What Are Learning Styles and Are They Effective?

When it comes to learning and the variety of students in the classroom, it’s important to note the differences of learning styles. Each learning style can benefit a student in retaining information and becoming engaged with the educational process. Understanding what learning style is most common and most effective is key to providing students with the support they need along the way. 

What Is A Learning Style?

Simply put, a learning style is a specific way someone is able to learn best. This is how a student best absorbs, processes, and retains information. There are four main types of learning styles that are most common such as: 

• Auditory learning
• Visual
• Reading/Writing
• Kinaesthetic

Auditory learning means that the person is able to best receive information when they hear it and it is spoken to them. A learning style activity for someone with an auditory learning style may mean learning a song that incorporates the lesson material or a rhyme. It’s important to remember that each person is different and because of this, their preferences will change!

Visual learning is just how it sounds! Seeing pictures, videos, presentations, etc are all ways that a visual learner is able to learn. These people like to see what they are learning as they are often interpreting the information as pictures in their head. Similarly, A reading/writing learning style means the student prefers their information in the form of handouts, reading and writing notes, reading textbooks, or doing repetition writing. 

Finally, a kinaesthetic learning style is getting up and moving around. An example of this could be a math teacher showing the different axises on a graph by having the students lift their arms up and down. This incorporates bodily movement and because of this, kinesthetic learners are able to understand and remember information better. 

Effective Teaching In The Classroom

Effectively using learning styles in the classroom is a common practice here at Eva Carlston and is something that each teacher applies to their students. This is so the teaching is individualized for each student and each type of learner. Some teachers may incorporate all the learning styles in one lesson if it’s of particular importance and interest. Doing this not only ensures the lesson plans are being retained but also allows the students to feel confident in their learning and thus, confident in the classroom. 

How Learning Styles Help Students

Understanding the different needs of students and their learning styles can make it easier to create, modify, and diversify lesson plans and learning environments so that all students are included and none are feeling left behind. Additionally, once a student is able to understand how they learn best, this can also help them become better studiers and be better prepared for future educational endeavors. 

At Eva Carlston Academy, our teachers place a high value on including and encouraging each student to utilize their learning styles. Teachers at Eva Carlston also continuously learn how to incorporate these into the classroom more seamlessly and frequently. We want our students to feel confident and comfortable in their learning and the work they do at our organization, and because of this, we have found that understanding a students’ learning style can go a long way.