If someone happens to be a kinaesthetic learner then it’s far more appropriate for them to develop a new skill using their learning style. For example, if a kinaesthetic learner wanted to develop leadership skills giving them an example of being a leader would not be of much help. They’d much rather be in the thick of things and be involved as much as possible to help develop their understanding.
Visual learning is another learning style that is present amongst most people. This type of learning represents about 65% of the population. This is where ideas and information are attached with images. These types of learners have great visualisation and excellent instincts. They like using graphs, patterns, plots, mind maps, symbols and illustrations to help understand the subject matter further.
Students of visual learning use symbol and images to link to other information. By spatially representing information they are able to group ideas easily, thus increasing the efficiency of their visual memory.
By using visual learning, a person can understand the subject further by means of visual representation. A person who prefers this learning style may struggle with kinaesthetic learning but not with auditory learning. This is because visual and auditory learning are very closely linked but kinaesthetic learning isn’t. Thus, it’s important the style of learning that one follows is used when learning a new skill as a different style may lead a person to not comprehend the information properly.
The final recognised learning style is auditory learning. This is where a person learns things through listening. They are identifiable through certain characteristics; for example, when trying to remember a phone number, an auditory learner will try recall how it sounded. They often focus on sounds and what people said when they remember childhood memories. Unlike visual learners, auditory learners don’t mind background distractions such as music because it helps them comprehend the information better. In fact, a popular auditory teaching style is to put information in a rhythmic pattern i.e. a song.
Auditory learners are also reputedly good story tellers and more importantly, they like solving problems by talking them through. Another noticeable aspect is the fact that they talk to themselves in a bid to get the task done. When reading a book, auditory learners tend to whisper it quietly to themselves as reading it is not enough. One technique that an auditory learner would use is the participation in class discussions as well as volunteering and asking questions. Another popular technique is to tape the notes from the class and play it back.
As I’ve discussed above, a learning style could be crucial to many people because it can heavily affect them in the way they digest and divulge information. Their best learning style can help them understand much better thus helping them develop new skills far easier and quicker. The more a person is taught in the learning style he best learns in, the more effective he can be in taking in the information and using it in day to day life.
