An Educator's Guide to Teaching Styles and Learning Styles (2023)

Hello, welcome to the Educator's Guide to Teaching and Learning Styles. Today's discussion topic: How the learning style of the students affects the teaching style of the educators and vice versa. Here's the schedule for our key talking points:

• Individual learning styles of students
• The theory of multiple intelligences
• Teacher-centered versus student-centered
• Teaching Styles: 5 Approaches to Education
• Lifelong Education for Teachers: Impact of an M.Ed.
• follow-up questionnaire

Editor's Note: Choosing to playfully craft this blog post to read like a classroom lecture is a writing strategy intended to engage the reader in a hopefully informative discussion of important educational concepts and practices.

learning styles of students

If you're a teacher, you know that no two students are the same and that there are a variety of different learning styles. An educator's teaching style can therefore have a profound impact on a student's ability to learn and understand. For this reason, knowledge of different learning styles is essential for teachers.

Does Andrea learn most effectively through pictures and graphics? she can be onevisual learner.

Does Jeremy seem to understand the material better by listening to lectures, asking questions and participating in group discussions? he can be oneauditiver Lerner.

Do Max and Emily prefer to gather information by reading, taking notes, and writing reports or essays? you can beReading/writing student.

And what about Dylan? She is very hands-on and seems to enjoy taking things apart and putting them back together - to learn by doing. she can be onekinesthetic learner.

This is a common classification of the learning style spectrum, but of course it is not the only one. (One of the first lessons you learn from exploring learning styles is that there are many different theories.)

one is thetheory of multiple intelligences, developed by a Harvard educator in the late 1970s and early 1980sHoward Gardner (see video)who believed he existedeight different “intelligences”closely related to learning. These are:

• visual-spatial— The ability to conceive and manipulate large-scale spatial matrices (e.g. airplane pilot, sailor) or more local spatial forms (e.g. architect, chess player).
• physical kinetics— The ability to use the whole body or parts of the body (e.g. hands or mouth) to solve problems or create products (e.g. dancers).
• Musical— Sensitivity to rhythm, pitch, meter, pitch, melody and timbre. It may involve the ability to sing, play musical instruments, and/or compose music (eg, conducting music).
• Linguistics— Sensitivity to the meaning of words, the order between words and the sound, rhythms, inflections and meters of words (e.g. poet). Sometimes called language intelligence.
• Mathematical logician— The ability to conceive logical relationships between actions or symbols (e.g. mathematicians, scientists).
• interpersonal— The ability to interact effectively with others. Sensitivity to the moods, feelings, temperaments, and motivations of others (e.g., negotiators). Sometimes called social intelligence.
• intrapersonal— Sensitivity to one's own feelings, goals and fears, and the ability to plan and act according to one's characteristics. It's not job specific; Rather, it is related to each individual's ability to make consistent decisions for themselves. Sometimes also called self-intelligence.
• naturalist— The ability to make consistent distinctions in the natural world, for example between one plant and another, or between one cloud formation and another. Sometimes referred to as the intelligence of nature.

The idea behind multiple intelligence theories is not that people only learn in one way, but that people are stronger in different areas and can demonstrate their knowledge and skills in different ways. It can be helpful for teachers to tune into these distinctions to understand how to better connect with individual students.

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A bunch of different teaching styles

There are two main groups into which most teaching styles fall: teacher-centered or student-centered. Here's a closer lookTeacher-centered teaching versus student-centered approach:

Teacher-centric approach

The teacher-centred approach to education positions the teacher as the expert responsible for imparting knowledge to their students through lectures or direct instruction. In this approach (sometimes referred to as “Sage on Stage”), students are passive actors or “empty vessels” listening and absorbing information.

This teacher-centered style is the traditional approach to teaching, but it's not necessarily the best. And as educators learn more about effective ways to engage students of all styles, the teacher-centered approach is less welcomed than it used to be. However, there are also countless examples of students being challenged and transformed by a professor lecturing on a subject they have spent a lifetime studying.

student-centred approach

The student-centred approach creates more equanimity between teacher and student, with each playing a role in the learning process. In this approach, the teacher is sometimes referred to as the "side guide."

While the teacher still has authority, he acts more as a facilitator, coaching students and helping them learn. This approach encourages student choice and facilitates student-to-student connections. Some styles within the student-centred teaching approach are:

Query-based style
This student-centered learning style encourages independence, autonomy, and hands-on learning, with students leading the way and being guided by their teachers.

cooperative style
Cooperative learning is a student-centred approach that focuses on group work and social growth. Similar to the inquiry-based style, the collaborative style encourages independence and hands-on learning, but places a special emphasis on collaboration with peers and the community.

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Ask: How many teaching styles are there?
responder:This is something of a "tricky question" because, as you might expect, different educational theorists offer different ideas about the scope, scope, descriptions (and numbers) of different styles of instruction.S.

While there are no "right answers" in this case, many educational resources break down the different teaching styles as follows:five main categories:

Lecturer or authoritarian style
The prevailing teaching style follows the traditional teacher-centred approach, usually characterized by lecture sessions or one-sided presentations. In this approach (also known as the “chalk-and-talk” style), students are expected to pay attention, absorb information, take notes, and ask questions.

Demonstrator or Coach style
The demonstrator style, commonly used in math, science, and music, involves more "showing" than "telling," with teachers more likely to support information with examples or experiments, demonstrations, or multimedia presentations.

Facilitator or activity style
The facilitator/teacher focuses on encouraging self-learning and helping students develop critical learning and thinking skills. A student-centric approach involves creating learning plans and lessons that require students to explore and discover course content in creative and original ways.

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Delegator or group style
The delegating teaching style lends itself well to curricula that involve or emphasize group activities, and shifts much of the responsibility for learning to students, who are encouraged to work collaboratively on projects related to lesson topics (think science labs, debates etc.). . In this style, the teacher is an active observer working to guide the students in the right direction.

Hybrid or mixed style

The hybrid approach can incorporate elements of the styles discussed above, often mixing the teacher's personality and interests with those of the students. While this method is seen as inclusive and allows teachers to tailor their style to the needs of students within the subject, some educators believe it risks diluting the learning process by placing less emphasis on in-depth study than focused on following a one-on-one approach.

The above discussion is not intended to reduce the organic practice of classroom teaching into simple categories, or to classify educators as one or another "type" of teacher - but rather to explore various methods to improve our shared understanding of the classroom experience. It's about getting to know your students and using their skills and instincts to find the most effective ways to engage individual students and entire classes in your curriculum.

Knowing each student well enough to teach them effectively is a particular challenge for middle and high school teachers who have different students every lesson. What works for one student or group may not work for the next.

This is why it's so important for educators to have a strong sense of the range of different student learning styles and a solid understanding of the different teaching styles and strategies you can employ to be the most effective educator.

Lifelong Training for Teachers: Implications of a Master's Degree

Educators motivated to develop a deeper understanding of different teaching styles, learning styles, and instructional theory, and more often pursue a Masters in Education. These programs not only offer the opportunity to become a better educator, but in many school districts, an M.Ed. There will also be a pay rise for the teachers.

To expand educational opportunities for busy faculty, the University of San Diego has an innovative, 100% onlineMaster's degree in Pedagogywhich gives teachers the opportunity to earn their M.Ed. on their own schedule while interacting and learning with other educators around the country.

ÖM.Ed. specializationscontain:

• STEAM(Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics)
• Inclusive learning: special education and universal design(UDL)
• curriculum and instruction
• Literacy and digital learning
• principal
• Innovation and educational technology

Follow-up Questionnaire:

1. What are some of your most effective teaching strategies?
2. What aspects of education (or majors) would you like to learn more about?
3. Have you thought about taking your teaching mastery to the next level?

If you answered yes to question 3, you may want to do thisStart a conversation with a USD advisorabout how our Masters program can help you achieve your goals as an educator and as a lifelong learner.