Day 5 - 1/19/07

How do educators know how to meet the needs of the specific learners with which they are working? Are their different types of learners? Does everyone understand subject matter in the same way? How can teachers identify the different types of learners in their classrooms? Take this online quiz to determine your learning style. Find two other classmates who have similar learning styles. Find one learning/study habit that you have in common and be ready to share it with the class. Here are more resources on learning styles.

http://www.ncsu.edu/felder-public/ILSdir/styles.htm
But understanding learning styles is just one part of this puzzle piece. Understanding the various learning theories is important to be able to prepare an appropriate learning environment for your students.

Students preferentially take in and process information in different ways: by seeing and hearing, reflecting and acting, reasoning logically and intuitively, analyzing and visualizing, steadily and in fits and starts. Teaching methods also vary. Some instructors lecture, others demonstrate or lead students to self-discovery; some focus on principles and others on applications; some emphasize memory and others understanding.

When mismatches exist between learning styles of most students in a class and the teaching style of the professor, the students may become bored and inattentive in class, do poorly on tests, get discouraged about the courses, the curriculum, and themselves, and in some cases change to other curricula or drop out of school. Professors, confronted by low test grades, unresponsive or hostile classes, poor attendance and dropouts, know something is not working. They may become overly critical of their students (making things even worse) or begin to wonder if they are in the right profession. Most seriously, society loses potentially excellent professionals. To overcome these problems, professors should strive for a balance of instructional methods (as opposed to trying to teach each student exclusively according to his or her preferences.) If the balance is achieved, all students will be taught partly in a manner they prefer, which leads to an increased comfort level and willingness to learn, and partly in a less preferred manner, which provides practice and feedback in ways of thinking and solving problems which they may not initially be comfortable with but which they will have to use to be fully effective professionals.

How do educators know how to teach? What strategies are used to address certain learning styles? How does learning theory impact teaching strategies? Is lecturing about your subject matter all that is necessary?
View descriptions of various teaching strategies here and here. Find two that would suit your learning style.

Find at least one classmate who has chosen a similar teaching strategy -- do you have the same learning style?
How do educators pull everything together? What tools and resources do they use to prepare a supportive learning environment? Our main focus for this semester is identifying technology-related tools and resources that support varied student learning styles and teaching strategies.

Rembember:

1. Have a Georgia Performance standard that correlates with the book you have selected.

2. Monday, I will be looking over your websites. (Autobiography page) Make sure you look at previous blog postings (1/16/07) for directions - content expected on your page.
3. Review the subject matter we so far. We will have a reflection assignment derived from our previous lessons. Look at the Reflection due next Friday.

Reflection 1

Due Date: 1/26/07 (Friday) 5 points
1. Summarize - http://www.ncsu.edu/felder-public/ILSdir/styles.htm -Overview – (50 -100 words)
2. a. Provide a print screen of your learning style quiz
b. Indicate if you agree with the results or not. (Total of 40-100 words)
3. a. Explain how you would use technology – software and hardware - in order to complement your learning style. (50 -100 words)

At the end of each action items please indicate the number of words. Submit a hard copy by Friday the 26th. Please double space your document and use 1.25 inch margins on the right and left hand margins. Make sure you keep an electronic copy for you upcoming web portfolio. Please staple your deliverable and provide a cover page with your name, assignment title and submission date.