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Instructor: Anita Johnston        office: JM 250
phone: 517.796.8504    email: JohnstoAnitaM@jccmi.edu

MY LEARNING BIOGRAPHY, WHO AM I?...

 

The Learning Biography is an autobiographical essay, My Learning Biography, Who Am I?, addressing your learning style, your goals for the course (not the grade you want to earn), your long term educational goals, and how you plan to be successful in this course.  Submit this essay via an attachment to email (JohnstoAnitaM@jccmi.edu).  Please send as “rtf” file.

 

Addressing your learning style…

The following information will help you determine your preferred learning style and determine strategies that will help you learn.  It will also give you a basic organization structure to think about “learning styles.”

 

Learning styles come from three schools of thought: Perceptual Modality, Information Processing, and Personality Patterns.

1. Perceptual Modality refers to the primary way our bodies take in information “biologically”…often called “learning modalities.”  VARK (visual, aural, read/write and kinestic) is an example of this school of thought.  As you work through the following activities note that this style does not deal with the “why” of learning styles. 

   • Go to http://www.vark-learn.com/english/index.asp and complete the questionnaire (VARK:a guide to learning styles).  The VARK inventory is a short questionnaire (16 questions) designed to help you discover your learning preference.  Cut and paste your learning preferences into your paper.  Use your results and the VARK help sheets to answer the following questions.

1)  According to the VARK inventory, what is your learning preference?

2)  List at least three study strategies for your preference that you think might be useful.  (These should come from the VARK help sheets.)

3)  List two “instructional” strategies you might use to help students learn who prefer your least preferred learning style.

2. Information Processing may be thought of as the way your brain processes information.  David Kolb’s (1984) Experiential Learning Style model is the most recognized “theory” dealing with information processing.  It has two continua (axis).  The horizontal (or x-axis) is based on task and moves from preferring to “do” it yourself to preferring to watch demonstrations.  The vertical axis is based on thought and emotional processes and moves from preferring to “theorize” to preferring to “make it.”  These four positions are often referred to as a “four-step” learning process.  Currently some researchers in learning recommend that all students should move through all four-processes.  (See diagram after personality models.)

3. Personality Models  are the way we interact with our surroundings.  The second part of Kolb’s Experiential Learning Style model or the quadrants formed by the two continuum mentioned above form the personal learning styles.  This site describes the reflectors, activists, pragmatists and theorists: http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/history/kolb.html  You will see the following diagram on this site.

 

 

·     Unfortunately, Kolb no longer offers a learning styles inventory for free.  However, similar information can be found at http://www.engr.ncsu.edu/learningstyles/ilsweb.html .  Go to that site and take the learning styles inventory.  Be sure to read all of the directions carefully, and then once you have completed the questionnaire, submit the questionnaire for scoring.  Once you have your results, cut and paste them into your paper.  Using the information from the “Learning Styles Description” link to answer the following questions.

1)  Discuss your results.  For example, if you had a score of 5 in SEN, what does that mean about you and your learning style?  (You should get this information from the Learning Style Descriptions on the website.)  Do you think that these results are accurate?

2)  Compare these results to the results from your VARK inventory.  How do they relate?

 

o     Two other popular personality models are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a widely used instrument based on Jungian typology, and Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences. 

§    For background information relating the MBTI to teaching and learning go to http://www2.gsu.edu/~dschjb/wwwmbti.html and read the explanation.

§    Then go to http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp and take this inventory that mirrors the MBTI.  Score it and report your results, i.e., your MBTI “initials” and a brief explanation of “what you are like.”  Also, report the careers that “match”you.

§    You do not need to write anything regarding Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligences.  If you want to read about it, I recommend http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm   This article does a good job covering Gardner’s work, its impact on education and its “reliability.”