My View - Learning styles
Traditional teaching approaches actually cater to very few
learners. This is why school has been riddled with negative associations of
bored children, an ongoing battle to concentrate, frustrated teachers,
detention, medication, and an unending list which seems to describe a
nightmarish scene.
I, as a learner in school, was constantly reprimanded for
doodling, fiddling with my stationary and jotting down notes at “inappropriate
times” when I was “meant to be listening”. This was because I am a tactile, kinaesthetic
learner, meaning I learn best by doing, so writing, doodling and physical
actions reinforced my learning experiences. However, this learning style did
not fall into the category of average demographics, thus I was forced to merely
adopt an auditory/visual learning style. This resulted in me becoming a
restless and tired learner, who found it extremely challenging to concentrate
for any extended period of time. For this reason, school was often a very
unpleasant experience for me.
This shouldn't be so. Why should a child be reprimanded
merely because their learning style isn't considered “normal”? We can’t control
all facets of our life, and should be encouraged to nurture what we are given,
rather than reprimanded for who we are.
Thus, it is the duty of a teacher to support their learners
in their endeavors to reach their maximum potential, and the greatest way to do
this is to cater to their needs, not our own. It is easy to adopt one teaching
style and thrust everyone into your mould, but it is not ideal and teachers
don’t (shouldn't) adopt this profession because it is easy.
Nowadays, a lot of learners are diagnosed with learning
disabilities, such as ADHD, because they do not perform to a suitable standard
in the classroom. But too many times, this can be attributed to a lack of
response to your teaching style, which may not be in cohesion with their
learning style.
Learn about your learners, figure out their preferred modes of
learning, and make an effort to cater to them, this could prevent false
diagnoses and unnecessary consumption of powerful medications.
Before admonishing your learners for doodling during
lessons, or fiddling with stationary when being addressed, consider their
motives and adopt an atmosphere of understanding and support. Guaranteed you
will begin to see improvement in both their work as well as their attitude
toward school. And so often a good attitude means good discipline. A mutual
win.
