Learning Styles and Online Teaching

After taking several learning styles assessments, I was not at all surprised to find I'm a kinesthetic learner.  Learners like me learn by doing and benefit from hands-on, tactile experiences.  At first glance, this learning style seems difficult to serve in an online environment.  In fact, in a 2002 study, Halsne and Gatta found that kinesthetic learners are less likely to pursue online learning than visual or reader-writer learners.  There are, however, extremely effective strategies which can be used to serve kinesthetic learners in an online environment.

• Simulations, such as the excellent examples from PhET and Concord Consortium, provide the opportunity for learners to manipulate variables and observe results, similar to what would happen in a lab in a brick and mortar classroom.  This can provide the kind of hands-on experience that engages and supports to kinesthetic learners.
• Many kinesthetic learners like to apply their new knowledge, so approaches such as project-based learning (PBL) can benefit these learners.  PBL emphasizes connecting learning to authentic problems to provide meaningful experiences for a wide range of learners.
• Bailey Martin suggests making sure class materials are in a mobile-friendly format.  When it comes time to listen, watch, or read something, many kinesthetic learners will absorb more if they can exercise or move around.  If the materials are accessible from a tablet or smart phone, kinesthetic learners could easily do their reading from a treadmill or listen to an audio presentation while on a run.
• Assignments that send students into the "real world" can also engage kinesthetic learners.  Students could conduct experiments using materials they have at home, collect data about something in their community, or otherwise connect their learning to the world beyond their classroom then report back to the class using a blog or a discussion forum.  The prevalence of mobile devices, complete with cameras and microphones, makes this even easier since students can easily record their work and share with whoever they would like.

Teachers tend to do fairly well with learning styles similar to our own, but it doesn't come as naturally to address other learning styles.  In the assessments I took, I was consistently below average in my preference for auditory learning, which makes it a good choice for me to look at how to engage.  Auditory learners tend to absorb information by hearing it and, in a face to face classroom, will prefer lecture and oral discussion.  There are a number of natural strategies to engage auditory learners in an online environment.  In fact, Halsne and Gatta (2002) found that auditory learners are often drawn to online learning environments.

• Screencasts and other presentations with an audio component are a great tool to reach auditory learners, filling the same space as a lecture in a face-to-face classroom.
• Audio discussion tools, such as VoiceThread provide students with the opportunity to listen to, rather than to read, discussions, allowing auditory learners to participate in a mode that feels natural to them.
• Podcasts can provide an excellent supplement to a course in a format that appeals easily to auditory learners.  In addition, it has become extremely easy for individuals to record and publish their own podcasts, providing exciting opportunities to appeal to auditory learners.
• Many auditory learners prefer to listen, rather than read, so digital formats for readings can support auditory learners.  Many devices make it possible to use a screen reader or text-to-voice software to hear a PDF, an ebook, or other digital formats read aloud.

Every student processes information in a different way.  Teachers, whether working with students online, face-to-face, or in some combination of those, must be able to adjust to the range of how students process and adapt our instruction to appeal to every student.

References

Martin, B.  (2013, June 25).  Is online education right for your learning style? eLearn Magazine.  Retrieved from http://elearnmag.acm.org/blog/?p=516. 

Halsne, A., Gatta, L. (2002). Online versus traditionally-delivered instruction: A descriptive study of learner characteristics in a community college setting.  Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, V(I). Retrieved from http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/spring51/halsne51.html.