Essay: Learning Styles Examined
EDU 519: Human Development and Learning
Background
As a teacher, you may encounter conflicting messages over what is considered “best practice.”
Indeed, over the course of a lengthy teaching career, “best practice” might vary considerably.
How do you know if you are using the best possible teaching methods for your students? And
how do you know which resources, which texts, or which consultants to trust?
You turn to the latest research, that’s how!  You become critical consumers of content,
refusing to accept content at face value and always striving to keep yourself as up-to-date as
possible with the literature.
Learning styles, learning styles assessments, and learning styles theory is a somewhat
contentious topic in the field of education, and your task is to evaluate where you come
down on the subject, using the most up-to-date research possible. There is no “correct”
stance for you to arrive at; rather, you will demonstrate that you can use research to guide your
teaching decisions.
“Even though much of the work on matching learning styles and preferences to teaching is
suspect, with unreliable measures and inflated claims, thinking about learning styles has some
value. First, by helping students think about how they learn, you can develop thoughtful selfmonitoring and self-awareness. Second, looking at individual approaches to learning might help
teachers appreciate, accept, and accommodate student differences and differentiate instruction”
(Coffield et al., 2004; Rosenfeld & Rosenfeld, 2004, as cited in Woolfolk, 2019, p. 141).
Task:
You will conduct an analysis on Learning Styles with no fewer than five resources. After
reviewing the literature, you will state the research-based conclusions you have drawn. Here are
the five references required:
1. Peer-reviewed research journal article: Primary Source*
2. Peer-reviewed research journal article: Primary Source*
3. Woolfolk (2019) psychology textbook: Secondary Source (pp. 139-141, 252-253)
4. Reputable website: Secondary Source (American Psychological Association website,
Learning and the Brain website, etc.)
5. Reputable newspaper or magazine: Secondary Source (New York Times, Washington
Post, The Atlantic, etc.)
(Other reputable research you find…though only five are required.)
*Please use the lndl.org website to locate your primary-source research studies. Please use only
peer-reviewed research conducted within the last 15 years (you can set those parameters on the
left of your database search page). For the purposes of this assignment, primary source is
defined as researchers conducting a study on the phenomenon and then reporting the findings.
*Please search the following two databases: ERIC for more education-focused studies;
psycINFO for more psychology-focused studies.
*If you need help conducting database research, please consult the library’s tutorials and/or use
the 24/7 “Chat with a Librarian” feature (available on LMS and lndl.org) and/or set up a session
with a LNDL research librarian. (Meghan Damour is our educational librarian liaison and
available for individual sessions at mdamour@ndm.edu.) Boolean search techniques can be
tricky and require some getting used to. Furthermore, primary-source research articles are dense
and require time to read. Please do not leave this step to the last minute!
(Here is a “Quick Guide” to arriving at the databases: From the lndl.org website, click
“Search,” and then “Databases.” You will be taken to an “A-Z Databases” page. Select “E” to
find ERIC and “P” to find psycINFO. For your search terms in each of these databases, I
encourage you to use terminology from your Woolfolk [2019] text and/or other terms
encountered in your secondary source research.)
You will read and synthesize these five research pieces into an essay of no more than four
pages, double spaced. Yes, four pages is concise; you will need to be razor-sharp with your
analysis and jettison superfluous information.
Please use the following three headings in your essay: Introduction, Research Reviewed, and
Research-based Conclusions.
Please upload to LMS AND Chalk & Wire by the due date specified.
Please follow the rubric on the following page to guide your writing and analysis.
Rubric for “Learning Styles Examined” Essay
Plagiarism on any assignment will result in an F for the course.
Criteria for Assessment
SECTION ONE: INTRODUCTION (2 points)
1. Identifies educational significance of the topic.
2. Provides relevant background information.
SECTION TWO: RESEARCH REVIEWED (10 points)
3. Provides a comprehensive yet concise research review. (2 points)
4. Reviews relevant research on the topic that is both peer-reviewed
and conducted within the last 15 years.
5. Analyzes and evaluates at least 2 primary sources.
6. Analyzes and evaluates at least 3 secondary sources.
7. Synthesizes research findings into overall thesis; does not simply
provide summary paragraphs of individual research reports.
Demonstrates critical and analytical thinking throughout. (5 points)
SECTION THREE: RESEARCH-BASED CONCLUSIONS (3 points)
8. Considers research presented logically and academically.
9. Demonstrates original thinking.
10. Identifies implications and consequences for one’s own teaching.
SECTION FOUR: REFERENCES (1 point)
11. Provides correct APA citations for all research reviewed.
IN GENERAL: (4 points)
12. Adheres to parameters of assignment (4 pages [excluding title page
and reference page], double-spaced).
13. Follows correct APA format throughout.
14. Demonstrates clear, concise writing that is free of errors.
15. Submits successfully to LMS and e-Portfolio on time.
TOTAL SCORE (20 points possible):
Points