Learning About Learning

Years ago, I used to teach an adult education class for Chrysler.  I had a psychology professor who contracted with Chrysler to offer the class, and she hired me (and others) to actually teach it.  I’m sure that I learned at least as much as the students we taught.

I remember one young man in particular.  The class he was in was somewhat small, and we held it in the lunchroom, since there was no other place for us.  This young man sat away from the others, kind of slumped down in his chair, with his arms folded across his chest.  He didn’t say anything or contribute in any way to the conversation.  He gave off a very negative attitude, in my mind at least.

(By the way - this class was a voluntary class designed to help assembly line workers prepare for a skilled trades exam.  If they passed and got into the program, it meant better jobs and more money for them.  This wasn’t the kind of situation you might find in a high school, for instance, when kids have a negative attitude because they’re bored or don’t want to be there.) 

Now, the professor happened to be visiting us that day, and she noticed the young man, too.  She joined our group and started a conversation about the different ways in which we learn.  After talking with the others for a few minutes, she addressed the young man in the back.

“You’re the kind of learner who needs to take it all in and absorb it.  You sit there as though you’re distancing yourself from this group, but in reality, you’re observing.  You watch everyone and listen to what they say.  Your brain needs time to absorb this new information and process it.  Later today or tomorrow, you’ll be ready and able to join this discussion and add to it.”

To my surprise, the young man uncrossed his arms and leaned forward in his chair.  He nodded over and over again to everything she said.  It was as though someone finally understood him.

I learned a valuable lesson that day.  Well, I guess more than one.  Obviously, I learned not to judge people so quickly or to make assumptions about them that I didn’t know to be true.

But the other thing that I learned was about how many different ways there are to learn.  Sure, I had studied learning styles in school, and I knew what kind of learning style I had (mostly visual, but some kinesthetic, too).  This young man, however, made me realize that there is more to learning style than simply being categorized as visual, auditory, or kinesthetic.

There are many different ways to talk about learning styles.  I most always talk about the sensory ones (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) because they are easy for most people to understand.  There are, however, other ways to think about learning.

The style of the young man I mentioned is most easily explained in David Kolb’s classification of Abstract/Reflective learners.

Knowing your child’s learning style is so very important.  I can’t stress this enough.  Everyone learns in such different ways.  

If you have a child who has Attention Deficit Disorder, they are already fighting an uphill battle in school.  Doesn’t it make sense for you to understand things like learning style so that you can do a better job of helping your child learn? You can’t always rely on the teachers and the school to do it for you.  

I was taught by that same professor that teachers should teach in a manner that addresses all learning styles, so that each student has an opportunity to understand.  This particular professor was very good at doing just that, but not all teachers are.

If you want to find out more about learning styles, you can do a search.  There’s a lot more available than I can possibly present here.  As always, if you have questions, let me know.

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