Learners Styles.docx

CONVERGERS: skilled in the practical application of ideas; do best in situations where there is a single best solution to a problem. DIVERGERS: see the “big picture” and organise smaller bits into a meaningful whole; emotional & creative and enjoy brainstorming. VERBALISERS: represent information in the form of words; learn best from words/text. IMAGERS: tend to think pictorially; learn best from pictorial representations of information. HOLIST: work best by tackling a task as an integrated whole right from the start. Prefer “free-wheeling” coaching and teaching. SERIALISTS: work in a systematic, linear way, from parts-to-whole; enjoy tightly-structured coaching and teaching. DEEP: search for underlying concerns, implications, relations and meaning. SURFACE: rote memorisation of unrelated facts, short term retention, uncritical acceptance of ideas and facts, dependence on formulae to problem solve, passive information assimilation. ACTIVISTS: people who learn by doing; have an open mind, open to group discussions and problem-solving sessions. REFLECTORS: learns best by watching people and thinking about what is happening. They observe and collect data; work toward an appropriate conclusion. PRAGMATISTS: they experiment with theories, ideas, and techniques and think how to relate them to reality. THEORISTS: seek to understand the theory behind the action. They enjoy following models and reading up on facts to better engage in the learning process. ADAPTORS: modify behaviour, open to change, methodical, organised, precise, reliable. INNOVATORS: interested in personal meaning. They need to have reasons for learning; favours cooperative learning, brainstorming, and integration of content areas. ASSIMILATORS: interested in abstract ideas than in people, not greatly concerned with the practical applications of theories. EXPLORERS: doers, risk-takers; they enjoy performing experiments and carrying out plans in the real world. IMAGINATIVE: perceive information concretely; process it reflectively; believe in their own experience. ANALYTIC: interested in acquiring facts in order to deepen their understanding of concepts and processes. Learn from lectures, and enjoy independent research, analysis of data. NON-COMMITERS: cautious and anxious in establishing social relationships and in their academic work, risk averse. PLUNGERS: impulsive in their actions; followed idiosyncratic pathways in their thinking which others find difficult to follow. Emotional. COMMON SENSE: primarily interested in how things work; they want to “get in and try it”. Favourite question is: “how does it work?” DYNAMIC: interested in self-directed Discovery. They rely heavily on their own intuition, and seek to teach both themselves and others. Favourite question: What if? CONCRETE: like to learn through their physical senses, what they can touch, see, hear, taste and smell. They like to deal with things that exist in the physical world. ABSTRACT: prefer the world of ideas and feelings. They use reason and intuition to deal with ideas, concepts, and feelings. RANDOM: organise information by chunks, and in no particular order; more impulsive than planned. SEQUENTIAL: organise information in a linear, step-by-step manner; prefer to have a plan to follow it. INITIATORS: preference to develop understanding by spontaneity. REASONERS: preference to develop understanding through reasoning.

EXTROVERTS: feel fully fulfilled and content being surrounded by people. Social type; focused on the breadth of everything. INTROVERTS: recharge from within because this is how they get their signal that they are in full control of themselves; very observant and sharp listeners. SENSING: create meaning from conscious thought; attention to facts and solid data; focus on what is immediate, practical and real, and live life as it is. They like logic and tend to pursue things in a clear sequence. INTUITION: process data more deeply than sensors; trust their subconscious and “sixth sense” or intuition; good at spotting patterns and taking a high-level view, have a focus on the future. THINKING: tend to subdue and override their feelings with their rational logic; seek logic and rational arguments. FEELING: follow their hearts and emotions and care little about hiding them; tend to be compassionate, sensitive and emotional. JUDGING: approach life in a structured way, creating plans and organising their world to achieve their goals and desired results in a predictable way. Self-disciplined and decisive, and seek closure in decisions. PERCEIVING: perceive structure as being more limiting than enabling. They prefer to keep their choices open so they can cope with many problems that life will put in their way. Curious and like to expand their knowledge, adaptable. LEFT BRAINERS: verbal, analytical; sometimes called the digital brain. It’s better at things like reading, writing, and computations. RIGHT BRAINERS: more visual and intuitive; sometimes referred to as the analog brain. It has a more creative and less organised way of thinking. MEANING-DIRECTED: self-regulation of learning and processing that integrate applications of learning and independent thinking. MEANING-UNDIRECTED: display difficulty in determining between primary and secondary points, struggling with the amount of information. ACTIVISTS: people who learn by doing; have an open mind, open to group discussions and problem-solving sessions. THEORISTS: seek to understand they theory behind the action; follow models and seek background information. ORGANISERS: the best organisers are motivated by a strong sense of justice and clear principles. They’re responsible, honest, and compassionate. They’re confident, even courageous. Organisers must be good listeners. INNOVATORS: a person who introduces new methods, ideas, or products. Someone who helps to open up a new line of research or technology or art. FIELD DEPENDENT: tend to look at patterns or relationships between parts first before looking at the whole picture. FIELD INDEPENDENT: tend to look at the whole picture first and isolate or break it down into smaller parts after. GLOBAL: learn in large jumps, absorbing material almost randomly without seeing connections, and then suddenly “getting it”; solve complex problems quickly have difficulty explaining how they did it. ANALYTICAL: learns by separating information into parts and then as a whole.