Independent School Educators' List (ISED-L): Re: So what is the deal with learning styles?

Friday, October 15, 2010

Re: So what is the deal with learning styles?

Yes...I have no doubt that the research that has found No Significant Effec=
t, No Significant Interaction Effect when looking for evidence of Learning =
Styles or Multiple Intelligence, has been used to support the case for "one=
size fits all" teaching and the highly lucrative testing industry.=20

This particular article on Learning Styles does present a framework for fut=
ure studies in this area. It will be interesting to see if anyone takes the=
challenge and uses that framework for future studies. In this particular a=
rticle, they were also careful to say that their work was not exhaustive, j=
ust that nothing has been found yet. That being said, there is much to be s=
aid about the overload theories and the integration of the "multiple ways a=
n individual learns" and this, I believe is where the argument should be ma=
de for Learning Styles.

Chris

________________________________________
From: A forum for independent school educators [ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU] On=
Behalf Of Gary S. Stager [district@stager.org]
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2010 2:57 AM
To: ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Re: So what is the deal with learning styles?

Chris,

Two thoughts:

1) People often expect too much of Gardner's theory. At its most fundamenta=
l level it merely states that intelligence is manifest in multiple ways.

2) The "anti-MI papers" I've read have a heck of a time differentiating bet=
ween teaching and learning. These "studies" typically evaluate the efficacy=
of some pedagogical strategy and use that to in Sarah Palin's term "refudi=
ate" Gardner. This failure to understand a profound distinction invalidates=
the arguments they are trying to make against Gardner.

One also has to ask if there is a political motive behind the growing attac=
k on multiple intelligences theory. In a political climate that believes th=
at knowledge is the result of teaching with most agency afforded to the tea=
cher, it is not surprising that a theory arguing otherwise would come under=
attack.

What is to be gained by pretending that people don't learn in different way=
s? Is this merely a way of justifying one-size-fits-all teaching?

I highly recommend that anyone interested in this topic read a new book exp=
loring many of the issues surrounding multiple intelligences theory - http:=
//amzn.to/4K78mq

Gary

On Oct 14, 2010, at 5:26 PM, Bigenho, Chris wrote:

> The following is a blog post I just wrote based on the reading of two con=
flicting articles that seemed to inform each other but through contradictor=
y concepts. The question that I played with in this post was the role of l=
earning styles in improving the efficacy of the educational process if lear=
ning styles don't really exist. Please feel free to comment at will on the =
blog or through this list. I hope you enjoy and that it provides something =
to think about. Warning though, I end with more questions than I when I sta=
rted. Such is the way of learning.
>
> http://bigenhoc.wordpress.com/2010/10/15/so-what-is-the-deal-with-learnin=
g-styles/
>
> Chris
>
> Chris Bigenho
> Director of Educational Technology
> Greenhill School
> 4141 Spring Valley Road
> Addison, TX 75001
> Ph. 972-628-5479
> Fx. 972-628-5279
> bigenhoc@greenhill.org<mailto:bigenhoc@greenhill.org>
> www.greenhill.org<http://www.greenhill.org>
>
> Blog: http://bigenhoc.wordpress.com/
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> AIM: chris bigenho
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>
>
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