ГУМАНИТАРЛЫҚ ЖӘНЕ ӘЛЕУМЕТТІК ҒЫЛЫМДАРЫ
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Кілтті сӛздер: ақпаратты қабылдау түрлері, аудиал, визуал, кинестетик.
The problems of teaching foreign languages
concern both linguistics and psychology. Nowadays
there is a tendency to improve the existing methods
of teaching foreign languages as well as the search
for new effective approaches.
The term ―Learning styles‖ means that
students learn in different ways. Learning styles
affect everything you do, how you think, study and
work. It is important for educators to understand the
differences in their students’ learning styles, so that
they can implement best practice strategies into
their daily activities, curriculum and assessments.
Learning styles refer to a range of theories
that aim to account for differences in individuals'
learning. These theories propose that all people can
be classified according to their 'style' of learning,
although the various theories present differing views
on how the styles should be defined and
categorised. A common concept is that individuals
differ in how they learn.
The idea of individualized learning styles
became popular in the 1970s, and has greatly
influenced education despite the criticism that the
idea has received from some researchers.
Proponents recommend that teachers assess the
learning styles of their students and adapt their
classroom methods to best fit each student's
learning style.
There are many models of different learning
styles in education. The most widely used is the
VAK learning styles model.
The VAK learning style uses the three main
sensory receivers: Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic
to determine the dominant learning style. It is based
on modalities-channels by which human expression
can take place and is composed of a combination of
perception and memory.
Learners use all three modalities to receive
and learn new information and experiences.
However, according to the VAK or modality theory,
one or two of these receiving styles is normally
dominant.
Our learning style is forced upon us through
life like this: In grades kindergarten to third, new
information is presented to us kinesthetically; grades
4 to 8 are visually presented; while grades 9 to
college and on into the business environment, infor-
mation is presented to us mostly through auditory
means, such as lectures.
Neil Fleming's VARK model expanded upon
earlier notions of sensory modalities such as the
VAK model of Barbe and colleagues and the repre-
sentational systems in neuro-linguistic program-
ming. The four sensory modalities in Fleming's
model are:
Visual learning
Auditory learning
Read/write learning
Kinesthetic learning
Fleming claimed that visual learners have a
preference for seeing (visual aids that represent
ideas using methods other than words, such as
graphs, charts, diagrams, symbols, etc.). Auditory
learners best learn through listening (lectures,
discussions, tapes, etc.). Tactile/kinesthetic learners
prefer to learn via experience
—
moving, touching,
and doing (active exploration of the world, science
projects, experiments, etc.). Students can use the
model to identify their preferred learning style and, it
is claimed, maximize their learning by focusing on
the mode that benefits them the most [1].
Learning modalities
Walter Burke Barbe and colleagues proposed
three learning modalities (often identified by the
acronym VAK):
Visualising modality
Auditory modality
Kinesthetic modality
Table 1. Descriptions of learning modalities
Visual
Kinesthetic
Auditory
Picture
Gestures
Listening
Shape
Body movements
Rhythms
Sculpture
Object manipulation
Tone
Paintings
Positioning
Chants
Barbe and colleagues reported that learning
modality strengths can occur independently or in
combination (although the most frequent modality
strengths, according to their research, are visual or
mixed), they can change over time, and they
become integrated with age. They also pointed out
that learning modality strengths are different from
preferences; a person's self-reported modality prefe-
rence may not correspond to their empirically mea-
sured modality strength. This disconnect between
strengths and preferences was confirmed by a sub-
sequent study. Nevertheless, some scholars have
criticized the VAK model. Psychologist Scott Lilien-
feld and colleagues have argued that much use of
the VAK model is nothing more than pseudoscience
or a psychological urban legend [2].
Learning styles in the classroom
Various researchers have attempted to hypo-
thesize ways in which learning style theory can be
used in the classroom. Two such scholars are Rita
ГУМАНИТАРНЫЕ И СОЦИАЛЬНЫЕ НАУКИ
131
Dunn and Kenneth Dunn, who build upon a learning
modalities approach.
Although learning styles will inevitably differ
among students in the classroom, Dunn and Dunn
say that teachers should try to make changes in
their classroom that will be beneficial to every
learning style. Some of these changes include room
redesign, the development of small-group techni-
ques, and the development of "contract activity
packages". Redesigning the classroom involves
locating dividers that can be used to arrange the
room creatively (such as having different learning
stations and instructional areas), clearing the floor
area, and incorporating student thoughts and ideas
into the design of the classroom.
Dunn and Dunn's "contract activity packages"
are educational plans that use: a clear statement of
the learning need; multisensory resources (auditory,
visual, tactile, kinesthetic); activities through which
the newly mastered information can be used
creatively; the sharing of creative projects within
small groups; at least three small-group techniques;
a pre-test, a self-test, and a post-test.
Another scholar who believes that learning
styles should have an effect on the classroom is
Marilee Sprenger in Differentiation through Learning
Styles and Memory. She bases her work on three
premises:
Teachers can be learners, and learners
teachers. We are all both.
Everyone can learn under the right
circumstances.
Learning is fun! Make it appealing.
Sprenger details how to teach in visual,
auditory, or tactile/kinesthetic ways.
Methods for visual learners include
ensuring that students can see words written, using
pictures, and drawing timelines for events.
Methods for auditory learners include
repeating words aloud, small-group discussion,
debates, listening to books on tape, oral reports,
and oral interpretation.
Methods for tactile/kinesthetic learners
include hands-on activities (experiments, etc.),
projects, frequent breaks to allow movement, visual
aids,
role play, and field trips.
Students preferentially take in and process in-
formation in different ways: by seeing and hearing,
reflecting and acting, reasoning logically and intuit-
tively, analyzing and visualizing, steadily and in fits
and starts. Teaching methods vary as well. Some
instructors lecture, others demonstrate or lead stu-
dents to self-discovery; some focus on principles
and others on applications; some emphasize
memory and others understanding.
By using a variety of teaching methods from
each of these categories, teachers cater to different
learning styles at once, and improve learning by
challenging students to learn in different ways.
Many of the student learning problems that
learning style diagnosis attempts to solve relate
directly to elements of the human information pro-
cessing system. Processes such as attention, per-
ception and memory, and operations such as integ-
ration and retrieval of information are internal to the
system. Any hope for improving student learning ne-
cessarily involves an understanding and application
of information processing theory. Learning style
assessment can provide a window to understanding
and managing this process [3].
Auditory learners often talk to themselves.
They also may move their lips and read out loud.
They may have difficulty with reading and writing
tasks. They learn best through verbal lectures,
discussions, talking things through and listening to
what others have to say. Auditory learners interpret
the underlying meanings of speech through listening
to tone of voice, pitch, speed and other nuances.
Written information may have little meaning until it is
heard. These learners often benefit from reading
text aloud and using a tape recorder.
Visual learners have two sub-channels
—
linguistic and spatial. Learners who are visual-
linguistic like to learn through written language, such
as reading and writing tasks. They remember what
has been written down. They like to write down
directions and pay better attention to lectures if they
watch them. Learners who are visual-spatial usually
have difficulty with the written language and do
better with charts, demonstrations, videos, and other
visual materials. They easily rememberfaces and
places by using their imagination and get lost in new
surroundingsvery seldom.These learners need to
see the teacher's body language and facial
expression to fully understand the content of a
lesson. They tend to prefer sitting at the front of the
classroom to avoid visual obstructions (e.g. people's
heads). They may think in pictures and learn best
from visual displays including: diagrams, illustrated
text books, overhead transparencies, videos, flip-
charts and hand-outs. During a lecture or classro-
om discussion, visual learners often prefer to take
detailed notes to absorb the information.
Kinesthetic learners do best while touching
and moving. It also has two sub-channels: kines-
thetic (movement) and tactile (touch). They tend to
lose concentration if there is little or no external
stimulation or movement. When listening to lectures
they may want to take notes for the sake of moving
their hands. When reading, they like to scan the
material first, and then focus in on the details. They
typically use color high lighters and take notes by
drawing pictures, diagrams, or doodling. Tactile /ki-
nesthetic persons learn best through a hands-on
approach, actively exploring the physical world
around them. They may find it hard to sit still for long
periods and may become distracted by their need
for activity and exploration.
Common Characteristics
Visual
• Uses visual objects such as graphs, charts,
pictures, and seeing information
• Can read body language well and has a
good perception of aesthetics