teaching. Since I am a very visual and hands on learner this has affected me in a few lecture classes here in college. When teachers don't create slide show presentations to present the materials or don't allow us to do projects I tend to not get all of the info written down or I lose interest quickly. I do much better in the class and don't have to study as much when the teacher keeps us involved and does not just lecture for the whole class period.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the problem you have in classes when professors don't provide a PowerPoint to go along with their lecture! If an auditory learner such as yourself has trouble keeping up in these situations, I can only imagine how kinesthetic or visual learners are struggling to keep up.
DeleteI cannot stand when a teacher automatically thinks that I will know how to do a project without giving me written instructions, or at least giving me time to write them down. Not all students can retain everything that they hear, and I think that they shouldn't cater to such a small audience.
DeleteI remember teachers from high school that would teach one way and never show videos. Giving students a handout to follow through while watching a video and/or hearing lecture because as a visual learner if I cannot see what is being explained, I struggle with gaining a full understanding
DeleteI don't understand how teacher expect their students to do well in their class when they just lecture and don't use power points or instructions for projects. You cant expect your students to know everything if you don't pass out hand outs to your class to help them out.
DeleteThe UDL video made it really easy to see that my job as a teacher extends beyond catering to the needs of the "common" student. All students learn differently, and my lessons and assignments should reflect these different learning styles. As a teacher, I should be able to think of a wide variety of ways to teach students. I need to be creative in my lesson plans and the type of teacher that keeps all students interested and having fun while the class period is in session. Just from looking back at classes I have taken here at Westminster, it makes sense that different learning styles should be acknowledged. I do a lot better in classes that have a lot of visual representations rather than mostly lecture-based classes. Whenever I begin my career as a teacher, I should remember this and try to accommodate the learning styles of all my students.
ReplyDeleteMiller, I definitely agree with you that the job as teacher requires an individual to try to meet the needs of all their students instead of just the "common". I also agree that as teachers we need to be creative in our lesson plans, so that we can teach in a manner that best helps our students learn and also enjoy it.
DeleteI liked the video better. It made more sense to me this way. I hate to read, but I like to watch things.
DeleteAs a future teacher, the UDL video showed me that if you want all of your students to be successful in your class you will have to change up the ways you teach using different styles of teaching to help your students understand the information you are trying to teach them. Once you see how each students learn best in your class it will be easier on us as teachers to plan on how we will teach the information in different styles to teach the students. I’ve always been a visual & kinesthetic learner. Playing sports all my life even here at Westminster College it is easier for me to do something after I’ve seen in done in front of me or an example of it on the board. As a student lecture classes have always been my toughest classes due to trying to take notes and listen to the teacher at the same time is hard to comprehend everything all at once. I tend to learn best in classes where the teachers are energetic about what they are teaching to the students. Changing up what you do in a classroom every day is what make classes more fun to leaner than other.
ReplyDeleteKyle, I really like how you hit the point of observing your students and seeing which types of learners are present in your classroom before you start chancing the curriculum to fit their needs. It would be pretty silly to make multiple lessons centered around visual learners if there were none present in your classroom. Being a physical education teacher, modeling for the students to see how to perform each sport or activity will be beneficial to both kinesthetic, visual, and audio learners as long as you also use your words to explain what to do.
DeleteKyle, I definitely feel ya on the difficulty of retaining information that is being given in lecture form. It would seem that most people do have trouble with this type of class, yet it is the most common. I wonder if there is any way we could change this?
DeleteKyle, I agree with observing students learning styles and adjusting the teaching methods to accommodate the students needs. I wonder how the amount of time spent lecturing during P.E. class effects participation?
DeleteKyle, I agree that lecture classes are more difficult because of the lack of visual aid and hands on activities. So by learning what types of learners you have in the classroom, you and your students will benefit. Presenting the information in multiple ways will make learning easier for everyone.
DeleteAs a future teacher I now know why I would get bored in some classes easier than others while growing up, and doing better in some than others. It is because we all learn differently which we have learned. I will teach different ways and in different methods some day to try and avoid students getting bored with me. I would want to make going to school more fun, not just a work place for both myself, and the students. I cannot see much difference in myself though as a student here at Westminster, where as when I was in high school I could tell a big difference.
ReplyDeleteLuke, I can relate to being very bored in some classes verses others, and as a result, I did not do as well grade wise. As a teacher, you need to be able to identity how your students learn the best because, like you said, you do not want them to be bored. It can really reflect on how the teacher is by looking at how engaged their students are.
DeleteI also agree that I get very bored in some of my classes, and that the classes I'm bored in are the ones that I struggle to get the grades I want in them. I also agree that we as teachers should try and make learning in our classroom fun!
DeleteI like how you pointed out that you don't want the classroom to be a work place for you or your students. Teaching and learning should be fun, not feel like a burden. Using different methods and techniques in your own classroom will definitely eliminate the feeling of being in a work place.
DeleteAs a teacher this just makes me even more aware that I need to provide various ways to present material so that not only do I keep my students' minds stimulated, but also so I can appeal to the best learning style for all students. I will make sure each of my lesson plans accommodates for at least three learning styles. In my own learning experience at WC, I think I have excelled in most of my classes because, although a kinesthetic learning style is most beneficial for me, I can learn almost equally as well through a linguistic and visual learning style. So I retained more information through lab in science classes or other classes where I get to move around instead of staying in one place. Yet, I could also retain a decent amount of information through sitting through lectures and presentations.
ReplyDeleteIt is great that you can use and think with all three learning styles! That will benefit you when it comes to making lesson plans in the future! I always enjoyed labs as well because I loved the hands on and actually seeing the results or findings happen, versus reading about it in a text book. That is a good strategy to keep the students' urge to learn.
DeleteIt's awesome that you can do well in classes with all styles of teaching. I agree, most of the time I can get by in lecture classes but it's definitely my first choice. It might be easier for you to create lesson plans and finding ways to incorporate all styles of teaching.
DeleteAppealing to the best learning style of each student, is the easiest way to ensure success, in my opinion. I, also, plan on accommodating for multiple learning styles in my lesson plans, but also in testing and projects. Choice is one of the key elements to keeping as many students happy, and successful, as possible.
DeleteIt sounds like you are a very diverse learner yourself! I think that will help you out a lot as a future teacher, because you will know how to apply each one. Whereas I am much more of a visual learner, I feel like I will struggle to teach to auditory learners and will have to make accommodations for that more frequently.
DeleteAs a Future teacher, this helped me realize just how many different learning styles I will have to incorporate into my future lesson plans. In my own experience I have had one teacher who, I feel, covered all of the learning types. He had reenactments, a journal for notes on one side and pictures on the other, videos, and informal music. I learned extremely well in that class and strive to be as excellent of an educator as he is.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you had a teacher that really inspired you to be an educator that understandings different learning styles. I had to learn from the mistakes of my previous teachers by not utilizing different ways to present material and assess learning. I sincerely hope that all future teachers take into consideration the needs of all students.
DeleteGuthrie, it is cool that you remember all of the tactics he used to motivate you and effectively help you learn. I can remember having a teacher that would challenge me every day to try as hard as I could, it was algebra and I really dislike math, but just her consistently challenging me is what my motivation was. Its good to utilize strategies that you have seen be successful on others and yourself.
DeleteGuthrie, it's great that you have such a good role model and are striving to be a great teacher like him. He seems to have been successful because of his multiple tactics for learning. I hope all future teachers take this into consideration.
DeleteWow, what a cool story! It's neat when we can see how certain teachers in the past have made an impact on us, and who will continue to influence us as we become teachers. I had teachers like this in high school, as well, who incorporated projects and NEVER had us listening to lecture or doing busy work. I know I will take that inspiration from them.
DeleteAs a future teacher I think the importance of understanding different learning styles is so helpful. When I become a teacher knowing the different learning styles will help me become more understanding that maybe I am at fault for not explaining it the right way and not so much blame it on the student who seems to be trying but not doing exactly the right thing.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great point that you make! I think so often teachers do blame students for poor work or bad grades, whereas in reality it is the fault of the teacher for teaching in a way that isn't understandable to some students. I definitely think this will be helpful to us in that category!
DeleteAs a future teacher being able to accommodate students different learning styles is very important. learning each individual learning style will be helpful to reach out to the students with each of the special needs. as a teacher I will make each lesson plan with various accommodations for specific needs, that kids in my class may have. for example I want to be a physical education teacher, I will try to vary difficulty of some activities, for the kids that don't have the best hand eye coordination. for me here at Westminster, I am personally ADD and classes where there is constant lecture I find myself not being able to pay attention. because of that my grades in those classes are pretty average.
ReplyDeleteI agree that if you as a teacher can implement multiple different types of learning styles for your students your students will be more comfortable in the classroom and with each other.
DeleteAccommodations are extremely important because they obviously allow disadvantaged students (in terms of a disability, etc.) equal access to quality education, but creating accommodations is an extremely time-consuming process. Ultimately, though, the job of the teacher is to provide the best education for his/her students, which would entail accommodating different learners.
DeleteI like the way that you tied it into your personal education. I'm the same way; if a professor spends the class time talking or lecturing, my mind wanders and I have trouble staying on track or being interested. I will definitely take away from this and apply it to my own teaching.
DeleteAs a future teacher, this actually makes me really excited! A lesson that only applies to one type of learner, or the "average" learner is probably not a good lesson at all! Letting students play a role in decision-making and lesson-planning (to an extent) will really help with this. I want my students to realize that they are the most important part of the class; if I'm not teaching to them, then I'm not teaching. As a student at Wesminster, I definitely have gained an understanding that classes where there is a lot of busy work or outside assignments are difficult for me. I struggle with organization and having no syllabus to work from makes learning so much more difficult for me. I will definitely have my future students take an assessment like this one!
ReplyDeleteyes Katelyn and tying into what you said I think that in this day and age of education there is no such thing as an average learner. Every student learns differently and as a teacher you must be ready to accommodate for that.
DeleteI totally agree, no two people learn the exact same way. Everyone does learn different, so it is a good thing to think about before entering the teaching world.
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