Learning Styles:

When I took the quiz to determine my learning styles, I obtained the styles of visual,

applied, spatial, social, and pragmatic. I was surprised by the results of some of these learning

styles such as a spatial learner, however then considering past experiences outside of school I

could understand the answer being true. In school, I was not exposed to the spatial learning type.

Personally, I believe students are not exposed to all these learning styles so they can not

determine if they find that type of a learning beneficial.

Overview of Learning types:

If the student is a visual learner then their strengths include having visual models such as

reading text, photos, or analyzing diagrams and charts, etc. Students understand and retain

information through photos and diagrams rather than hearing words. They like learning about the

overall picture rather than in sequences or parts. Normally these students can visualize

information and this type of learning can be paired with spatial learning. Spatial and visual

learners need to be able to input creativity and will not thrive in a text-heavy course. Some

characteristics of visual-spatial learners are vivid imaginations that can often distract the student

by daydreaming or mental wandering when listening to a lecture. They tend to make lists when

recalling information and are generally perfectionists that are highly organized. They prefer a

quiet environment as they can get easily distracted by sounds, so the classroom must display this

quality for visual-spatial learners to be successful.

If the student is an applied learner, then their strengths include learning information that

has real objects and situational rather than ideas that could never occur. This gives students

relevance as to why they are learning about the content. Practical, real-life examples are ideal for

these learners because it gives them purpose to learn the material. Students enjoy applying their
knowledge and skills gained from traditional classroom learning to real-world situations.

Normally, applied learning is immersing the student in the situation, for example, student

teaching for education majors is applied learning. This allows students to use what they have

learning as students in their field of student. It can be considered a “hands-on” type of learning.

If the student is a social learner, then their strengths include working with classmates and

the instructor. Normally, these students are people-oriented and enjoy interactions with others.

Social learners like sharing knowledge with others as well as listening to their peers. Some

characteristics of social learners could be do well in study groups or collaboration activities, are

vocal, and are good at understanding others both through verbal and nonverbal communication.

Normally, these learners learn towards social interaction, communication, and multiple people.

Overall, these students learn best when interacting with others and can relate that learning to the

people around them.

If the student is a pragmatic learner, then their strengths are being logical, systematic,

and practical. They enjoy a set of directions to guide them when they are completing a task.

These learners learn best when there is an obvious link between the topic and current need and

are shown techniques that have clear practical advantage, They learn the least when there is no

immediate practical benefit, no clear guidelines, and appearing to be all theory.

Advantage to Knowing Students Learning Styles

If the instructor knows the students learning styles in their classroom, specifically an ELL

student’s style, it will be beneficial to both the instructor and the student receiving the

personalized education. Knowing this information as an instructor, you can personalize

information so the student that is struggling will benefit just as much as the other students in the

classroom. This personalization more so evens the playing field for the student that is struggling.
These are especially beneficial for an ELL student during their transition period to make them

more comfortable in the new environment that they are immersed in. Making the students feel

more confident by using their learning style will help the ELL or any struggling student them to

feel more comfortable in your classroom as well as with the content material. If the student is

comfortable and feels welcomed in the classroom, they will absorb the information like a sponge.

They will want to be present within the safe environment and be engaged. However, if the

classroom feels uninviting and unsafe then the student will be sheltered and closed off. This is

why it is important for instructors to know the learning styles of their students so they can pass

the information on in a more beneficial manner.

Instructional Strategies for Each Learning Style

For students that are visual-spatial learners it is common to use instructional strategies

that incorporate sight rather than words. These strategies could include showing students how to

outline their notes in various ways to determine the best way for them. These notetaking

strategies could include the Cornell format, a mind map network, or sketch notes. To make sure

students engage in the different notetaking methods, instructors can assign specific type of

notetaking for a section for a potential homework grade, this will give students the motivation to

try different methods and narrow down their best fit. A different strategy is to have pictures or

give handouts of the photos so they can write, label, or draw the photos. Another strategy could

include color coding which could then be incorporated in their notes, this will allow students to

group similar topics of the content. The last strategy could present itself within a video or movie

to present the information to a visual learner. These strategies or instructional methods generally

engage and stimulate visual-spatial learners in the classroom.

 For students that are applied learners it is common to use instructional strategies that

incorporate hands-on and practical examples within the classroom. Some methods that

instructors use are real life props to stimulate applied learners. So, if you are teaching something

in the field of study such as rocks and minerals, see if you could bring in a prop to show the

students rather than just telling them about the information. Another method is using real-world

examples as to why the content is important such as connecting it to current event. For example,

in a Biology classroom when taking about bacteria, the instructor could mention the corona

virus, this give “bacteria” relevance in the students’ lives.

For students that are social learners it is common to use instructional strategies that

incorporate interpersonal skills or groupwork. Some key strategies or methods could be

involving collaborative learning within your classroom. The teacher lets students learn within

groups giving students the responsibility to learn the material. This will allow social learners to

interact and learn via peers or by the presence of the teacher. Another method of a fun activity

for instructors to use in a classroom is a debate or discussion group. This allows guided

instruction, or prompted questions, from the instructor and the students explain their viewpoints

and/or opinions of the information. The teacher has a bigger part in the group discussion rather

than group work which could allow a structure of the content.

For students that are pragmatic learners it is common to use instructional strategies that

incorporate logical, practical, and systematic instruction. Within a Biology setting, this strategy

could be used within a conducted experiment. The instructor could find a lab to demonstrate the

concept and have the students follow a procedure and answer questions to test their

understanding of the concept.

 Many of the styles of learning overlap and instructors can think of methods that cover

numerous styles. These strategies and styles can help an ELL student or struggling student fit

into the classroom and feel more comfortable. As an instructor, we should want students to be

comfortable and welcomed into the classroom because the environment allows students to learn

and engage in their passions. I believe, making students aware of the different learning styles

will help them grow as a student. Today, I found out that after 15 years of education I could be

considered a spatial learner. Now knowing this information, I can expand my studying and

learning habits in ways that I have never imagined. This quiz and assignment opened my eyes to

the different learning styles that students can form and solidifies the fact that every child in the

classroom is unique despite their backgrounds of ELL or not.