Keep Students Engaged and Interested in Class
Adopt Diverse Teaching Styles to Help Maximise Learning
Apr 10, 2009
A teacher expounding to a class full of pupils in front of a whiteboard does not fulfill everybody’s learning needs, according to a theory explained in Geoff Petty’s book Teaching Today A practical Guide [Stanley Thomas, 2002]. Every student possesses preferences in how the information is presented.
What are Learning Styles?
According to the theory, there are three different learning styles:
- Visual. This is learning through the eyes. This entails the use of visual aids, such as reading, mind maps, diagrams, colours and illustrations.
- Auditory. This is learning through the ears. This means listening and hearing, such as listening to instructions, and using tapes.
- Kinaesthetic. This is learning through touch and feel. This entails trying something out in practice, and hands-on experiences.
Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic is known as the VAK model for short.
How Does a Teacher Fulfill the Needs of all the Students?
According to the theory, the VAK model can be used as a guide when selecting which strategies to use in the lesson. This might help students to learn more effectively. A VAK questionnaire for each student to complete will help the teacher create a profile of the class and for the teacher to plan the teaching methods accordingly.
A Multi Sensory Lesson Plan to Help Students Learn More Effectively
However, according to Frank Coffield in his study Learning Styles Help or Hindrance? (TES, 2005), the VAK model only serves to label learners and placing particular emphasis upon a particular learning strategy did not enhance student learning. He argues that all learners would benefit from all learning styles, regardless of their preference.
Strategies to Reinforce the Lesson
The VAK model could be translated into how the cerebral hemisphere processes information within the brain. The visual and kinaesthetic pathways are thought to be located in the right side of the brain – the auditory, in the left. Since everyone possesses two cerebral hemispheres, it would be wise to stimulate both during a lesson. This would help reinforce what is being learned.
The Perfect Lesson Plan to Accelerate Learning
This is not to say that the VAK model is redundant – far from it. Students will have their preferences on how a lesson is presented. However, awareness of the various ways a piece of information can be presented will keep the learners interested and motivated during the lesson. A few strategies on how, for instance, to teach a class how to make an apple pie, might be:
- Visual learning: Reading instructions, work sheets, step-by-step photographs, watching a demonstration.
- Auditory learning: Listening to the teacher, question and answer and reinforcement, group discussion on how to improve the recipe.
- Kinaesthetic learning: Having a go, trial and error, researching other recipes.
A coherent lesson plan that begins with a short exposition, followed by illustrations, a demonstration and then letting the students have a go, will fulfill all pathways of all the students and keep them alert and interested.
Keep Boredom Away in the Classroom
An ideal lesson should stimulate the students in every pathway possible, whether this is through visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learning. This means using a little exposition, a little question and answer, the use of diagrams, photos and colours and finally some practical exercises and hands-on experience.
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