Learning Preference Debate
It is critical to adapt teaching to learning preferences in nursing education
Teachers routinely stated that to be effective educators; they must identify & cater to individual students' learning preferences; it is calculated that approximately 90% of students believe that they possess a specific learning preference but research indicates that learning preference does not exist.
Learning Preference Important
Side Score: 8
|
 |
Learning Preference not Import
Side Score: 12
Winning Side! |
|
|
|
|
1
point
Reflect on your days in the classroom and the clinical setting during your nursing school experience. As a student, did you prefer to sit in a desk for six hours and listen to your professors’ lecture with a monotone voice? Did you enjoy taking notes? Would you rather experience a demonstration of a skill or actually experience the skill hands on in the simulation lab? If you answered that you prefer one of the above methods over the other, you have a preferred learning style. There are many tools that can assess a learners preferred style on the internet to include: VARK, education planner, and getadministrate.com to name a few. The words learning style are often loosely used to describe almost any attribute or characteristic about learning but technically the term refers to all the components that might affect a person’s preferences to learn (Vark-learn, 2018). Learning preferences are important, especially in nursing. The large amounts of material that is delivered with the expectation of retainment can be overwhelming for the student. It is imperative that the student understands what kind of learner he/she is. Implementation of innovative teaching strategies has now become a driving force in nursing education to better meet the needs of a multigenerational classroom (Young, 2018). As an educator, understanding how your students learn is a vital part of teaching effectively. Identifying the preferred learning style can optimize learning opportunities, identify strengths and areas of improvement, as well as facilitate success for student outcomes. Educators need to engage students creatively to promote better integration of theory into practice. Simpson, Vicki & Richards, Elizabeth. (2015). Flipping the classroom to teach population health: increasing the relevance. Nurse Education in Practice. (15)3, 162-167. VARK-learn (2018). Research and statistics. Retrieved from http://vark-learn.com/ Young, Diane & Seibenherner, Sherry. (2018). Preferred teaching strategies for students in an associate of science nursing program. Teaching and Learning in Nursing. Retrieved from https://www.jtln.org/article/ Side: Learning Preference Important
3
points
As you point out there are different methods of delivery of educational material. Students can listen to a lecture, partake in a demonstration, or watch a demo. The idea that some people understand and learn better through one sense over the other is the foundation of the concept of Learning Styles. This concept of learning styles is a significant focus of educational research and training. A quick search of ‘learning styles’ using the Education Source database returned over 500 articles from the last three years. Much of this research is built on the assumption that learning styles are valid but this is not supported by the research according to Riener and Willingham (2010). The authors report that although students may have preferences about the teaching format these preferences do not impact their ability to learn using other preferences. A review of the literature by Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer, and Bjork published in 2009 found no evidence to support learning styles. This was supported in a more recent review of the literature by Cuevas (2015). One of the studies cited examined 99 students over a three year period. The researchers found that students consistently identified their learning style over time. But these researchers did not find any correlation between the student’s success on an assignment and the teaching style of that assignment. Another study using neuroimaging suggested that the different areas of the brain were so connected that it was not possible to separate out one area over another. Implying that all areas are used in learning. Ultimately, none of these researchers dispute that learners may have preferences for one style of learning over another. Instead they do not find supporting evidence that these different styles improve learning. If learning styles don’t impact retention and understanding of material, what does? According to Marshik, “we store information in terms of meaning and not a sensory mode” (2015). The lecturer stresses the importance of encouraging students to make a connection with the material. As you state, nurses have large amounts of material that they must learn and understand. Based on the literature, it isn’t important if this material is discussed in a lecture format or demonstrated in a video. It is more important that the material has meaning for the students. I read about neuromuscular disorders in school but until I had a patient with ALS I didn’t truly know it. It had more meaning when I could picture the person and remember my interaction with them. According to a study by Krabbendam and Meeter (2018) material is learned when we build on previously learned material with new material. This strengthens connections and enhances memory. Cuevas, J. (2015). Is learning styles-based instruction effective? A comprehensive analysis of recent research on learning styles. Theory and Research in Education. Retrieved from https://doi-org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Krabbendam, L., Meeter, M. (2018). Integrating educational knowledge: Reactivation of prior knowledge during educational learning enhances memory integration. NPJ Science of Learning, 3(1), 1-8. Marshik, T. (2015, April 2). Learning styles & the importance of critical self-reflection. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/ Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., and Bjork, R. (2009). Learning styles: Concepts and evidence. Psychological Science in the Public Interest. Retreived from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/ Riener, C., Willingham, D. (2010). The Myth of Learning Styles. Change, 42(5), 32–35. Retrieved from http://proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Side: Learning Preference not Import
1
point
Each person has a unique way of learning with different styles and techniques. There are seven identified learning styles listed below. Everyone has some mixture of these styles. There are certain people that have discovered they have a dominant style. There are also different scenarios where learning styles are changed for that episode. Traditionally schools have mainly used linguistic and logical styles of teaching. Recently evaluation the use of multiple learning styles. There are many professors evaluating changes in this approach to teaching. The standardized tests and textbook teaching do not seem to be the most perfect teaching route. Learning is an individual skill that one must develop for themselves and recognize what work best for your individualized learning. By recognizing and understanding your own learning styles, you can use techniques better suited to you. This improves the speed and quality of your learning Visual (spatial): You prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding. Aural (auditory-musical): You prefer using sound and music. Verbal (linguistic): You prefer using words, both in speech and writing. Physical (kinesthetic): You prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch. Logical (mathematical): You prefer using logic, reasoning and systems. Social (interpersonal): You prefer to learn in groups or with other people. Solitary (intrapersonal): You prefer to work alone and use self-study. Theories of learning styles suggest that individuals think and learn best in different ways. These are not differences of ability but rather preferences for processing certain types of information or for processing information in certain types of way. McCrow, Yevchak and Lewis described how surveying your nursing staff for individual learning styles and identifying those styles will provide invaluable information. This information can be used to make informed choices about modification and development of professional hospital-based educational programs. This article also said ‘balanced’ learning style preferences may potentially yield additional preferred learning style information for other health-related disciplines. References Kolb, A. Y., & Kolb, D. A. (2017, November 30). Learning Styles and Learning Spaces: Enhancing Experiential Learning in Higher Education., 4(2). https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2005.17268566 Mccrow, Yevchak, & Lewis. (2014). A prospective cohort study examining the preferred learning styles of acute care registered nurses. Nurse Education in Practice, 14(2), 170-175. Willingham, D. T., Hughes, E. M., & Dobolyi, D. G. (2015, June 17). The Scientific Status of Learning Styles Theories. Teaching of Psychology, 42(3), 266-271. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628315589505 Urick, Michael. (2017). Adapting Training to Meet the Preferred Learning Styles of Different Generations. International Journal of Training and Development, 21(1), 53-59. Side: Learning Preference Important
|
The complexity of the nursing profession is what makes having proficient educators an absolute must. To educate future nurses, its so important to have an educator who is grounded, knowledgeable, and well-versed in their profession. According to Thompson& Sheckley (1997), there are four stable factors that provide a positive learning experience across the board; these factors include a teacher with strong organizational skills, clarifies on time, encourages cooperative learning, and promotes an active learning environment. It is also a must that these teachers, who also continue to be learners as well, develop their teaching style to be successful in their endeavors. It is important for nurse educators to encourage students to develop their critical thinking skills, which is what will guide them throughout their career. Understanding how one learns and seeking out the proper channels to enhance your own learning experience is a part of developing critical thinking skills. Critical thinking is defined as a purposeful, self-regulating series of judgments that are the results of interpreting, analyzing, and evaluating; critical thinking is a massive component in the discipline of nursing, as well as nursing education. Essential skills of thinking necessitate cognitive and meta-cognitive components of meaningful learning. Meaningful learning is one of the key objectives in nursing education, the ability to train autonomous and self-directed learners (Gholami, Moghadam, Mohammadipoor, Tarahi, Sak, Toulabi, & Pour, 2016). Specific to nursing, there are plenty of opportunities for students to create their own learning experience instead of an educator trying to adapt to everyone’s individual learning preferences. Nursing students can practice skills in a simulation lab, educators have office hours and open email addresses for those students who feel they need extra help or explanation. Expecting an educator to cater to individual students sounds impossible and exhausting. When I entered college in 1995, I did not have all the technology and resources that are available for students today. Students can access millions of journals, articles, books, and websites in a matter of minutes with a few taps of a keyboard. A study conducted among educators in a Saudi Arabian nursing school showed that job satisfaction was high when teachers could plan and develop courses as well as being able to use a variety of teaching styles. The primary teaching styles for nursing students include theory, seminar, lab, and clinical. These styles make the most sense when you consider the skills needed to be successful in the nursing field. Nurses need to know how to read charts, be observant, implement assessment skills, listen to and give oral patient reports, and perform clinical skills. Nurse educators are also responsible for implementing evidence-based teaching and guiding students to understand the importance of evidence-based practice; if these core instructions are not met because a teacher is trying to establish individual learning preferences, it could be a detriment to patient care further down the line (Stirling, 2017). It should be up to the instructor to decide which tools and variables that they use to meet course objectives. In summary, nursing education should be a shared responsibility between the student and the teacher. However, it should be the student’s responsibility to establish their study habits and facilitating the best way of retaining and implementing the information they have been given through their instructors teaching preferences. Gholami, M., Moghadam, P. K., Mohammadipoor, F., Tarahi, M. J., Sak, M., Toulabi, T., & Pour, A. H. H. (2016). Comparing the effects of problem-based learning and the traditional lecture method on critical thinking skills and metacognitive awareness in nursing students in a critical care nursing course. Nurse Education Today, 45, 16–21. https://doi-org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Stirling, B. V. (2017). Results of a study assessing teaching methods of faculty after measuring student learning style preference. Nurse Education Today, 55, 107–111. https://doi-org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Thompson C, & Sheckley BG. (1997). Differences in classroom teaching preferences between traditional and adult BSN students. Journal of Nursing Education, 36(4), 163–170. Retrieved from http://proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Side: Learning Preference not Import
A benchmark definition of “learning styles” is “characteristic cognitive, effective, and psychosocial behaviors that serve as relatively stable indicators of how learners perceive, interact with, and respond to the learning environment. Learning styles are considered by many to be one factor of success in higher education. Learning styles exist - It is estimated that around 90% of students believe that they have a specific learning style. Learning styles are an effective teaching and learning approach that will help students improve their learning if they are taught in their particular learning style. There is a range of different types of learning styles, for example auditory, visual, tactile or kinaesthetic styles. Learning styles has existed since the 1970s with over 70 models. There are three main reasons why the idea of teaching by learning styles has caught on to such a great extent: due to it being related to certain areas of the brain being mapped to specific activities, the commercialization of industries around learning styles to sell professional learning to schools, and the publication of studies that show a large impact of learning styles on students’ outcomes. The theory surrounding learning styles seems to make sense, as there are different regions of the brain that are involved to a greater extent in certain functions. For example, language development and musical training. So it is assumed that learners should receive information in visual, auditory or kinaesthetic forms according to which part of their brain works better. Learning styles are an attractive concept because the theory starts from the premise that children are unique and also prescribes a way to accommodate children’s uniqueness in instruction. This intuitive appeal may help to explain why talk of learning styles became commonplace in education. The basis for the use of Learning Styles is that individual difference between learners can be captured by diagnostic instruments which classify learners into ‘styles’. According to many, interpretations of Learning Styles theory, to teach individuals using methods which are matched to their ‘Learning Style’ will result in improved learning. The belief in the use of Learning Styles is common amongst schoolteachers – A 2012 study demonstrated that 93% of schoolteachers in the UK agree with the statement “Individuals learn better when they receive information in their preferred Learning Style. A 2014 survey reported that 76% of UK schoolteachers ‘used Learning Styles’ and most stated that to do so benefited their pupils in some way. A study of Higher Education faculty in the USA showed that 64% agreed with the statement “Does teaching to a student’s learning style enhance learning?” A recent study demonstrated that current research papers ‘about’ Learning Styles, in the higher education research literature, overwhelmingly endorsed their use. People like to identify themselves and others by “type.” Such categories help order the social environment and offer quick ways of understanding each other. Also, this approach appeals to the idea that learners should be recognized as “unique individuals”—or, more precisely, that differences among students should be acknowledged—rather than treated as a number in a crowd or a faceless class of students. Carried further, teaching to different learning styles suggests that all people have the potential to learn effectively and easily if only instruction is tailored to their individual learning styles. The theory of learning styles resembles the concept of metacognition, or the process of thinking about one’s thinking. For instance, having your students describe which study strategies and conditions for their last exam worked for them and which didn’t is likely to improve their studying on the next exam. Many researchers have argued that knowledge of learning styles can be of use to both educators and students. Faculty members with knowledge of learning styles can tailor pedagogy so that it best coincides with learning styles exhibited by the majority of students. Alternatively, students with knowledge of their own preferences are empowered to use various techniques to enhance learning, which in turn may impact overall educational satisfaction. This ability is particularly critical and useful when an instructor's teaching style does not match a student's learning style. Compounding the issue of learning styles in the classroom has been the movement in many collegiate environments to distance and/or asynchronous education. This shift in educational modality is inconsistent with the learning models with which most older students and adult learners are accustomed from their primary and high school education. Alternatively, environmental influences and more widespread availability of technological advances may make younger generations of students more comfortable with distance learning. References: Caldwell, B., & Vaughan, T. (2011). Transforming education through the arts. Routledge. Dinham, S. (2016). Leading Learning and Teaching. ACER press. Evidence for Learning. (2017a), Learning styles. Retrieved from: http://evidenceforlearning.org.au/ Hattie, J. (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. Routledge. Howard-Jones, P. A. (2014). Neuroscience and education: myths and messages. Nature Reviews. Neuroscience, 15 (12), 817-824. Newton, P. M., & Miah, M. (2017). Evidence-Based Higher Education – Is the Learning Styles “Myth” Important? Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 444. http://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00444 Romanelli, F., Bird, E., & Ryan, M. (2009). Learning Styles: A Review of Theory, Application, and Best Practices. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 73(1), 09. https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/ Side: Learning Preference Important
Despite anecdotal evidence, substantiation of individual learning styles does not exist. Preference is a subjective measurement, but does exist. Depending on the number of classes taught, and the volume of students per class, instructors may have hundreds of students per semester. Based on the shortage of nurse educators, instructors may be teaching to larger classes than in the past. Therefore, it is not critical, or even plausible, for educators to adapt teaching to learning preferences in nursing education. Because of the broad range of abilities of students in each classroom the most efficient method is evaluating the content and presenting lessons based on the material. For example, Daniel Williamgham of the University of Virginia states "if the goal is to teach student the geography of South America, the most effective way to do so across the board would be looking at a map instead of verbally describing the shape and relative location of each country" (Guteri, 2013). Presenting material that captures a concept for most students is the broadest way to impart a concept to the greatest number of students. A second teaching technique is delivering content through "multiple formats to allow learners to choose which method is most conducive for them" (Mangold, Kunze, Quinonez, Taylor, & Tenison, 2018). Customizing all education to individual preferences would be impossible, so presenting several modes of engagement promotes understanding and retention of content. Thirdly, encouraging communication among students with each other may enhance learning because each individual student experience and learning preference may create interactions that impart knowledge to other students. Zhu et al. (2018) write "every student acts as a demonstrator to share their learning experience to others (such as their notes, maps, patterns of information created by themselves, and cases, among other things). By communicating with each other, students can optimize the learning strategies and problem-solving methods, which are helpful in improving a student's academic performance". Based on the above evidence it may be stated that rather than teaching to individual learning preferences, teaching the material in the most practical way, presenting multiple formats, and encouraging the exchange of student information is a broader, less cumbersome way to reach the greatest number of students. Zhu et al. (2018) suggest that as learners grow, they are mare adaptable to different teaching methods and have developed multiple sensory modalities. As nursing students are primarily adult learners this may be further evidence to support presentation of material in multiple formats designed to be absorbed by the greatest numbers of learners.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/ Mangold, K., Kunze, K., Quinonez, M., Taylor, L., & Tenison, A. (2018). Learning Style Preferences of Practicing Nurses. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development, 34(4), 212-218. Zhu Hong-rui, Zeng Hui, Zhang Hua, Zhang Hong-yu, Wan Feng-jing, Guo Hong-hua, Zhang Cai-hong. The preferred learning styles utilizing VARK among nursing students with bachelor degrees and associate degrees in China. Acta Paul Enferm. 2018;31(2):162-9. Side: Learning Preference not Import
1
point
If we indeed all have different learning styles, why haven’t we been separated into “learning style groups” from an early age? As you state, over 70 models of Learning Styles have existed since the 1970s, which may be part of the problem, as that would be a tremendous number of models to have to implement into the education system over the years as new styles appeared and/or changed. In reflecting back to my undergrad years, which is only 9-13 years ago (2005-2009), I don’t recall ever being asked about or tested on my preferred learning style. Rather it was ingrained in us that we as nursing students must recognize which ways work best for to study and retain the information taught. The burden was not one the instructor to teach in such a style that that students retain the information immediately or better. In 2008 the Association of Psychological Science commissioned a group of researchers to examine the research on learning styles. Their report, Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence, references over 55 articles and summarizes the results as “The contrast between the enormous popularity of the learning-styles approach within education and the lack of credible evidence for its utility is, in our opinion, striking and disturbing. If classification of students’ learning styles has practical utility, it remains to be demonstrated.” Dr. Willingham is a cognitive psychologist, a neuroscientist, and a professor at the University of Virginia. His YouTube presentation states that “cognitive psychologist know that learning styles don’t exist.” He further states that the brain just does not work that way. While the basic idea of learning styles does make sense, and over 90% of students at his university believe that, however, most of what we are taught to learning is memory based, and how the information is presented to us does not improve that learning. The theory of learning styles is that students will always learn better in a certain style. If that were true, if you are an auditory learner is hearing about how to give an insulin shot going to be the best way for you to learn how to do actually give an insulin shot? Auditory vs. Visual vs. Kinesthetic is just one type of learning style. There are so many other styles that it would be impossible for a teacher to tailor their teaching to each specific student’s style. More recently, we learn from Stuart Kime, Director of Evidence-Based Education at Durham University that there is “no robust evidence to indicate the learning styles exist.” His department is the approved training provider for the Center for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM). CEM is the world-leading provider of evidence-based assessment and has zero references to learning styles in their feedback. The voluminous misinformation of learning styles that exist in print/video etc. state that identifying these styles makes learning easier. However, the long-term gains of learning are evidenced by thinking hard about something because that is when memory sticks. Of course, students are different in the preferences of learning because they are drawn to particular tasks where they feel successful and have years of developing that ability. “Preferences” cannot be interchangeable with “styles” when it comes to teaching, as we will all certainly feel preferences to areas in which we have proven achievements. Kime, S. (2017). The Evidence: Learning Styles Don’t Exist. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/ Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D. & Bjork, R. (2008). Learning Styles: Concepts and Evidence. Psychological Science in the PUBLIC INTEREST, Vol. 9, No. 3. Retrieved from https://www.psychologicalscience.org/ Willingham, D. (2008). Learning Styles Don’t Exist. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/ Side: Learning Preference not Import
2
points
It is not critical to adapt teaching to learning preferences in nursing education. Students may believe that they prefer one learning style over another but this doesn’t ultimately improve their retention of the material. A study by Husmann and O’Loughlin (2018) found that students that matched their study style to their preferred learning preference did not perform better than those that did not. The study also found that most students did not match their study techniques to their stated learning preferences. Both of these outcomes suggest that the evaluation of a student’s learning preference offers little value to the student. Not only does the student disregard the method when designing their own study but even students using their stated preference do not perform better. This does not mean that some material isn’t better suited to one teaching method over another. To help students learn new material, it is critical for the material to have meaning to the students in your classroom. New knowledge builds on previous knowledge. In order to do this there must be a connection between the two. Learning networks are strengthened when students can connect new knowledge to previous knowledge (Kesteren, Krabbendam, and Meeter, 2018). In some cases it is more appropriate for this new knowledge to be presented verbally while in other cases it may be more appropriately done through a demonstration. Nursing requires the development of physical skills and the creation of a knowledge base. Teaching in a classroom and allowing hands-on activities are important parts of their education. A study by Delnavaz et al. (2018) found that ED triage education was most successful when using role-playing. This allowed the students to use multiple senses during the learning process that could then be built on in previous practice sessions. Delnavaz, S., Hassankhani, H., Roshangar, F., Dadashzadeh, A. dadashzadeha@tbzmed. ac. i., Sarbakhsh, P., Ghafourifard, M., & Fathiazar, E. (2018). Comparison of scenario based triage education by lecture and role playing on knowledge and practice of nursing students. Nurse Education Today, 70, 54–59. https://doi-org.proxy-wcupa.klnpa.org/ Husmann, P. R., O’Loughlin, V. D. (2018). Another nail in the coffin for learning styles? Disparities among undergraduate anatomy students’ study strategies, class performance, and reported VARK learning styles. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1002/ase.1777 Krabbendam, L., Meeter, M. (2018). Integrating educational knowledge: Reactivation of prior knowledge during educational learning enhances memory integration. NPJ Science of Learning, 3(1), 1-8. Side: Learning Preference not Import
|
