" Learning Styles " are a Myth

Teach from your strengths & learn from the best teachers.

While teaching using different modalities is a good thing, it's because using them keeps students more engaged and prevents boredom which is important for learning.

Which modality you use to teach is, according to research COMPLETELY irrelevant to student learning preferences. Learning " styles " is a persistent myth that a student who prefers to learn visually won't learn as well from auditiory or kinesthetic teaching, but overwhelming data proves otherwise. While students may PREFER to learn visually, auditorally or kinesthetically they learn equally effectively from all three.

The main reason this myth persists is that students FEEL like they learn more, understood it more easily, and judge teachers as better if they use the student's prefered learning style. But when they are tested objectively, the results show it's a preference, that's irrelevant to how well they learn, understand and recall the material. I learned this from Adam Grant's latest book Think Again.

This matters more for teachers ( like myself ) because we can focus on our strengths as teachers and ALL students will learn equally well regardless of their specific learning style. But ONLY IFF we teach it well, which we are most likely to do best using our " prefered teaching style. "

Since engagement and attention do affect learning, educators and their students of all types are better served by teachers focusing on which modalities they teach best with.

Ironically, my learning preference is highly visual, but I'm not all that great at teaching using visuals. I teach best by speaking, and supporting my it with other modes when it best serves the topic or lesson.

This matters for students of all types because they'll get the best education by focusing on the skill and quality of the teacher, NOT the primary teaching modality they use. If everyone says " professor Whishaw is an excellent teacher ", take her class over professor Morris who uses lots of visual ( your preference ) but sucks as a teacher.

If you're old enough to remember Ferris Buler's Day Off, you remember " Mr. Monotone ", and have experienced the same from a REAL teacher sometime during your education.

How much did you enjoy that class? How much did you pay attention and therefore learn? Now compare that with your favorite teacher. Were they visual, auditory or kinesthetic in how they taught? Did they use all three? The point is, a teacher who is not in THEIR zone ( prefered teaching style ) will probably not get good results.

A monotone teacher should either add more kinesthetic, or visual elements lest their students fall asleep with boredom. Contrast that with my teaching style, high energy, talkative, interactive, playful and inflecting...students don't fall asleep in my class and stay engaged. I RARELY use visuals and continuously get students to interact with one another, usually with pairs, small groups or games depending the age and topic. BTW, don;t shy away from games just because they're C-Suite adults. If it's novel and fun, and you have the confidence to get their buy in, the results may be exceptional. Teach THAT CLASS, NOT their typical demographic .

Going back to Mr. Monotone, if he uses hilarious visuals that clearly support the learning, he may be an excellent teacher. Bob Newhart, and my brother in law are hilarious BECAUSE they're mellow, low key and monotone. In contrast to Eddie Murphy is loud and multitone or George Carlin who used facial expressions, tone and intellect in his humor. They're all hilarious, but completely different.

For teachers, it means triple down on your strengths. Lean into whatever teaching style you do well, that keeps your students engaged. Don't kill yourself or feel guilty for not accomodating all the learning styles, that don't actually exist.

Teach from your strengths & learn from the best teachers.

P.S. What Made Your Favorite Teacher Great?

P.P.S. My Next Article: Book Review: Brain Bugs: By Dean Buonomano