Learning styles don’t seem to get addressed much in the adult learning world.  We sometimes hear about them in the early years of school, along with the ADD and ADHD labels some children have to wear.  But do learning styles apply in the adult world of computer training?  Does an adult visual learner handle computer training differently than an adult auditory learner?  And what about the kinesthetic learner?  They need to touch, to sense things as they learn.  It’s true most people leave the kinesthetic learning mode as they become adults, but there is a percentage of the adult population that learn in a kinesthetic mode.  Do we leave them out of adult training?  Should they be penalized for their learning style? 

Naturally we should strive to reach each of the learning styles in any form of training.  But this is computer training, not art or science.  Adults have become mature enough to extract what they need in most learning environments.  Really?Learning styles are not learning choices.  They are not learning handicaps.  They are the way a brain is mapped for learning preferences.  You are either right handed or left handed (or possibly ambidextrous).  When you throw something, pick up something, or drink something, you have a preference for which hand is best for that task.  That doesn’t mean the other hand can’t do it, it’s just the preferred hand can do it better, or more easily.  Those who naturally throw a ball with their right hand can also throw with their left, but not as accurately or as far.  They can throw they ball, but the results are not as good.  Learning styles are the same.  An auditory learner can learn from a visual style, but they won’t learn as easily, and they won’t learn as much.  Their preferred style is not being used.

Computer training, as any other training, is most effective when offered in the student’s learning style.  But how do you know the learning styles of your students?  Most often you don’t.  This is why courses need to be taught utilizing multiple styles.  The same message needs to be reinforced using the strengths of each of the learning styles.  What can be touched should be touched.  What can’t be touched may be modeled by a representative object.  Everything that can be made visible should be made visible.  And of course, speaking should accompany each part of the presentation.  Just showing slides leaves out part of the learning processes.  Much of quality training consists of cleverly repeating information in different learning styles, so as to reinforce the message, without boring the student.  Proper reinforcement, coupled with the strength of the preferred learning style, results in more satisfied students with better retention and more profitable learning experiences.

by Ron Mohr / Compute Made Easy