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Study
Skills
Online.
Learning Styles
Activity 1 – Asking the right questions
Learning in a group-----------------------------------------------------------------------Learning alone
Learning with numbers-----------------------------------------------------------Learning with words
Finding things out for myself--------------------------------------------------Being
given information
Learning by doing-------------------------------Learning by reading about it, or being
told about it
Write a paragraph about each opposite pairing, describing what makes you feel that
way, and give an example if you can. If you feel you need help with this, here are
some phrases you might use to start you off:
I prefer/enjoy [learning alone] because…
[Learning with numbers] makes me feel…
When I have to [find things out for myself], I often….
I struggle when I am asked to…
The last time I had to [learn in a group], [this happened].
One example of [finding things out for myself] was when...
When I get to [do something for myself], it helps me to…
I wish in school, there were more opportunities to [learn by x], because…
Learning in a group vs. learning alone
Learning with numbers vs. learning with words
Finding things out for myself vs. Being given information
Learning by doing vs. Learning by reading about it, or being told about it
Look at your four paragraphs – what kind of picture are you getting of yourself as a
learner?
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Study
Skills
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Learning Styles
Activity 2 – Your dream degree
Do a bit of background research into your chosen subject area, look up degree
programmes in your chosen subject area, and find some module descriptions. Write
something in your learner diary about the following:
-
What kind of module descriptions have you found?
-
Which aspect of learning (logical-mathematical or linguistic) will be needed
where?
-
What do you think you will find easy?
-
What do you think you will struggle with?
-
Were there any surprises in what you found?
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Study
Skills
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Learning Styles
Activity 3 – Variations in learning
Take a look at the scenarios below, and put them into order from “spoon-feeding”
to “inquiry-based learning”:
1. You are given a selection of assignment titles to choose from, related to the
readings and learning you have done in a module. For the best marks, you’ll
be expected to do your own reading, too.
2. You are given completely free reign to do what you want – topic, presentation,
design…your tutor won’t know what you’ve done until you submit it.
3. You are given a topic, and are asked to develop your own assignment title,
with help from your tutor. You then have to find your own literature to
complete the assignment.
4. You are given a specific assignment title, related to learning and readings you
have done in the module, with clear instructions on how to complete the
assignment.
5. You are given a topic, and you will have to design your own empirical research
(i.e. original research), find the best methods, conduct and write up the
research, and you have to combine this with your own background literature
search, with help from your tutor.
6. You are being told to choose your own topic, and the rest is as no. 5.
Write some short notes to yourself below – how comfortable would you feel learning
in this way?
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Study
Skills
Online.
Learning Styles
Activity 4 – Kinaesthetic learning
Think of something you struggle to learn – how could you use kinaesthetic learning
to remember it? Use a search engine to help you find ideas, search for “practical
learning of x”, or “x practical ideas”, or “x for kids”, which can be a great way to
get ideas for learning. Use one or two of the methods you found, and document
them in the text boxes below. Did they work? Why did they work, do you think – or
why didn’t they?
What I tried to learn kinaesthetically:
Here is how it went: