Strong (2002) states, "Teachers who successfully employ a range of strategies reach more students because they tap into more learning styles and student interest" (p. 43). Has this been your experience as a student? Give an example to either support or refute this statement.
Strong, J.H. (2002). Qualities of effective teachers. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with this statement. If a teacher is using only one form of instruction he or she will not be an effective teacher. There are many different types of learning styles of students. In order for the teacher to reach all students he or she needs to cater their teaching style to the students’ learning style. It is not realistic to try to teach in ALL styles, because there are so many different types, but get to know your students and their needs and you will be able to plan accordingly.
ReplyDeleteAs a student I have noticed that some teachers do not take the time to cater to their students’ learning styles. It is time consuming to do this, so it is understandable why they may not do so, but I think it is beneficial to everyone. A teacher who lectures and shows Power Points the entire class time will not reach students are Kinesthetic learners.
The statement above is true for my past educational experiences. I feel like this experience has been very beneficial to me. I remember at point, a unit being taught and the teacher using different strategies to teach the unit. These strategies would help each student succeed. We all had different learning styles, but she met all of them. For instance, I learn the best when completing an activity. At one point of the unit, we did an activity with partners to learn about the topic. I really enjoyed this and was able to remember the information when it was time to do an assessment. This teacher was a very effective teacher in this classroom. In the future I will use these different instructional strategies in my classroom!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Chrisite's post when she said, " It is not realistic to try to teach in ALL styles, because there are so many different types, but get to know your students and their needs and you will be able to plan accordingly." This is an awesome idea for a teacher to know their students' learning styles, and incorporate them into the classroom.
ReplyDeleteThanks Brooke! Like Brooke said she is, I also remember things much better if I talk to a partner and do activities, rather than taking notes and listening to lecture. I think that many elementary students learn better this way, but classroom management may become more of a difficult issue if the children get off task.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement because every student learns differently. Some students might learn better by listening while others learn better by doing hands on projects. This is a lot like the multiple intelligences. Each student uses the multiple intelligences differently. Some students learn strictly one way while others lean using so many different strategies. This is what makes it is so important for teachers to teach by using a wide range of strategies. It is our job to teach according to the students needs so that they are getting everything they possibly can out of their learning. Eventhough we can't teach all of the different strategies at the same time, we can switch it up so that more of the strategies are being used and all students learning styles are being met.
ReplyDeleteThis has definately been my experience as a student, but I would say it was more so in elementary school and high school than college. One class I remember was Business Law in high school and the teacher that I had this with always tried to make learning fun. We would read out of the book about different laws and learn the vocabulary. Then we would have mock trials. We also got to go to different jails around the area and even the state penitentiary in Anamosa. Reading the books was helpful for the students who learn better from reading and discussing. The mock trials were helpful for the students who need hands on or "experience" doing something. Lastly, the "field trips" were helpful for the students who need to visually see things and talk to professionals. Even though this class was difficult, it was a lot of fun because we got to do so many different things.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with the statement above. It is important for teachers to learn that their students may learn in different ways. Some students may learn by just seeing something be done, but others may need to take a more hands on approach to truly understand something. Throughout the year a teacher should find out how their students learn best and teach their lessons in a way that will facilitate all. This has been my experience as a student. Math has always been my weakest subject, and throughout high school I had problems understanding concepts when a teacher would just explain something and write on the board in front of the class. Often times though, after working through a problem one on one with a teacher I grasped the concept much better.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this statement. Using different teaching strategies draws the attention of every student and makes the teacher a more effective teacher. I am more of a hands on learner. I like to do projects and activities to help me learn. I do not learn well from sitting in a class and listening to a professor lecture. After class I always have to review the materials discussed and think of examples of the material.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Jenna said about this being true more with elementary and high school levels. I think it is easier for teachers to be able to identify students' individual learning styles in these classrooms, as opposed to those at the college level.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement about Instructional Strategies and the thought of different teaching styles. From my educational experiences I have found that a teacher who is flexible and able to adjust to the difficultly their students are having is the best "kind" of teacher to me. I have had teachers that are very motivated to helping students with the different ways they learn. It was a very comfortable feeling to have a teacher that could help you in a different way. It was also nice to know that you were learning the same material as all the other students in your class, but in just a different way. I have also had teachers that are very one minded and only have one way of teaching. This to me was a very difficult way to learn. The environment and feeling that I would get with a teacher like this would be embarrassment. It was not a fun environment to be in and it was not a healthy way to learn. I think that as a new school year beings the teacher should start from day one on getting to know the learning styles of the students. I think that as time goes on and the teacher begins to test out different lessons and techniques the understanding of each student will come along with time and trial.
ReplyDeleteI really like the point that Chrisite said on her blog about how teachers cannot teach every style. I agree with this, I think that a better way to think of it would be experiment different teaching methods. I know that for some parents, students and even teachers "experiment" can be a scary word but I think if you look at the meaning of it a different way it is a great thing. I think that learning and teaching new methods can open up so many doors to students that they never knew existed.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement above. Teachers who teach to multiple learning strategies have a greater chance of reaching to all of their students. If you only teach to one learning style then you won't be reaching to all of your students. Some students who learn from activities may not learn the concept if you only lecture on it. Social Studies was always a hard subject for me because I little interest in the subject. If the teacher did not do hands on activities, then it would be really hard for me to learn the content just from reading the text. During my seventh grade year, my social studies teacher really made it interesting. She would have us do projects on different countries and would play games,like jeopardy, to review the material and it really helped me. Instead of only reading out of the text book or just handing us a review sheet, she kept us really active in our learning.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kyle when he said, "Throughout the year a teacher should find out how their students learn best and teach their lessons in a way that will facilitate all." It is really important to get to know your students and how they learn so you can incorporate those learning styles into your lessons.
ReplyDeleteIt is very important for the teacher to use many learning strategies in the classroom. If this is not done, the teacher may wonder why certain students are learning the material well, while others are falling behind. All students are unique in the classroom. Therefore, teachers will need to use a variety of learning strategies in the classroom to help assess what learning styles are the best for each child. The teacher may use a very visual lesson one day, with lots of posters, pictures and over-head material, and the next day use a lot of manipulatives for problem based learning. After a teacher uses a variety of these lesson strategies, he or she will notice which students did the best in certain lessons. In my past three weeks of Level II, I have definitely noticed how important it is to evaluate each student and to pay close attention to how learning takes place. Every child deserves to have the best education they can, therefore, the teacher is the primary investigator on how this can be done.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read a statement Kyle made, "Math has always been my weakest subject, and throughout high school I had problems understanding concepts when a teacher would just explain something and write on the board in front of the class. Often times though, after working through a problem one on one with a teacher I grasped the concept much better." It definitely hit home. I sometimes have a hard time always understanding certain parts of a lesson as a student, however, having a teacher that cares about each student and taking the extra time to help the student one on one will make a world of a difference. One thing that my mother told me (she is a 1st grade teacher) that really got me thinking was "Be that teacher that wants to help every student and makes them feel special. Students will not remember every single thing you teach them, however, they will always remember how you made them feel and how you shaped their learning." When students have these postitive thoughts about learning, they will have a much better learing experience. This goes hand in hand with learning styles in the classroom. Every student has their own way of learning, therefore, for these students to have a positive experience and to attain the full education they deserve, the extra mile the teacher goes for the student makes a world of a difference.
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