2008/02/24

TYPES OF LEARNERS

Think of the students you’ve taught and try to identify one or two students who seemed to learn with particular facility$ one or two who seemed to learn with particular difficulty.
In your own classroom observe your students and attempt to identify their preferred styles of learning and their characteristics.

Read the explanation of four types of learners identified by Honey and Mumford.
1. The ACTIVIST learns by doing the task. In the language classroom, these are the learners who enjoy the communicative tasks or the communication practice. They enjoy using the language and experimenting with communication.
2. The THEORIST learns by understanding the underlying theory. These are the learners who want to know why a particular language form is used in a specific situation or why a particular communication technique is appropriate in a particular setting.
3. The PRAGMATIST learns by practising in a controlled environment. These learners enjoy the security of controlled practice exercises. They often feel that this stage gives them the confidence to use language forms or communication accurately.
4. The REFLECTOR learns by watching others doing the task. These learners are likely to feel insecure about their ability to perform in the language. However, in a secure environment they become willing to participate in the range of communicative tasks and communication activities.
(Honey P. & Mumford A.(1982) Manual of Learning Styles. London: P. Horney)
Note: Given a task, such as improving presentation techniques, each learner will approach the task with their preferred learning style. Some learners will be more successful than others. If we can adapt our training style to their learning style, we can go some way to helping them achieve their learning objectives more effectively. This approach involves: - identifying and being aware of the learning styles of your learners; - providing classroom tasks adapted to their style.
Points for reflection
Do you think this classification of types of learners helps to explain different effect of your students’ learning?
 How can you help “problem learners” to learn more efficiently?
 How can you make the most of the learning styles of your learners?
 Do the learning styles of your students correspond to the observations made by Honey and Mumford?
PLEASE, DON'T FORGET TO POST YOUR COMMENTS!

2008/02/17

THE ROCKS STORY

Dear colleagues, we'd like you to reflect on this story while reading it and to think how it is connected with the course you are doing now and with your teaching practice in general. Post your comments to the blog.
I would like to begin today with a story. It's a story about a distinguished professor - Professor Don Redden - who was giving a talk to a group of students at a tertiary institution just outside Dublin, in the Republic of Ireland. In his presentation, Professor Redden asked his audience a number of questions emanating from some visual aids he had brought with him. Showing first an opaque jar, he put as many rocks as he could into it and asked if it were full. The students answered a very positive 'yes.' Without saying anything the distinguished academic, now put as many pebbles as he could into the jar and then asked the same question. The response was again 'yes' but there were some reservations on the part of the audience. Professor Redden then filled the jar with sand. On asking the same question, this time there was no response. The professor next added as much water as he could to the jar from a jug. 'Is the jar now full,' he asked. The silence was deafening. Professor Redden next dissolved salt into the water, over the sand, the pebbles and the rocks. . 'Well, is the jar now full,' he asked. A brave student near the back of the hall broke the silence by answering, with great confidence, 'No,, Professor, no. The jar is not full.' Professor Redden looked around the hall and said, 'Ah, but the jar is full' and with that he invited the audience to do some reflecting-on-action and to consider both the purpose and the meaning of his demonstration. After a moment, he invited the students to offer their interpretations and he allowed each and everyone one of them to speak. When they had finished he thanked them and said that he was not surprised that each of them had their own different interpretations for, he said, each of them was a unique individual, with unique experiences of life. Finally, he asked them if they would like to know his interpretation of the demonstration. With great enthusiasm they said that they would. 'Well, I will give you my interpretation, then. But remember. My interpretation is no better nor worse than any of yours,' he said looking round the hall as he spoke. 'My interpretation is this: whatever you do in life, whatever the context, always remember to get your rocks in first.' And with that, Professor Redden left the podium. Well, that's the story. The story will have touched you all in different ways - some of you might be happy with it (after all, many of us like listening to stories) but some of you will almost certainly not be happy. There might be those among you who think that it is a boring story, one that had a disappointing ending - it might even have agitated some of you. Well, there's nothing I can do about that, I'm afraid - that's the way the story goes: the story stands as it stands.