Learning Styles By Anabel Velazquez

The VARK Model of Learning To find out more about how students learn, I’m going to focus on the VARK model of learning. Let’s start by explaining what VARK is; The VARK model of learning is a model designed by Neil D. Fleming, and it refers to the four types of learning styles: Visual, auditory, reading/reading, and kinesthetic (Learning styles, 2008).

What VARK stands for Visual learning applies to students who learn by using pictures, movies, or diagrams to access and understand new information. Auditory learning is for those who learn better by using music, discussion or lectures; learners who best understand content through listening and speaking. Reading and writing are for the person that likes reading textbooks, taking notes or making lists. The last of the VARK model is the kinesthetic learning, and it works best for those who like movement, experiment and hands-on activities (Cherry, 2016).

How does VARK help students learning The VARK model besides helping students and others learn more about their individual learning preferences, it can also help students find strategies for upcoming tests or assignments. For example, for visual learners, a good strategy could be to replace important words with symbols or to highlight important key terms in corresponding colors. For auditory learners talking to others upon their understanding of a topic, or explaining notes to each other can be very useful strategies. For those who learn by reading and writing good strategies are to rewrite words and notes or to reword main ideas and principles to gain a deeper understanding. Using real life examples and redo lab experiments or projects, are useful strategies for kinesthetic learners (Learning styles, 2008).

Conclusion Implementing these learning styles into lesson plans and study techniques could be very helpful for teachers and students (Learning styles, 2008). The VARK model is designed to help students and others about their individual learning preferences. I believe learning styles are tools to help a person understand how other people learn in many different ways; everyone’s different, everyone learns differently. Using the appropriate learning style can influence the student's behavior and learning, it can also increase a student comprehension, motivation and metacognition level (Learning styles, 2008). I considered The VARK model as a beneficial tool for a classroom, I think knowing the different styles can help a teacher to be better.

References Cherry, K. (2016, July 01). VARK Learning Styles. Retrieved February 27, 2017 https://www.verywell.com/vark-learning-styles-2795156 Learning Styles. (2008) Retrieved February 27, 2017 https://teach.com/what/teachers-teach/learning-styles/

Responses To: Brittney Noland Brittney, your post is very interesting. You are reflecting a different point of view, and it's very impressive. I totally agree with you that instead of assigning a particular learning style teachers should encourage them to analyze what learning and study strategies work best for them in different situations. I enjoyed reading your post; it was very informative   To: April Feduccia I also focused on the VARK model of learning. I think it's important for teachers to know the different ways that students learn. I agree with you when you say, "the way a person learns could change over time" That something I had never thought about and it’s a crucial factor that teachers should know. I appreciate your explanation and your point of view.