გორის სახელმწიფო სასწავლო უნივესიტეტის, პროფესორ-მასწავლებელთა და შიდა ქართლის საჯარო სკოლების მასწავლებელთა ერთობილივი კონფერენცია 
20 ივნისი 2014წ


Learning Style Theory

Doliashvili Khatuna

Teacher of English

Gori Public School # 7

         David Kolb is an exponent of experiential learning. He hypothesizes that people learn by going through the steps of the Experiential Learning Cycle, in which we start by having some sort of experience, then we reflect on this experience, generalize from it, and finally apply what we have learned from it to a new experience. He was teaching large classes, and at the same time reflecting on some of the problems he was facing (What is happening?).He was analyzing the causes of these problems (Why is this happening?), and was planning what he could do to overcome these problems (What happens next?).  

        Kolb thinks that people have different preferences for learning. Some of us have experience after experience but hardly reflect on them at all. Some of us are good reflectors, but like a quiet life and shy away from experiencing anything too unusual. Others reflect and analyze, but stop there, without making decisions to apply the reflection and analysis to new situations. Kolb states that for a full learning experience to take place, learners must complete all four steps of the Learning Cycle. He suggests that teachers can facilitate learning by consciously taking students through the Learning Cycle of experience, reflection, analysis and application.   

         What kind of learner are you?  Do you like to learn from specific experiences, and from how you feel about these experiences? Do you like to learn from watching and listening, and make your judgments only after careful observation? Do you like to learn through a systematic analysis of a situation? Do you like learn by doing things?

           Learning style theory measures preferences. If your preference is for learning by observation, don’t think   that this means you can’t take any action. It simply means that you prefer to learn by watching and thinking, not that you are incapable of action. If your preference is for learning from feelings, this does not mean that you cannot learn from thinking. The theory simply states that, starting with yourself, the more you know about different styles, the more you can help others identify and build on their learning style preferences.  

                                                                 Learning style preferences

         Kolb’s Learning Cycle has been further developed by Bernice McCarthy. McCarthy has applied experiential learning theory to the classroom and described four learning style preferences. Each of the four learning styles is based on a step in the Learning Cycle. She calls these styles: Activist learners, Reflector learners, Theorist learners and Pragmatist learners.

           Activist Learners are most comfortable in the first step of the Learning Cycle. The special skills of these learners lie in observing, questioning, visualizing, imagining, brainstorming and interacting. They respect the authority of a teacher when it has been earned. You can recognize these imaginative students by how well they respond to stories and poetry, and how they like to turn ideas on their heads.

Reflector learners are most comfortable in the second step of the Learning Cycle. The special skills of these learners lie in pattering, organizing, analyzing, classifying and comparing. They prefer a teacher to maintain a traditional role and to run lessons. For these students schooling is a serious business. They enjoy analyzing the structures of English, taking the language apart and putting it back together again. They appreciate a straight – up approach to grammar, explaining the rules and also the notions and concepts behind them. Their eyes light up at the mention of categorizing.

Theorist Learners are most comfortable in the third step of the Learning Cycle. The special skills of these learners lie in exploring and problem – solving, experimenting, predicting, recording and making things work. They see a teacher’s authority as necessary to good organization. These are the students who usually know where their belongings are, and seem to take pleasure in turning over the neatly copied pages of their notebooks. You can respond to their preferences by developing elaborate and even elegant ways of using your blackboard. Buy colored chalks, highlight important points, take special care over the presentation of the notes and tasks you reproduce and you will be rewarded by seeing the pleasure and appreciation on the faces of your students. Make your classroom visibly attractive by putting up pictures, posters, or displays of students’ work.  

               Pragmatist Learners are most comfortable in the fourth step of the Learning Cycle. The special skills of these learners lie in integrating, evaluating, summarizing, re- presenting and focusing. The Pragmatist learners will present with biggest challenge. These students tend, for better or for worse, to be the most physically active and to possess charismatic leadership qualities that attract the attention of their classmates. When you use Cooperative Learning techniques, you will find that these students can make or break group work. But when they get positively involved, they are invaluable. Use them as much possible as you can as reporters who summarize and report back to the whole class on the group’s activities.

A debating society can be a good place to channel the energy of pragmatist learners. Use the information you gathered about your students. You already have enough to do, so keep your role in debating society to that of an executive director with the final say on any decision. Encourage your students, particularly your pragmatist learners, to set up a committee to deal with the organization and day – to - day running of the debating society.

If the committee can arrange debates between classes, or even in exchange visits with other school debating clubs, so much the better. Pragmatist learners will keep you honest with their need to use real world English.

It’s easy enough in Anglophone countries to extend activities beyond the classroom and get students out interviewing local officials and experts, carrying out surveys and bringing in outside speakers. But it’s a little more difficult to pull this off in countries where English is not generally spoken. One way around this problem is through the use  of  ,, authentic materials.’’ Have access to English newspapers, take full advantage of this and use articles from these magazines and newspapers in your English classes.

             By being aware of the Experiential Learning Cycle, the four learning stiles, and the preferences of our activist, reflector, theorist and pragmatist learners, we can vary our activities so that we are playing to the strengths of all of our students.

Resources: Information Collection ,, Teaching English as a Foreign Language’’ (ToLargeMultilevelClasses.) February 1993.

,,Circle of Learning’’ by David W. Johnson, Edythe Johnson Holubec and Patricia Roy. 1984.

, Experiential Learning ‘’ by David A.Kolb.1984.

 

გამოყენებული ლიტერატურა: საინფორმაციო კოლლექცია ,, Teaching English as a Foreign

Language, Multilevel Classes.) თებერვალი 1993.

,, Circle of Learning’’ დავიდ უ. ჯონსონი, ედით ჯონსონ ჰოლუბეკი და პატრიცია როი

,, Experiential Learning ‘’ დავიდ ა. კოლბი. 1984.

Resume.

David Kolb is an exponent of experiential learning. He hypothesizes that people learn by going through the steps of the Experiential Learning Cycle. Kolb thinks that people have different preferences for learning. He suggests that teachers can facilitate learning by consciously taking students through the Learning Cycle of experience, reflection, analysis and application. Kolb’s Learning Cycle has been further developed by Bernice McCarthy. McCarthy has applied experiential learning theory to the classroom and described four learning style preferences. Each of the four learning styles is based on a step in the Learning Cycle. She calls these styles: Activist Learners, Reflector Learners, Theorist Learners and Pragmatist Learners. Activist Learners lie in observing, questioning . You can recognize them by how well they respond to stories and poetry, and how they like to turn ideas on their heads. Reflector Learners  lie in organizing, analyzing. . They enjoy analyzing the structures of English. Theorist Learners lie in exploring and problem – solving . Pragmatist Learners lie in integrating, evaluating, summarizing. By being aware of the Experiential Learning Cycle, and the preferences we can vary our activities so that we are playing to the strengths of all of our students.

  

რეზიუმე

სწავლის სტილის თეორია

ამერიკელი განათლების სპეციალისტი დ. კოლბი (Kolb, 1939) გვთავაზობს ზრდასრულთა სწავლის თეორიას, ე.წ. „ექსპერიმენტული სწავლის ციკლს,“ რომელიც აღწერითი ხასიათისაა. ამ ციკლის მიხედვით, არსებობს  მოსწავლეთა სწავლის ოთხი საფეხური: კონკრეტული გამოცდილების მიღება, რეფლექსია, განზოგადება, იდეების გამოცდა. კოლბი მიიჩნევს, რომ მასწავლებელი უნდა ითვალისწინებდეს ამ საფეხურებს. სწავლის ციკლის საფუძველზე კოლბმა თავის კოლეგასთან, ბერნიის მაკ კართთან ერთად, რომელმაც შემდგომში განავითარა ეს თეორია და გადაიტანა საკლასო ოთახში, ჩამოაყალიბა სწავლის ტიპების კლასიფიკაცია, რომლის   მიხედვით გამოიყოფა სწავლების ოთხი ტიპი: აქტიურად მოქმედ ინდივიდებს ახასიათებთ დაკვირვება და კითხვების დასმა. ჩვენ მათ ადვილად გამოვარჩევთ თუ როგორ რეაგირებენ ისინი პოეზიაზე, მოთხრობებზე, თუ როგორ ითავისებენ ამ ყველაფერს გონებაში. რეფლექტურად მოაზროვნე  შემსწავლელებს ახასიათებთ ჩამოყალიბება, ანალიზირება. მათ ძალიან მოსწონთ ინგლისურის სტრუქტურების ანალიზირება, თეორეტიკოს შემსწავლელებს ახასიათებთ კვლევა და პრობლემების გადაჭრა, ხოლო პრაგმატისტ შემსწავლელებს ინტეგრირება, შეფასება და დასკვნების გამოტანა. ექსპერიმენტული სწავლის ციკლისა და ტიპების ცოდნით, ასევე, სხვადასხვა მეთოდებით ჩვენ შეგვიძლია გავააქტიუროთ თითოეული მოსწავლის შესაძლებლობები.